BANG Showbiz English
Ryan Reynolds is living with anxiety.
The โDeadpoolโ star has suffered with the crippling condition his โwhole lifeโ and there have been times during his career where he felt as though he was โgonna dieโ before doing an interview or stepping out on TV.
In an interview on CBS show โSunday Morningโ, he said: โIโve 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.
โWhen I would go out on, like, Letterman back in the day, I was nervous. But I remember Iโd be standing backstage before the curtain would open, and I would think to myself, โIโm gonna die. Iโm literally gonna die here. The curtainโs gonna open and Iโm just gonna be, Iโm just gonna be a symphony of vomit,โ just, like, something horrible is gonna happen!โ
Revealing how his anxiety attack eventually dissipates, he added: โAs soon as that curtain opens โ and this happens in my work a lot too โ itโs like this little guy takes over. And heโs like, โI got this. Youโre cool.โ I feel, like, my heart rate drop, and my breathing calm, and I just sort of go out and Iโm this different person. And I leave that interview going, โGod, Iโd love to be that guy!โโ
The 45-year-old actor โ who is married to actress Blake Lively, with whom he has three daughters โ believes his problems with anxiety stem from his upbringing with his father, James Reynolds, who was a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman.
The โFree Guyโ star shared: โMy 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 โ everyone carries their own bag of rocks around and I am no different in that regard โ but growing up in my house, it was never relaxing or easy and I know that, throughout my life, Iโve dealt with anxiety in different ways.
โI wouldnโt wish it on anyone, but anxiety is also a great fuel. I mean, my God, itโs the anti-complacency pill, but itโs also something that you need to manage.โ