Valerie Bertinelli has been open about a lot of experiences in her life, but her most recent revelation may be her most vulnerable. In a video posted to social media, the actor shared her experience during a recent anxiety attack. Her decision to upload the clip was made in the hopes of helping others who also struggle with their mental health.
Valerie Bertinelli opens up about anxiety attack
Valerie Bertinelli recently shared a “vulnerable” post on her Instagram, after experiencing an anxiety attack.
“I’ve sat on this post for a day because it’s incredibly vulnerable and that’s always scary to share. But I’m posting because we’re all out here doing our best having a human experience and none of us want to feel like we’re alone in that,” the actor wrote.
Bertinelli explained that “my heart is still beating a little rapidly as I write this,” before revealing, “I had a really bad anxiety attack today. I haven’t had one like this in a very, very long time. A few hours ago, I was weeping uncontrollably, and my heart felt like it was pounding out of my chest. I couldn’t stop shaking.”
The video accompanying the caption showed her hand shaking. Bertinelli said she was “taking a chance” in publicly discussing her experience, but did so because she’s “pretty sure I’m not the only one out here who has experienced this.” Continuing, she wrote, “Gratefully these attacks have become much more infrequent, so this one took me a little bit by surprise today. This is the after effect.”
How does Valerie Bertinelli work through her anxiety?
In the United States, more than 40 million adults have an anxiety disorder, so Valerie Bertinelli isn’t alone in her experience. However, anxiety can present itself in different ways, and the actor has established her own method in dealing with an attack.
Bertinelli explained how she navigates these involuntary experiences, writing that she dissociates and focuses “solely on calming down and finding any road to a more relaxed and peaceful body.”
Referring to her shaking hands, she continued, “Hours later, as I’m doing my best to meditate and EMDR [Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing] my way out of this, this is the after effect that I can’t quite seem to calm all the way yet.”
Wanting to learn more about what causes anxiety attacks
At 64 years old, Valerie Bertinelli is curious about how anxiety attacks occur.
As she explains, “Part of me is fascinated by what the human body is capable of when our feelings can get in the way or override any reasonable thought and another part of me is just curious on how all of this happens.” This is in reference to “the weird neuropathies in our brain and how it affects our bodies, what feelings (which are just information btw) are and why are they so powerful that they make our body go into overdrive.”
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Bertinelli concluded, “Anyway…this little bit of vulnerability is brought to you by someone who wants you to know you’re not alone. Love you.”