This post has been updated since its original publication date to include new info
When we look at Ryan Reynolds, we see a confident, successful, and funny actor (you only have to look at his Twitter exchanges with 36-year-old wife Blake Lively to see that he is just as funny off-screen as he is on) with a gorgeous wife and three beautiful daughters, James, 8, Inez, 7, and Betty, 4.
However, the 46-year-old Deadpool star has confessed on several occasions over the years that things aren’t quite as they seem, as he has suffered with extreme anxiety for most of his life. Earlier this month, Reynolds once again made some candid confessions about his ongoing mental health struggles, telling fans that his management of his mental health is “not always great,” while revealing some of the “rituals” that help him cope.
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Ryan Reynolds Opens Up About His Mental Health Struggles
The Green Lantern actor most recently opened up about his mental health struggles on Monday, October 9th during the 11th Annual Revels & Revelations Gala for Bring Change to Mind, a mental health nonprofit organization in San Francisco, California started by actress Glenn Close. The father-of-three told Page Six that he feels like his mind is spinning "out of control," every now and again, adding that his management of his mental health is "not always great, to be honest."
"I certainly have my own little rituals and those kinds of things that help me stay grounded and keep my mind from spinning out of control," Reynolds told the outlet, adding: "Sometimes I’m really good at it, sometimes I’m not."
Reynolds confessed that taking "time" for himself is very important, and said that he often turns to meditation to help him switch off. He also said: "I tend to overbook myself when I’m spiraling that way. I’m sort of aware of that stuff and I manage it as well as you can."
Ryan Reynolds Previously Got Candid About His Anxiety And Thinking 'Something Horrible's Gonna Happen'
This isn’t the first time the Spirited actor has opened up about his anxiety, as he spoke candidly about it on CBS Sunday Mornings in February 2022.
"I’ve had anxiety my whole life really. And you know, I feel like I have two parts of my personality, that one takes over when that happens," the Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard actor, who announced that he was taking a well-deserved break from acting the year before, confessed, before giving an example of some of the things that go through his head before he makes a public appearance.
"When I would go out on, like, Letterman, back in the day, I was nervous," Reynolds recalled in the CBS Sunday Mornings interview, before adding how his anxiety causes him to feel like an entirely "different person" when he is in front of the camera.
"But I remember I'd be standing backstage before the curtain would open, and I would think to myself, 'I'm gonna die. I'm literally gonna die here. The curtain's gonna open and I'm just gonna be, I'm just gonna be a symphony of vomit,' just, like, something horrible's gonna happen!"
"But as soon as that curtain opens – and this happens in my work a lot too – it's like this little guy takes over," Reynolds continued. "And he's like, 'I got this. You're cool.' I feel, like, my heart rate drop, and my breathing calm, and I just sort of go out and I'm this different person. And I leave that interview going, 'God, I'd love to be that guy!'"
The Red Notice actor also opened up about his struggles with his mental health back in May 2021. He once again spoke about his struggles with anxiety, and credited his wife and children for his decision to talk about it openly and share his struggles with the public, especially because it affects so many other people in the world! "Part of it is that I have three daughters at home and part of my job as a parent is to model behaviors and model what it's like to be sad and model what it's like to be anxious, or angry. That there's space for all these things," the Free Guy actor said at the time.
He added: "The home that I grew in, that wasn't modeled for me really. And that's not to say that my parents were neglectful, but they come from a different generation. Part of that is to destigmatize things and create a conversation around mental health. I know that when I felt at the absolute bottom, it's usually been because I felt like I was alone in something I was feeling. So I think when people talk about it, I don't necessarily dwell on it or lament on it, but I think it's important to talk about it. And when you talk about it, it kind of sets other people free."
