Highly respected and decorated actress Audra McDonald has opened up about a shocking past suicide attempt.

The 44-year-old told ABC’s “Popcorn with Peter Travers” that she had a rocky time while at Juilliard.

“When I was [in college] at Juilliard, I had a suicide attempt,” said the six-time Tony winner. “I tried to slit my wrist.”

“When someone is suicidal, one of the first things you have to do is to protect them from themselves,” said the mother of a 14-year-old daughter. “They had a mental health facilitator there, a therapist there and they checked me into a mental health hospital where I was for a month and got me the help I needed.”

She’s thankful she received the support and proper attention from professionals, who recognized that the rising star was better off taking a role in the traveling tour of “The Secret Garden.”

“Juilliard was like … ‘We think that that musical theater thing is more for you anyway. That seems to be where you’re the happiest,'” explained McDonald, who’s currently playing Billie Holiday in “Lady at Emerson’s Bar & Grill.”

“I went out and did ‘Secret Garden’ and then I came back and finished Juilliard,” she continued.

McDonald is the most decorated Broadway actress of all time with six Tony wins. Her most recent award for “Lady” pushed her ahead of Angela Lansbury and Julie Harris. She caused a stir when she thanked her parents for not medicating their hyperactive girl.