The actress took to Twitter to talk about her experience with anxiety and depression.
By Lynsey Eidell, Self
Game of Thrones
actress Lena Headey is no stranger to struggles on the screen. But
while her trials on the popular HBO show are related to the ongoing
battle for the Iron Throne, her real-life tribulations stem from her
battles with mental-health issues, the actress recently shared on Twitter.
After a fan asked Headey on Twitter if she ever gets insecure, Headey responded by opening up about her experience with both anxiety and depression. "I overthink for sure," she wrote. "I am familiar with depression. I get HUGE anxiety."
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just as Cersei ruthlessly takes down her opponents in Westeros, the
actress conquers her anxiety by facing it straight up and head on.
"Anxiety is a beast," she wrote on Twitter. "You have to talk to beasts.
Release them back into the wild. Easier said than done, I know, but
still. Good to practice."
Headey went
on to deliver an inspiring speech detailing her methods for managing her
anxiety and depression. "Anxiety. Depression. It's real and it's
chemical. It's also spiritual...stay with me everyone (and before you
ask, yes I'm ok)," she tweeted. "Globally, we see constant destruction
of human lives. Which, no matter your belief, has an effect. If we scale
it back to family and community, it's been lost to greed and
aspiration. No wonder we have anxiety, no wonder we overthink...we're
slammed with bullshit."
She continued:
"[We're] tricked into thinking you don't have enough. You're not
enough. Pretty enough. Thin enough. Rich enough. Capable enough.
Successful enough. Well here's the truth. You are enough.... In fact,
you're who you're meant to be which is BEAUTIFUL."
Headey finished her series of tweets with a directive for her followers who may be feeling the same way. (Anxiety disorders affect nearly 40 million adults in the U.S., according to the National Institute of Mental Health.
That makes it the most common mental illness in the country.) "Try one
conversation face to face without hiding your true self. You'll feel
terrified maybe, for a second...and then BOOM," Headey tweeted. "Drop
the mike [sic]. You f—king did it. Swagger home with some complex, f—ked
up, shared human realness."
The
series of tweets is not the first time that Headey has opened up about
her personal experiences with anxiety and depression. She spoke to More magazine
in 2015 about her history with depression, saying, "I think some
people's brains are just wired that way if you're a thinker. People who
never get anxious always amaze me."
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If
you suspect that you suffer from an anxiety disorder, licensed clinical
psychologist John Mayer, Ph.D., recommends seeing a mental-health
professional to get a proper diagnosis. Then you can learn how to manage
it with the help of a qualified therapist. “Your therapy can teach you
coping mechanisms that will control your anxiety so it will not be
expressed or turn into an anxiety disorder,” he previously told SELF.
@IAMLenaHeadey Do you get insecure Lena? <3— Juan dela Cruz (@JDC2K13) April 13, 2017
Anxiety is a beast. You have to talk to beasts. Release them back into the wild. Easier said than done I know but still. Good to Practice.— lena headey (@IAMLenaHeadey) April 13, 2017
Anxiety. Depression. It's real and it's chemical. It's also spiritual. .. stay with me everyone (and before you ask, yes I'm ok)— lena headey (@IAMLenaHeadey) April 13, 2017
It's been lost to greed and aspiration, no wonder we have anxiety, no wonder we overthink ..we're slammed with bullshit. ...— lena headey (@IAMLenaHeadey) April 13, 2017
Globally we see constant destruction of human lives. Which no matter your belief, has an effect. If we scale it back to family and community— lena headey (@IAMLenaHeadey) April 13, 2017
Drop the Mike. You fucking did it. Swagger home with some complex fucked up shared human realness 👍👍😘👻💗💗💗— lena headey (@IAMLenaHeadey) April 13, 2017
Tricked into thinking. You don't have enough. You're not enough. Pretty enough. Thin enough. Rich enough. Capable enough. Successful enough.— lena headey (@IAMLenaHeadey) April 13, 2017
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