I'm So Glad Luis Ortiz Is Opening Up About His Mental Health

Luis is back on Million Dollar Listing New York and he's not exactly the same real estate agent that I remember watching on earlier seasons of the show. The person I used to think of as an over-excited, sometimes annoying little brother has struggled, grown up, and on the Aug. 15 episode of the show he announced he's about to be a father. I'm rooting for him, and tweets about Luis from Million Dollar Listing New York reveal that so many of his fans are, too.

Luis has struggled with depression and he's opened up about his battle on Season 8 of the show. "When I left New York, I thought I was going to, I thought everything was going to be flying balloons and flying elephants," he said during an episode. "I thought I was going to be happily ever after, but it was the opposite."

He fell in love with a woman, and when she broke his heart, all of the warnings his friends gave him about moving overseas became a reality. He started to blame himself for the breakup and admitted on the Aug. 8 episode of MDNY, "Deep inside I was depressed, right?" Luis explained because of the stigma attached to mental illness, he tried to hide it. And he still has a hard time talking about it. "...I struggle with saying so because we're taught that that little thing called depression — it's something to run away from, it's something to not speak about, it's something that we're taught to be ashamed of."

Now, Luis is back in New York to start fresh, and despite his past, he has a wonderful future ahead. "I'm having a kid, I'm having a baby girl," he revealed on the Aug. 15 episode of the show. His emotional struggles won't just disappear and Luis is worried about that. But I hope he finds the happiness he deserves in fatherhood and beyond. Fans on Twitter agree with me.

Entertainment reporter Ingrid Meilan tweeted, "I’m worried about Luis from Million Dollar Listing, you guys." I completely understand why, but moving back home to Manhattan seems like a step in the right direction. He's surrounded by friends like Fredrik, and getting back into the real estate business where he belongs.

He's also teaming up with his former assistant Ronita "Ronnie" Kalra on this season. Luis is no longer Ronnie's boss, so there are going to be growing pains within the partnership. Ronnie definitely is not interested in going back to their former dynamic at all. "You took over and I didn't really get much of a word in," Ronnie told Luis in a candid conversation. Honesty can be hard to hear, but the team seems to be going strong because their employer Douglas Elliman Real Estate calls the pair "The Luis D. Ortiz and Ronita Kalra Team".

Sharing responsibilities will take some of the pressure of the industry off of Luis, so I think he made a great choice. Plus, Ronnie is mom to baby Lyanna so she can give him parenting advice.

The world needs more people like Luis opening up about their emotional struggles. I'm proud of him and I can't wait to watch this new chapter of his story.

Million Dollar Listing New York airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo.