May is Mental Health Awareness Month and Ryan Reynolds is issuing a statement about his experience with mental health before the month is over.
It may be the end of the month, but that isn’t stopping Ryan from getting real about his “lifelong mental health struggle.”
Like many people in the world, Ryan has struggled from crippling anxiety for years. Despite the fame, fortune and his beautiful family, he is struggling.
In an Instagram post published on Wednesday, Ryan wrote, “May is almost over. It’s also Mental Health Awareness month. Which brings me to this. One of the reasons I’m posting this so late is I overscheduled myself and important things slip.”
Celebrities, they’re truly just like us!
One look at Ryan’s IMDB and there are countless valid reasons for him nearly missing out posting this message. He’s got about nine projects either completed, in production or announced in 2021.
Ryan continued, “And one of the reasons I overschedule myself is my lifelong pal, anxiety. I know I’m not alone and more importantly, to all those like me who overschedule, overthink, overwork, over-worry and over over-everything, please know you’re not alone. We don’t talk enough about mental health and don’t do enough to destigmatize talking about it. But, as with this post, better late than never, I hope…”
This is hardly the first time Ryan has been candid about his struggle with anxiety and mental health.
During a 2017 interview with Variety, Ryan detailed growing up in Vancouver with anxiety.
He said quote, “I have three older brothers. Our father was tough. He wasn’t easy on anyone. And he wasn’t easy on himself. I think the anxiety might have started there, trying to find ways to control others by trying to control myself. At the time, I never recognized that. I was just a twitchy kid.”
He echoed this sentiment again in 2018 with fashion magazine MR PORTER.
He told the outlet, “My dad was a tough guy. He was good in many ways as well, but he was tough on us. This is not meant to be some sob story—everyone carries their own bag of rocks around and I am no different in that regard—but growing up in my house, it was never relaxing or easy and I know that, throughout my life, I’ve dealt with anxiety in different ways.”
Ryan expressed he “wouldn’t wish this (anxiety) on anyone,” but did admit that anxiety can be a great source of fuel. He called it the anti-complacency pill.
Portraying ‘Deadpool’ has provided Ryan outlet to manage his anxiety. He said, “When the curtain opens, I turn on this knucklehead, and he kind of takes over and goes away again once I walk off set.”
Filming for ‘Deadpool 3’ reportedly won’t begin until 2022 at the earliest.
