The Inspiring Way Emma Stone Copes with Her Anxiety and Self-Doubt

Emma Stone just got refreshingly real about her mental health. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, alongside other actresses like Jennifer Lawrence and Allison Janney, the 29-year-old Oscar winner opened up about her life-long struggle with anxiety and how she’s slowly finding ways to deal with it.

The conversation shifted to Stone’s mental health when she was asked about the worst career advice she’s received. After joking that it was from Lawrence, Stone fessed up and said that the worst career advice was something she told herself. After Lawrence pointed out that Stone has a habit of being “so hard on herself,” the “La La Land” star opened up about her battle with self-doubt. “I tend to keep myself prisoner in mistakes that I’ve made,” Stone said. “I kind of need voices like Jen’s—and I’m really lucky, I have a great manager and agent. They’ve always been very [encouraging] about taking chances.”

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Along with leaning on friends like Lawrence to silence her insecurities, Stone also credits her recent role as tennis legend, Billie Jean King, in “Battle of the Sexes” as a project that’s helped her overcome her anxiety. After sitting down with King and learning about the brave way she handled sexism in a public eye, Stone felt confident to tackle her anxiety. “Playing Billie Jean King has truly changed my life. She has infused so much into my spirit,” Stone said.

Source: Instagram

Since taking on the role, Stone has noticed herself worrying less about making mistakes and feeling imprisoned by her anxiety—something she calls “incredible.” “As time has gone on, it’s become incredibly rewarding to take risks, to dare, to not be afraid to make mistakes,” Stone said. “As the most anxious kid you’ve ever met, my whole life has been defined by, ‘Please don’t mess up, I can’t mess up.’ And that’s changing, which is incredible.”

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And though anxiety isn’t cured overnight, it sounds like Stone is finding a way to cope with hers and is likely helping fans who deal with similar mental health struggles to also fight back. Props to her.