Maintaining your mental health is incredibly important, especially in this unprecedented time of isolation and the unknown. Actress Busy Philipps has used her platform to discuss her own mental health struggle throughout the years, and most recently, opened up to HollywoodLife.com in an EXCLUSIVE interview about how she’s ensuring self-care in quarantine. “I’m not going to lie, there have been days and moments where it’s felt incredibly overwhelming. The enormity of the situation has felt really crushing and really hard and difficult to get through. I needed extra help,” she admitted. “In the beginning, this felt really crushing for me, so I reached out to my therapist and started taking antidepressants.”
Busy explained that she hadn’t been on antidepressants in over a decade, but realized that she couldn’t get through this on her own. “I think it’s important to recognize when you need to ask for some additional help. Right now, there are so many mental health organizations that are offering extra help for free on sliding scales, and people who feel that need to be able to know that it’s okay to reach out,” she advised. “I know I speak from such a place of privilege, but by sharing it on social media, I want people who are feeling the enormity of it or just can’t stop crying to know that there are ways that you can get help, too.”
Busy opened up about her postpartum anxiety after giving birth to her daughter Birdie, 11, to People in 2018 and revealed it was her Cougar Town costar Courteney Cox who convinced her to get help during that time. “Courteney was like, ‘I think you should talk to a doctor about medication,” she told the mag. It was then Busy went on antidepressants for a year and a half to help her through the challenging period.
In addition to taking medication, Busy told HL that being of service has helped her find gratitude and be present in the midst of the pandemic. “One of the things that gets so overwhelming for me is the enormity of the pain across the country and worldwide and those in need,” she explained. “I’m getting involved in as many things as I can get involved with at home. For instance, participating in Red Nose Day with Walgreens, doing Cameos to raise money for America’s Food Fund and World Central Kitchen and No Kid Hungry. Cameos are something I never thought I’d do, but I have raised $35,000 or those charities and donating our own money to local charities that are feeding out-of-work hospitality workers, and other kids charities in LA.”
Busy added that she is able to do all of this from home and is instilling the same giving spirit in her daughters Cricket, 6, and Birdie. “I’m having my kids go through all of their books with me and pulling out books to donate to LAUSD kids and under-served children in our community who maybe don’t even have books in their homes, and there are no libraries open,” she said.
Currently, Busy is helping Walgreens bring Red Nose Day nationwide, virtually! Through May 30, viewers/listeners can get their digital Red Noses by donating online at Walgreens.com/RedNoseDay. “Although it might look a little bit different, we’re still going to raise so much money for kids charities, and now, more than ever, the need is even greater,” Busy explained. “You can make a donation as little as $1 as much as you can spare to help kids in need in our country. You get your filter, you can post it on social media, Instagram or Facebook or Snapchat and tag Walgreens and Red Nose Day to spread awareness and get other people involved.”
For those who are currently struggling with their mental health, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is an incredible resource you can use to talk to someone and get the help you need. Call 1-800-273-TALK (8255); En Español 1-888-628-9454. The Lifeline is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Lifeline connects callers to the nearest crisis center in the Lifeline national network. These centers provide crisis counseling and mental health referrals. People who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have hearing loss can contact the Lifeline via TTY at 1-800-799-4889.