Amanda Seyfried has revealed that her struggles with ‘extreme’ obsessive compulsive disorder prevented her from going off the rails as a young actress.
The actress, 40, has opened up about being diagnosed with the condition when was 19, and in a candid interview, has shared that she didn’t want to enjoy some of the vices that other stars indulged in, due to fears it could affect her mental state.
Posing for the digital cover of Vogue’s January issue, Amanda shared that her mother was forced to take a sabbatical from work while she underwent brain scans to get her diagnosis.
OCD is a mental health condition marked by obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviours that people struggle to control.
Examples include having an all-consuming fear of being burgled meaning a person has to check their doors and windows are locked several times before leaving their home or sleeping.
Speaking about her diagnosis, Amanda said she first sought medical help while she was starring in the HBO series Big Love, where she had a supporting role for the first four seasons.
Amanda Seyfried has shared that her struggles with ‘extreme’ obsessive compulsive disorder prevented her from going off the rails as a young actress
The actress has opened up about being diagnosed with the condition when was 19, and shared that she didn’t want to enjoy some of the vices that other stars indulged in
She said: ‘My mom had to take a sabbatical from work in Pennsylvania to live with me for a month. I got my brain scans, and that’s when I got on medication – which to this day, I’m on every night.’
Amanda added that due to the condition, she tried to reduce the vices that could upset her, such as ‘drinking too much alcohol, or doing any drugs at all, or staying out too late.’
She added: ‘I would make plans and then just not go. I guess I did make choices…. I didn’t enter that realm of nightclubs. I gotta give credit to my OCD.’
Amanda also offered rare insight into her how she juggles motherhood with her filming schedule, saying there’s ‘no way’ to full explain her work to her daughter, eight, and son, five, who she shares with husband Thomas Sadoski.
It comes after Amanda confessed in an interview with Who What Wear that she gets Botox in just one place.
‘I have a really good dermatologist who tells me that she’s never gonna do anything but put Botox in the same place for the rest of my life,’ she said, pointing to the supposed trouble zone in her forehead.
However, for her role in The Testament of Ann Lee, Amanda had to forego the line-erasing injections to satisfy director Mona’s ‘no-makeup or Botox’ rule.
As Amanda told Vanity Fair in August, it was so she could authentically portray 18th century Shaker leader Ann Lee.
Posing for the digital cover of Vogue’s January issue, Amanda shared that her mother was forced to take a sabbatical from work while she underwent brain scans to get her diagnosis
Amanda added that due to the condition, she tried to reduce the vices that could upset her, such as ‘drinking too much alcohol, or doing any drugs at all, or staying out too late’
‘I couldn’t get Botox for a year. That was a big assignment…,’ she told the publication.
‘When I first got [Botox], I was, like, “This is amazing,” because I frown a lot. But then it all came back in a way that was absolutely necessary for all the work I was doing.’
Speaking to etalkctv at the movie’s Toronto International Film Festival premiere on September 9, Amanda said it’s all part of the job.
‘I’m an actor and that’s my job and that’s what I love to do,’ she said. ‘I don’t necessarily need all that in my life. I just like it.
‘The things that I like, I can sacrifice a little. Of course, I can.’
‘We did make sacrifices, and it was worth it. Every day was fun. We didn’t just survive, we thrived,’ she added.
Amanda recently revealed what could be causing those frown lines as she admitted she’s struggled to juggle her workload and her other business ventures since becoming a parent.
The actress shares a daughter, Nina, born in 2017, and a son, born in 2020 and whose name she hasn’t revealed, with actor Thomas Sadoski, 49.
‘Honestly, right now, it’s really hard,’ the actress told Us Weekly.
‘This is the most I’ve ever worked with two kids, and I’ve never had two movies come out at the same time.
‘And so, I’m a little bit bananas right now.’
For the full digital cover story, go to Vogue.com.
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