MTV movie actress tackles mental health issues among youth

It began with a little irrational thinking.

English actor Jessica Barden puts it this way:

“Why did I think I would die every time I stepped onto a train? Forget the subway. I thought, ‘I can’t go underground. Everything is going to kill me.’ ”

Barden, best known for the TV series “The End of the (Expletive) World,” is the first to admit that she suffers from anxiety. Zooming in from a set in Australia, she will shout it from the rooftops because of her new MTV movie, “Pink Skies Ahead,” debuting this weekend.

Written and directed by New York Times bestselling author Kelly Oxford, the film is part of MTV’s new Mental Health Is Health initiative. “Pink Skies Ahead” also stars Mary J. Blige, Marcia Gay Harden and Henry Winkler.

Set in 1998 in Los Angeles, the coming-of-age drama stars Barden as Winona, a college dropout who moves back home with her parents. She’s diagnosed with an anxiety disorder but is skeptical because she hasn’t had a panic attack — yet.

When life around her begins to unravel, Winona must see a therapist and face her mental health issues.

Barden knows about trying to ignore mental health from her own experience.

“When you have anxiety and you’re not working on it,” the 28-year-old says, “it’s like you’re always running into a burning building and then going, ‘Whew, I survived.’

“I had to learn that there are better ways to live. Now I want to tell young people that message.”

Review-Journal: You’re quite frank concerning your struggles with anxiety. How did you react when the “Pink Skies” script came your way?

Jessica Barden: Anxiety is such an important topic, especially for young people. I can’t say I was looking for a movie about the topic, but I felt really lucky when writer-director Kelly Oxford direct messaged me just before Christmas two years ago. I was living in London at the time and coming home from a pantomime, which is a play only in England at Christmas. There’s a villain and people throw food at him! Anyway, I was coming home from this full of joy when I was sent this script. I read the first 30 pages in a cab, phoned my agent and said, “I wish this movie existed when I was younger.”

Why?

I thought, “Oh, my God, I can be part of something that will explain anxiety and help people not to feel insane if they suffer from anxiety attacks.” Kelly actually gave me the opportunity to do something constructive with my anxiety.

What was the worst part of your anxiety?

It was the question marks. Why did I feel an anxiety attack coming on if I got on a train or even thought about going somewhere in the underground? Everything was going to kill me. When you think this way, life becomes a wild ride. At the time I made the movie, I was 26 and didn’t have a therapist. I was very adamant that despite my anxiety, I was just fine, thank you. I told myself, “You’re an actress. You’re emotional. You have tons of friends. Who cares about a few anxious moments?” Most of all, I convinced myself, “I don’t need a therapist. You won’t be able to do your job as an actress if you have a therapist.” I was just really screwed up — just like so many people.

How important was it for you, like your character in “Pink Skies,” to investigate therapy?

So important. To have a good life, I needed to get a therapist. When you have anxiety and you’re not working on it, it is like you’re running into danger all the time, only to later feel the relief of nothing bad really happening. You survived. Now, when I’m with my therapist, we discuss boundaries. We work on issues.

What do you make of MTV addressing mental health issues?

It’s important and amazing. I was just thinking that so many of my great TV moments began on MTV and they were also about mental health issues. I still watch “Teen Mom.”

Did staying home during the pandemic help or hurt your anxiety issues?

The pandemic was another part of my anxiety. I did have to work on agoraphobia. It’s one of the more embarrassing things, but I’ve heard it was a very normal fear for many during the pandemic. … The odd thing about anxiety is when something extremely bad happens like this virus, you have no anxiety about it. You have this incredible way of getting on with it and pushing through. In my case, I was already living full time in L.A., so I spent the pandemic there just staying safe.

Finally, what is a perfect Sunday to you?

My perfect Sunday is I wake up at 9 a.m. I never sleep in. I have to wake up and take care of myself. I’m an athlete, so I’ll go on a bike ride with my boyfriend or we’ll go to a boxing class together. Or we’ll go on a run. Then we go out for breakfast and spend the rest of the day going on our tour of L.A., eating different foods, and just enjoying each other.