Ryan Reynolds and his battle with anxiety
One of the least likely actors you might expect to get nervous might be Ryan Reynolds, who is known for his bantering, humor, and wisecracks in movies and real life. Yet, ever since he was a child, Ryan has dealt with anxiety. Due to these feelings, he would experience insomnia and nausea. In his early 20s, the actor would self-medicate with drugs to overcome it. Even after becoming a movie star, he would dread doing talk show appearances and interviews.
After filming Deadpool, Reynolds had a minor nervous breakdown due to all the pressure and expectations of the movie. He and others have said that his on-screen persona differs from his regular one; Ryan would let his calmer self take over at the last minute when he gets anxious. Ryan tries to combat his anxiety by meditating and talking about it. Despite his life-long anxiety, Ryan Reynolds has become one of the biggest movie stars.
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Quotes
I fixate on things, That's sort of the engine of anxiety. I lay awake at night, wrapping and unwrapping every possible scenario. I slept at a perfect right angle for so many years.
Ryan Reynolds
When I would go out on, like, Letterman, back in the day, I was nervous. 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!" he said. But as soon as that curtain opens — and this happens in my work a lot too — it's like this little guy takes over. 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!'
Ryan Reynolds
I have anxiety, I’ve always had anxiety, Both in the lighthearted ‘I’m anxious about this’ kind of thing, and I’ve been to the depths of the darker end of the spectrum, which is not fun.
Ryan Reynolds
I felt like I was on some schooner in the middle of a white squall the whole time," he recalled of making the superhero film. "It just never stopped. When it finally ended, I had a little bit of a nervous breakdown. I literally had the shakes.
Ryan Reynolds
References
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Ryan Reynolds Says His Anxiety Makes Him Feel Like a 'Different Person' From His Public Persona
The outgoing Reynolds that people see on screen is often a last-second shift from his true self, he said.
People
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Ryan Reynolds Says He Tends to Try to Mask His Anxiety with Work: 'I Fixate on Things'
Ryan Reynolds is still learning how to best deal with his anxiety.
People
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Ryan Reynolds gets real about anxiety
He pinpointed his childhood as the time in which his anxiety began to develop – although he was quick to say the household he grew up in wasn’t “overly awful in the grand scheme of things.”
CNN
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Ryan Reynolds Gets Candid About His 'Lifelong' Struggle with Anxiety: 'I Know I'm Not Alone'
In a 2016, he told GQ that he mentally collapsed while making the first Deadpool movie — a project he had worked for 11 years to get it made.
People
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This Story Has Already Stressed Ryan Reynolds Out
He gets racked by dread and nausea before every talk-show appearance and becomes quite convinced he might die.
The New York Times
