As Game Of Thrones is coming to an end, star Sophie Turner is taking more time to speak out against the drawbacks of spending her formative years in the spotlight. Appearing on Dr. Phil’s podcast Phil In The Blanks, the 23-year-old Dark Phoenix star opened up about her struggles with depression and how her critics affected her mental health.
“I would just believe it. I would say, ‘Yeah, I am spotty. I am fat. I am a bad actress.’ I would just believe it,” she recalled. “I would get [the costume department] to tighten my corset a lot. I just got very, very self-conscious.”
The insecurities grew into symptoms of depression. Turner lost her feeling of motivation “all of a sudden” and began distancing herself from her friends. Those feelings of isolation were made worse by a disconnect stemming from her decision to dedicate herself to acting as opposed to attending college like her friends and two brothers.
“I had no motivation to do anything or go out. Even with my best friends, I wouldn’t want to see them, I wouldn’t want to go out and eat with them,” she said. “I just would cry and cry and cry over just getting changed and putting on clothes and be like, ‘I can’t do this. I can’t go outside. I have nothing that I want to do.’”She eventually sought therapy and treatment, helping her feel “much better” than before. “I’m on medication and I love myself now, or more than I used to, I think,” she said “It’s weird. I say I wasn’t very depressed when I was younger, but I used to think about suicide a lot when I was younger. I don’t know why though. Maybe it’s just a weird fascination I used to have, but yeah, I used to think about it. I don’t think I ever would have gone through with it. I don’t know.”
Now with shooting wrapped on Game Of Thrones and Dark Phoenix promotion not really kicking off until May, she can get to fun things — like planning her wedding to fiancé Joe Jonas.
Hear the full episode of Phil In The Blanks with Sophie below.
