Amanda Seyfried opens up about something in Allure's latest issue that many people are afraid to discuss: mental illness.
The actress reveals to the glossy that her OCD is a reason why she didn't build a stove in the barn turned guest house at her estate in Stone Ridge, New York.
"You could so easily burn down something if you leave the stove on. Or the oven," Seyfried said. Before that, she noted, "...I always worry about people and how they use stoves, which is just a controlling thing.”
Seyfried manages her OCD with the help of an antidepressant called Lexapro. "I’ll never get off of it," she said. "I’ve been on it since I was 19, so 11 years. I’m on the lowest dose. I don’t see the point of getting off of it. "
In Seyfried's eyes, the stigma around mental illness is the reason why many people don't seek help—and she's ready for that to end.
"And what are you fighting against? Just the stigma of using a tool?" Seyfried said. "A mental illness is a thing that people cast in a different category [from other illnesses], but I don’t think it is. It should be taken as seriously as anything else. You don’t see the mental illness: It’s not a mass; it’s not a cyst. But it’s there. Why do you need to prove it? If you can treat it, you treat it."
We're ready for the stigma to end too. Well-known celebrities like Seyfried talking openly about their mental illness struggles will work toward that. Publicly discussing personal issues is never easy, and we applaud Seyfried for doing it. It's very brave—and very necessary too. Hopefully, her candor will help millions of people battling similar issues feel less alone.
Read the rest of Amanda Seyfried's Allure interview when the magazine hits newsstands this month.
