MANILA - Former "It's Showtime" host Coleen Garcia earned praise from Filipino viewers for her solid portrayal of a mentally challenged teenager on "Maalaala Mo Kaya."

Garcia, on Saturday's episode of the drama anthology, played Pauleen, a young girl who, after being abandoned by her parents at an early age, turned to alcohol and drugs.

Her addiction led to her developing several mental illnesses like intellectual disability, auditory hallucination, antisocial personality disorder, and epilepsy.

Clueless about her condition, Pauleen's father Bernard (Joey Marquez), who decided to take her back, resorted to violence to restrain her behavior. At one point, he kept his teenage daughter chained to a small cage inside their home while he looked for help.

Bernard eventually sought professionals, letting doctors take her to an undisclosed rehabilitation center in Manila. The episode concluded with Bernard promising his daughter that he will welcome her back after she is cured of her illnesses.

Garcia, moments after, took to Instagram to thank those who caught her performance, and urged fans to educate themselves on the different mental health issues and the struggles that comes with being diagnosed with such.

"Many wrongfully generalize others with special conditions by simply using the term "baliw". We need to understand that there is so much more to people than just that one word," she wrote, referring to the the abusive treatment her character received from her parents and neighbors.

"The more we understand people, the closer we get to actually helping them instead of turning to solutions that only worsen the problem. People with special needs cannot help themselves, and this is most certainly not their fault nor choice.

"And yes, this does concern us more than we know. Being unaware does not make our communities immune. I know it is especially difficult in our country because, here in the Philippines, a large percentage of our population works hard just to make ends meet and struggles when faced with hospital bills for physical health conditions.

"What more for mental health problems? I hope that one day our government will have the means to give more attention to these issues. Nevertheless, awareness does go a long way, and it's always a great place to start! Hope today's episode made you learn, and feel, something different. Thank you so much, mga Kapamilya," she concluded.

Throughout the episode, the hashtag "#MMKKadena" topped the list of local trending topics on Twitter. Many, including her boyfriend, heaped praised on Garcia's debut on the beloved show.

"I am speechless my love," Billy Crawford said. "Wonderful performance. You have shown the world that you are an A class actress. You are so blessed that you were given an opportunity to shine like this!"

#MMKKadena Never been a fan, but hands down to @coleengarcia for tonight's drama episode. An eye opener that mental disorder is not a joke.

— highkey (@mnslayrr) July 23, 2016

Coleen Garcia was magnificent. She deserves standing ovation for her effective acting. Wow! #MMKKadena

— minute (@minettss) July 23, 2016

Wow! I was impressed by coleen's performance tonight! She deserves a best actress award... It made me cry while watching it.. #MMKKadena

— Juan Directioner (@labis_reymond) July 23, 2016

#MMKKadena a while ago teaches us people to be people. On the other side, it also shows us that @coleengarcia is really a great actress!!

— Lery Daguman (@leryboi) July 23, 2016

My favorite Coleen Garcia's project is #Y. Sobrang effective niya dun. I guess this MMK episode is another 💣 #MMKKadena

— KeepingUpW/TheReids (@ShenPineda) July 23, 2016

I respect @coleengarcia as an artist now! Your portrayal of Pauleen was mind-blowing. I can so relate with disabilities #MMKKadena ⛓⚙️❤️💁🏻

— undefined. (@_joshrey) July 23, 2016

Ang creepy naman nitong MMK. Coleen is really good in acting 👍👍 #MMKKadena

— Cindy Dealagdon (@dea_cindy08) July 23, 2016