‘My anxiety manifests as depression’: Reese Witherspoon divulges details of her postpartum mental health battles… and reveals she was ‘heavily medicated’ after pregnancy
- The star shares daughter Ava, 20, and son Deacon, 16, with her ex Ryan Phillipe, and son Tennessee, seven, with husband Jim Toth
- On motherhood and depression, the esteemed actress candidly went on: ‘I’ve had three kids. After each child I had a different experience’
- In 2015, Ryan confessed that he too struggled with depression and claims to have ‘passed it on’ to their daughter Ava
Reese Witherspoon has discussed her mental health struggles.
Speaking to Jameela Jamil on her I Weight podcast, the Legally Blonde actress, 44, revealed that her ‘anxiety manifests as depression’ and after giving birth to her three children she has had various experiences with mental health.
The star shares daughter Ava, 20, and son Deacon, 16, with her ex Ryan Phillipe, and son Tennessee, seven, with husband Jim Toth and admits motherhood has taken her to many highs and lows with her depression.
Open and honest: Reese Witherspoon has discussed her mental health struggles (pictured with Ava and Deacon in December)
Reese said: ‘I definitely had anxiety, my anxiety manifests as depression so I would get really depressed. My brain is like a hamster on a wheel and it won’t come off, I’ve been managing it my entire life.’
On motherhood and depression, the esteemed actress candidly went on: ‘I’ve had three kids. After each child I had a different experience…
‘One kid I had kind of mild postpartum, and one kid I had severe postpartum where I had to take pretty heavy medication because I just wasn’t thinking straight at all, and then I had one kid where I had no postpartum at all.’
After her firstborn Ava came along, she admitted the unknown made things particularly stressful. She went on: ‘We don’t understand the kind of hormonal rollercoaster that you go on when you stop nursing. No one explained that to me…
Her love: Speaking to Jameela Jamil on her I Weight podcast, the Legally Blonde actress, 44, revealed that her ‘anxiety manifests as depression’ and after giving birth to her three children she has had various experiences with mental health
‘I was 23 years old when I had my first baby and nobody explained to me that when you wean a baby, your hormones go into the toilet. I felt more depressed than I’d ever felt in my whole life. It was scary.’
In 2015, Ryan confessed that he too struggled with depression and claims to have ‘passed it on’ to their daughter Ava.
He told Elle Magazine: ‘You know, depression has been a huge obstacle for me ever since I was a child. As you get older I think it decreases some, but I’m just innately kind of a sad person.
Her brood: Reese shares daughter Ava, 20, and son Deacon, 16, with her ex Ryan Phillipe, and son Tennessee, seven, with husband Jim Toth and admits motherhood has taken her to many highs and lows with her depression
‘I’m empathetic, and I take on the feelings of others and transpose myself into the position of others. I see it in my daughter [Ava].
‘She has it, and I wish to hell she didn’t. It’s just, some people do have this pervading sort of sadness, or they’re so analytical that they can kind of take the fun out of things because they think too much.’
‘It can ruin your f**king life. But I’d prefer to suffer through the sadness than to be a complete moron with no feelings.’
Candid: On motherhood and depression, the esteemed actress candidly went on: ‘I’ve had three kids. After each child I had a different experience’