When it comes to being a dad, Ryan Reynolds He sees anxiety as his superpower.
“Believe [anxiety] It makes it better because you focus less on yourself and more on your kids,” Reynolds, 47, said. Deadpool and Wolverine co-star Hugh Jackman during a joint People interview published on Wednesday, May 29. “I know you know it too.”
Now he has welcomed four children with his wife. Blake Lively – the couple share James, 9, Inez, 7, Betty, 4, and a 15-month-old baby whose name has not been revealed. Reynolds confessed that he is glad he experienced some degree of mental health issues so he could be a guiding light for his little ones.
“Now I love having anxiety, I love having had anxiety,” she continued. “Because when I see my kids experiencing some of that, which is probably genetic, I know how to approach it in a compassionate way that really allows them to feel seen. I know I can’t just fix it. And I can communicate all that to them and with them. “I am always grateful for that.”
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This isn’t the first time Reynolds has spoken out about his anxiety. Over the years, he has often been candid about his mental health, something to which his family has been credited. The actor said Entertainment tonight in July 2021 that, as a parent, you focus on modeling certain “behaviors” to create “space” for emotions like sadness, anxiety, or anger.
“Part of that is destigmatizing things and creating a conversation around [mental health]. “I know that when I felt at absolute rock bottom, it’s usually because I felt alone in something I was feeling,” he told the outlet. “So I think when people talk about it, it kind of liberates other people.”
while talking to CBS Sunday Morning In 2022, Reynolds confessed that has suffered of anxiety “your whole life,” noting that a completely different part of your personality “takes over” when you start to feel a panic attack coming on.
Recalling a particularly bad mental health moment before an appearance on Late Night with Dave Letterman In 2015, Reynolds said he literally felt like he was going to “die” before going on stage.
“I remember being backstage before the curtain opened and thinking, ‘I’m going to die.’ “I’m literally going to die here,” she recalled thinking. “The curtain is going to open and I’m just going to be, I’m just going to be a symphony of vomit, something horrible is just going to happen.”
For Reynolds, however, being the center of attention is the key to overcoming the low moments.
“As soon as the curtain opens – and this happens a lot in my job too – it’s like this little guy takes control,” he explained. “And he said, ‘I already have this.’ You’re great.’ I feel my heart rate drop and my breathing calm down and I come out and I’m a different person. And I walk out of that interview saying, ‘God, I’d love to be that guy!’”
Now, years later, Reynolds has learned how to channel more professional benefits from having anxiety.
“People who have anxiety are constantly thinking about the future,” he told Jackman during his People interview. “You’re constantly thinking, ‘What if this happens? What if that happens?’ You are always telling yourself stories. So when we’re shooting Deadpool and Wolverine, Not only am I shooting the movie, I’m also sitting in the audience like a cautious critic saying, “I don’t like that.” I do not believe that.’ So anxiety creates that ecosystem of awareness that you wouldn’t otherwise have. [have].”
Jackman, for his part, told Reynolds that his perspective on talking to his children about anxiety and mental health has changed as they get older. (Jackman shares Oscar, 24, and Ava, 19, with his ex-wife Deborra Lee Furness.)
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“I was a little old school. I thought, ‘Don’t burden them if you’re anxious,’” she shared. “Let’s say you have opening night or you’re hosting the Oscars; During the previous three weeks, I distance myself a little. And then someone told me: ‘But your children don’t know you have the Oscars.’ Maybe they are thinking that you are angry with them. [or] “They’ve done something.”
Jackman added that being transparent about his feelings has helped him cope with tense moments.
“Yesterday I had to make an awkward phone call, and I actually said to my son, ‘I have to make this awkward phone call.’ I’m a little nervous about that. If I look a little out of place, that’s why,’” he recalled. “And he says, ‘Oh.’ And then he said, ‘How was the call, Dad?’ I said, ‘I feel so much better.'”
