Somewhere, in early 2017, Eli Holly was one of the promising contestants at De Weiss.
Aviv Geffen fell in love with him, the audience at home voted for him, and the occupying and inexperienced high school student from Lod reached the final.
It seemed that a map could only be climbed, but with success came the anxieties.
On screen he shelled out mesmerizing performance, but behind the scenes everything looked different.
"It was the first time I experienced anxiety attacks," he recalls.
“It happened then right at the start of the season, but I knew I shouldn’t break, and I pretty much kept myself from falling.
"It was a pressure of broadcasts, including live. At one point the viewers at home chose for us the song to be performed, and there I experienced something extreme. I had to sing two songs I did not know, and I was afraid I could not meet my expectations of myself, and the pressure went into the attack. On a mission, but I was in constant anxiety. "
Sick with the other candidates in the "X Factor for Eurovision" final, Photo: Noy Dekel
Choli (23) still lives in Lod with his parents, and is one of the excellent and prominent singers in "The X Factor" who will try on Saturday night to win the final of the program, which will be broadcast on the network, and to represent Israel in the competition.
In an interview with the "Shishvat" supplement, he talks candidly about dealing with anxiety and treating pills.
"I was with a psychiatrist at the age of 17, and he offered me medication, but only after three years did I agree to try. After half a year with pills, I already felt different, and I am still treated today."
Have you been debating whether to talk about your anxieties in public?
"I think it's actually amazing to talk about it. An anxiety attack is something mental that goes to the physical plane, and the pills help me. I have nothing to hide. It might even help others who are dealing with similar situations.
"I remember Asi Ezer talking about his anxieties in the past, and I said to myself, 'What fun people are spreading this, I wish they would talk more.' People are afraid to take pills, sometimes because of the stigma, but it really saved me."
Weren't you afraid to go back to a stressful program in prime time?
"Getting to The X Factor, for me, was kind of like going back to the crime scene, because I knew I would experience it again. Now I'm trying to figure out what's going on. A panic attack breaks out when there is great extreme pressure, and I learn to accept and live with it. "The X Factor" after going through what I went through at the time in The Voice, so I'm much more prepared and confident now. "
In the full interview, he talks about his dream of representing Israel in the competition, about his relationship with the contestant Inbal Bibi and what his plans are for the day after the grand final.
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