Gwyneth Paltrow Says She Struggles with Her Mental Health, Including Intrusive Thoughts and Anxiety

NEED TO KNOW

• Gwyneth Paltrow candidly discussed her mental health on the latest episode of her the goop podcast, released Tuesday, Nov. 11

• The actress and Goop founder revealed that she has “a lot of anxiety for the very first time in my life” and is also experiencing intrusive thoughts

• Paltrow said she is currently working with two therapists, and that spending time with her blended family also “calms down” her nervous system

Gwyneth Paltrow is getting candid about her mental health.

Appearing on the latest episode of her the goop podcast, released Tuesday, Nov. 11, the actress and businesswoman, 53, revealed that she is experiencing mental health challenges such as intrusive thoughts and anxiety.

“I would like to be more intentional about how I spend my time,” she told moderator Zanna Roberts Rassi. “I think I have a bit of ADD and I can really sort of get pulled in lots of directions. I would love to try to not do that so much and feel more grounded throughout the day.”

ADD is an outdated term for ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder), a mental health condition that requires a medical diagnosis and includes “a combination of persistent problems, such as difficulty paying attention, hyperactivity and impulsive behavior,” according to the Mayo Clinic.

The Goop founder added that she could get a bad work email and “really take it like it’s a slap in the face.”

“So I would really like to rewire myself so that medium or bad news doesn’t feel so terrible,” she said.

Paltrow went on to share that she believes her nervous system has been affected by the criticism she’s faced in the spotlight.

“I’ve lived a very intense life in the public eye for a really, really long time,” she said.

“And so I think whenever we’re at the mercy of people’s opinions and all the energy behind the opinions — I’m very sensitive, as most of us are — so I feel that and it kind of frays my nervous system,” Paltrow added.

“I think also my hormonal phase of life, I have a lot of anxiety for the very first time in my life, which is just a symptom of hormonal changes,” she continued. “I think it’s an estrogen dominance thing. It makes you really anxious … So part of it is physiological, part of it is psychological, part of it’s emotional and part of it’s public life.”

Paltrow went on to say, “the past couple of years it’s hit me so hard.”

“But I know there’s something wrong because my cortisol [stress hormone] … like I’ll get in bed exhausted and my heart will start to race,” the Iron Man star added. “And then I’ll have intrusive thoughts, which I’ve never had in my life, ever. My sleep is still pretty okay, but sometimes I wake up first thing in the morning and I’m filled with dread.”

“But it’s never been who I am, so there’s a lot of parts to it, but definitely there’s a big nervous system component,” she concluded.

Paltrow said that she’s working on her challenges with two therapists, one of whom is a nervous system specialist.

“And then I get a lot of healing from my family, from my kids and my husband. If I can be with everyone, especially if all four kids — my stepkids and my kids — and my husband and I, if we’re under one roof, my nervous system calms down,” she said of her family.

She also added that she has “amazing friends” and “amazing women” in her life.

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Paltrow has been married to writer and director Brad Falchuk since 2018. She shares daughter Apple, 21, and son Moses, 19, with her ex-husband, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin. Falchuk, 54, meanwhile is dad to Isabella and Brody with his ex-wife Suzanne Bukinik.

Back in May, Paltrow told PEOPLE that she was “trying to work on calming my nervous system and being present in my body, which I have not historically been good at.”

“You can do all the exercise and meditation and early sleep and IVs and all the things, supplements, but if your nervous system is hijacked and you can’t experience the present moment, the quality of your life goes down meaningfully,” she added.

Read the original article on People