Valerie Bertinelli wants everyone suffering from anxiety attacks to know that they are not alone in their journey to overcoming the disorder.
On Sunday, the actress shared on her Instagram a video of her right hand trembling and her palm profusely sweating after a serious panic attack. In her caption, she admitted that she contemplated hard before releasing the clip since it features an “incredibly vulnerable” moment for her.
“I’ve sat on this post for a day because it’s incredibly vulnerable and that’s always scary to share. But I’m posting because we’re all out here doing our best having a human experience and none of us want to feel like we’re alone in that,” she wrote at the start of her lengthy caption for the video.
According to the 64-year-old actor and celebrity chef, she had a “really bad anxiety attack” that day, causing her heart to pound wildly in her chest, her eyes to weep uncontrollably, and her body to shake nonstop. She said the episode caught her by surprise, since she rarely experiences panic attacks lately.
“…I know it’s just my brain overthinking and catastrophizing but my body goes into overdrive and I have no control over it,” she stated before adding, “Part of me is fascinated by what the human body is capable of when our feelings can get in the way or override any reasonable thought and another part of me is just curious on how all of this happens.”
Doubling down on her reason for sharing the clip on social media, the Valerie’s Home Cooking star said she was certain she was not the only one going through such distressing moments. However, she wanted to know if other people with panic attacks also experience aftereffects, and whether they could recommend anything that could help address her problem.
“Anyone else experience an extreme anxiety attack, and then the after effects still take a bit to calm? Tell me I’m not the only one out here and is there anything that you have also found to be helpful?” the mother of Wolfgang Van Halen asked.
Fans quickly answered her queries in the comments section, with one of them responding, “This is something I go through at first it was scary now after all these years it’s not. I’m just use to it and I wait till it passes.”
Another wrote, “I use to think these attacks were bulls**t until I experienced them. It feels like a bad high, and it’s so scary. You just gotta breathe and call things out that you see in your mind to allow your head not to think about what’s stressing you out. Glad I’m not alone.”
Cleveland Clinic defines anxiety attacks as intense feelings of worry manifested in a variety of physical symptoms, including rapid heartbeat, chest pain, difficulty breathing, nausea, sweating, and shaking. More often than not, an anxiety attack happens without any specific trigger.
Bertinelli’s severe panic attack happened weeks after she called it quits with her ex-boyfriend, Mike Goodnough. “They are no longer in a relationship,” an insider told People earlier this month of the couple who dated for 10 months and had a 10-year age gap.
It takes guts to be as open and vulnerable as Bertinelli about a mental health issue, as well as trust in your audience. Whether or not she knows it, we’re sure her spirit of sharing was appreciated by many who’ve felt the same kind of acute anxiety, or who have a loved one who has.
