Valerie Bertinelli was “incredibly vulnerable” with fans while detailing a recent panic attack.
The actress and celebrity chef admitted in an Instagram video caption on Sunday, November 17, that she had been waiting to post “for a day” before uploading the clip of her hand shaking.
“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,” Bertinelli, 64, wrote, noting that she took a “deep breath” before sharing the full story.
“I don’t know if you can tell from this video (and my heart is still beating a little rapidly as I write this) I had a really bad anxiety attack today,” the actress shared. “I haven’t had one like this in a very, very long time. A few hours ago, I was weeping uncontrollably, and my heart felt like it was pounding out of my chest. I couldn’t stop shaking.”
Bertinelli said she was “taking a chance” by publicly discussing her anxiety.
“I want to share it because I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one out here who has experienced this. Gratefully these attacks have become much more infrequent, so this one took me a little bit by surprise today. This is the after effect,” she explained. “As I’m going through the actual attack (lol attack is such an appropriate word. My body and my mind feels like it’s actually under attack 😅) Anyway … I almost disassociate and am focused solely on calming down and finding any road to a more relaxed and peaceful body.”
Bertinelli told followers that her brain is “overthinking and catastrophizing” during these attacks, which makes her body go “into overdrive.” The actress noted that she has “no control.”
The shaking hand that was shown in the video appeared to be taken hours after Bertinelli experienced the panic attack — even after she attempted to meditate as a method to calm down.
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“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,” she added. “You know the weird neuropathies in our brain and how it affects our bodies, what feelings (which are just information btw) are and why are they so powerful that they make our body go into overdrive.”
Bertinelli has not been shy when sharing intimate details of her life on social media. In April, the star praised the community she created on Instagram after sharing a series of updates.
“I truly love this community that we have built here,” she wrote at the time. “Thank you for sticking around. Through the challenging and through the sweet.”
