Dwayne Johnson conducts a mental health check with his entourage.
On Thursday, October 10 Red star, 52, posted a video on Instagram in honor of World Mental Health Day and discussed how people should never be too busy to reach out to their loved ones.
“Everybody’s fighting demons and a lot of people keep it inside. A lot of people don’t talk about it, and I’ve learned that, in a lot of cases, the hard way over the years,” he said. “So when I check in with my friends, I don’t check in and ask, ‘Hey, what’s wrong?’ I check in and say, ‘How’s your heart? How are you feeling?’ And you’d be surprised what that means to people.”
“I know what it’s like to struggle with mental health. I know what the spiral is like… I’ve been there,” he said, noting that he calls it bouts of “mental hell.”
Johnson then explained that he had been struggling a few weeks ago. He recalled waking up one fine day and “seeing and feeling gray.” He said that although he was used to being alone as an only child, he was gripped by a “constant loneliness” and by the end of the day he was looking to his friends for support.
“So, just a reminder to check on your friends,” he emphasized. “Check on your loved ones because when you don’t… Over the years I’ve lost friends who decided to check out and just couldn’t handle the stress and pressure of life. The mental hell became too much for them.”
Dwayne Johnson shares what he learned from his struggles with depression: ‘It can’t be fixed if you keep that pain inside’
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“That’s the power of reporting and how important it is,” the video concluded. “Check on your friends, loved ones, even strangers. And just as important – if not more important – check yourself. If you need help, reach out to people. It doesn’t make you weak…It’s your superpower.”
Johnson has been transparent about his mental health journey over the years, including dealing with depression multiple times in his life.
“I’ve worked hard for years to gain the emotional tools to overcome any mental pain that might tempt me. But years ago, I didn’t know what a mental health struggle was,” he said in May 2023 on Headquarters podcast.
The actor said his daughters – Tiana, 6, Jasmine, 8, and Simone, 23 – and being a “girly dad” are “lifesavers” for his mental health.
If you or someone you know needs mental health help, text “STRENGTH” to the text crisis line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education