Ryan Reynolds wants to destigmatise talking about mental health

Ryan Reynolds wants to “destigmatise talking about” mental health.

The 44-year-old actor has detailed his “lifelong” battle with anxiety in a post on Instagram on Wednesday (May 26), which he uploaded to mark Mental Health Awareness month this month.

And in his post, Ryan also said he’s keen to get more people talking about anxiety and depression, as he believes people “don’t do enough” to normalise the conversation.

He said: “May is almost over. It’s also Mental Health Awareness month. Which brings me to this.

“One of the reasons I’m posting this so late is I overschedule myself and important things slip. And one of the reasons I overschedule myself is my lifelong pal, anxiety. I know I’m not alone and more importantly, to all those like me who overschedule, overthink, overwork, over-worry and over-everything, please know you’re not alone.

“We don’t talk enough about mental health and don’t do enough to destigmatize talking about it. But, as with this post, better later than never, I hope… (sic)”

The Deadpool star has previously spoken about his mental health when he said he first began struggling with anxiety when he was a child.

He said in 2017: “I have three older brothers. Our father was tough. He wasn’t easy on anyone. And he wasn’t easy on himself. I think the anxiety might have started there, trying to find ways to control others by trying to control myself. At the time, I never recognised that. I was just a twitchy kid.”

And the following year, Ryan – whose father died in 2015 – echoed his own statements when he added: “My 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 – everyone carries their own bag of rocks around and I am no different in that regard – but growing up in my house, it was never relaxing or easy and I know that, throughout my life, I’ve dealt with anxiety in different ways.”