Zachary Levi revealed he once had a complete mental breakdown that led to a three-week stay in a psych ward.
Ive struggled with this stuff most of my life, the actor, 41, said on Elizabeth Vargas Heart of the Matter podcast in a sneak peek obtained by the Hollywood Reporter Thursday.
I didnt realize that I was struggling with these things until I was 37, about five years ago, and I had a complete mental breakdown.
Levi explained that his struggles with mental health began growing up with a mom who had borderline personality disorder and a stepdad who was a perfectionist.
I was an embarrassment to the family. I mean, it was lots of vitriol, lots of yelling, he recalled.
The Shazam! star shared that he eventually turned to sex or drugs or booze or things to distract me from, to numb myself from the pain that I was running away from most of my life.
The irony is that booze can give you this temporary relief, but then the next day amplifies that anxiety tenfold, he continued. So, then youre running back to get more, and it just becomes this vicious cycle.
Levi admitted to running away from his problems by moving to Austin, Texas, and launching Wyldwood Studios in May 2020.
My career was in a place where I felt like even though I had accomplished so many things up to that point, I was still, and to be honest, even now, I still feel this way. I feel like Im a bit on the outside looking in, he added. Ive never really felt like I am a part of whatever the cool kid group is.
The Chuck alums mental health struggles eventually escalated to him having panic attacks over where to eat.
I drove around probably for 10 minutes not knowing which place to eat because I didnt know which place was the right place to eat as opposed to just saying, Zach, just go eat some food, he explained.
Im sitting in my truck, and vividly, I remember I was holding onto the wheel, and I was just shaking back and forth, that like almost trying to shake myself out of what was going on, and Im just weeping. Im just crying. Im like, God, help me.
Levi revealed that he eventually visited an emergency room because of suicidal thoughts and ultimately ended up in a psych ward.
I was having very active thoughts of ending my life, he shared. It wasnt the first time I had had them. I had been in dark places in my life before, but I guess in those moments I had people around me.
In the psych ward, the Tony nominee participated in intensive life-changing, life-saving therapy, and he has since found ways to manage his struggles.
I think one of the most important things, at least for me, is taking my thoughts captive, he said. Our minds are so powerful, but they are so easily, so easily hijacked if we dont really go, Oh, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Im doing it again. Im starting to speak ill of myself again. Im starting to be harsh or critical of myself. Im starting to judge where Im at in my life.
The lies are whispering into my ear, and the failure that I felt that I was enough to be like, Zach, it doesnt feel like youre going to make it out of this.