Cape Town - Ryan Reynolds is being open and honest about his struggles.
In a recent interview with The New York Times, the actor reveals he’s always struggled with his anxiety when placed in stressful situations.
The Deadpool star says he usually gets nauseous before doing a talk-show appearance and even convinces himself he might die.
“I have anxiety. I’ve always had anxiety,” says Ryan. “Both in the light-hearted ‘I’m-anxious-about-this’ kind of thing, and I’ve been to the depths of the darker end of the spectrum, which is not fun.”
The 41-year-old went on to say that his wit played a huge role in coping with his anxiety.
“That's that great self-defence mechanism,” he says. “I figure if you're going to jump off a cliff, you might as well fly.
“When the curtain opens I turn on this knucklehead. And he kind of takes over and goes away again once I walk off set,” Ryan adds.
The Green Lantern actor - who is married to Gossip Girl actress Blake Lively - reveals he was told by doctors that he suffers from anxiety after filming the first Deadpool movie.
“I felt like I was on some schooner in the middle of a white squall the whole time. It just never stopped.
“When it finally ended, I had a little bit of a nervous breakdown. I literally had the shakes. I went to go see a doctor because I felt like I was suffering from a neurological problem or something. And every doctor I saw said, ‘You have anxiety.’
“I say this with the caveat that I completely recognise the ridiculously fortunate position that I am in,” he concluded.
In an interview with Variety early last year, Ryan said his wife helped him deal with the high expectations people had of Deadpool.
“Blake helped me through that,” he says. “I’m lucky to have her around just to keep me sane.”
Sources: eonline.com, dailymail.co.uk, etonline.com, nytimes.com