Oliver Hudson is getting real about committing to improving his mental health.
“In my 20s, I had a panic attack. I didn’t know what the hell it was,” Hudson, 48, exclusively told Us Weekly on Friday, September 27, at the Goldie Hawn Foundation 20th Anniversary Gala with MindUP. “It started off this year’s journey of self-discovery as to why I’m feeling this.”
Hudson added that he began searching for answers from medical professionals about why he suffered from the panic attack. The actor took a series of tests and consulted with doctors, who told him he was “fine.” However, Hudson credited his mom, Goldie Hawn, for being the one to aid him the most during his mental health struggles.
“My mother was instrumental in helping me understand that because she went through it herself at the same age,” he explained. “She was doing a TV show but dealing with her own s—, going back to her apartment, drinking tea. Cannot see anyone. She would throw up if she went on the sidewalks and [went] out in public.”
After learning about Hawn’s challenges, Hudson realized he was struggling with the same exact thing.
“I was able to take from her the wisdom that she was able to impart on me and utilize that in my — I wouldn’t call it recovery, but in my ability to get out of these feelings to the second part,” he told Us.
As Hudson learned from his mom, now he can be a resource for his kids Wilder, 17, Bodhi, 13, and Rio, 10, whom he shares with wife Erinn Bartlett. Hudson explained that he stepped in when one of his sons was struggling with anxiety.
“In eighth grade, [my son] had anxiety. He didn’t know what it was,” Hudson recalled. “He didn’t know what was going on. He would say, ‘I don’t feel real.’ … And I was like, ‘You’re dissociating. Like, I know what that is.’ So I was able to sort of coach him.”
Hudson was happy that he was able to provide a helping hand to his son because he had been in a similar situation. He added that since anxiety and other mental health struggles are still prevalent in today’s generation, it’s our best bet to “help these kids when they’re feeling things that they’re feeling.”
“This is the world that we live in. There is no moving away from it. We have to accept it,” he told Us. “We have to learn how to regulate, right?”
One way Hudson and his family are stepping up in advocating for mental health is through Hawn’s nonprofit. The Goldie Hawn Foundation supports children’s mental health initiatives and has teamed up with MindUP, which is a well-being program made for students from pre-K to 8th grade.
“It’s about teaching children why they are feeling the things that they’re feeling,” Hudson shared of the initiative. “Once you know where it’s coming from, there’s an ease, there’s a bit of a weight lifted off.”
With reporting by Amanda Williams
