Ryan Reynolds Opened Up About His Struggles With Anxiety in an Honest Instagram Post

Yesterday, Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds posted a personal message to his social media accounts to mark Mental Health Awareness Month.

Reynolds, who usually publishes tongue-in-cheek posts advertising his gin brand Aviation Gin or jibes aimed at his celebrity friends like Hugh Jackman, instead used his platform to address his ongoing battles with mental ill health.

"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," the post read. "We don't talk enough about mental health and don't do enough to destigmatize talking about it. But, as with this post, better late than never I hope..."

It's not the first time 44-year-old Reynolds has addressed his anxiety. After filming the first Deadpool movie, Reynolds was diagnosed with anxiety.

"I have anxiety, I’ve always had anxiety,” Reynolds said of his diagnosis. "Both in the lighthearted ‘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."

"When the curtain opens, I turn on this knucklehead, and he kind of takes over and goes away again once I walk off set. That’s that great self-defense mechanism. I figure if you’re going to jump off a cliff, you might as well fly."

Reynolds' most recent post was met with positive feedback from co-stars and fellow Hollywood alums. "Mate – your honesty is not only brave but, I’m positive will help countless others who struggle with anxiety too. Good on you!" wrote Hugh Jackman.

Reynolds isn't the first Hollywood leading man to address his issues with anxiety. Captain America and Avengers' Chris Evans originally planned to turn down one of the largest roles of his career as the Vibranium-slinging First Avenger.

"[Captain America] was a big commitment," said Evans in a previous interview. "If the movie hits, your life noticeably changes. If someone in your family is in the hospital, and you’re going in and out and people are taking pictures of and you complain, it’s too bad. You made this bed, sleep in it."

"I do struggle. I get anxiety about certain things and press, things like that. I asked every human being in my life what they thought, and they said I should do the movie, and then I went to therapy. I thought, ‘I’ll talk to my therapist! See what they have to say!’"

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