Be careful what you wish for. Many of us have thought that all our problems would go away if we were famous and wealthy, but after learning that fame caused Goldie Hawn to become very depressed, we’re seriously rethinking our wishes.
Suffering panic attacks after landing her first role
Goldie Hawn has always been candid about her mental health struggles, which took root upon her landing her first acting role. As she explained to Hoda Kotb on an episode of the host’s Making Space podcast, it all stemmed from her not really wanting to land the role in the first place.
“I didn’t want to do that,” Hawn said of her role on the short-lived show, Good Morning World (1967-68). “I was a dancer. I was just getting my feet wet. I called home, and I said, “Mommy, you’re not going to believe this. You know, they wrote a part for me.’
“And then I became anxious, and I had little panic attacks,” she continued. “I realized that every time I’d go into a restaurant or a place, I’d get dizzy, and I would want to go home.”
Hawn went on to say that she “didn’t know what happened” to the joy she’d felt since she was a child, saying she “tried to fake my smile” during what was “the scariest thing that has ever happened to me.” Things got so bad that she frequently had to run to her dressing room to center herself, since she “didn’t know when another panic attack was going to happen.”
Things got to a point where the actor realized she needed help, which led her to see a psychologist, who showed her how to handle her anxiety. “I was learning about myself,” she said of their sessions. “I was learning about how to forgive, and I was learning as I grew extremely successful how to be able to manage other people’s perception of me because they didn’t know me.”
Goldie Hawn struggled with depression
Goldie Hawn has also opened up about suffering from severe depression at the start of her career. In a 2021 interview with Good Morning Britain (2014-present), she candidly discussed her mental health, saying she became depressed.
“When I was young, I became depressed,” she shared. “I was 21 and I [was] rising to success. I know it sounds terrible, but it’s a very, very difficult thing. I didn’t necessarily want that.”
Hawn went on to say that, similar to her panic attacks, the state of her mental health left her “unable to go outside in public.”
The actor received international attention when she secured a role on Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In (1968-73). When she was 24 years old, she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Cactus Flower (1969). Her character notably also struggled with her mental health.
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Eventually, Hawn’s depression got so bad that she consulted her doctor. Today, she urges others to seek help when they feel they need it. She rightfully feels that it’s time to erase the stigma around mental health.