Dan Ewing, who portrayed Heath Braxton on Home and Away, may have played a tough River Boy onscreen, but he struggled with mental health difficulties behind the scenes.
Dan, who is now acting in SAS Australia, has lately spoken out about his rise to stardom and his anxiety issues.
Dan confessed in an interview with the ImperfectlyPerfect Podcast this week that when he initially joined the cast of Home and Away in 2007, he suffered with anxiety and turned to drink to cope.
“I had a lot of trouble. I was only a child from the northern beaches, so to suddenly become famous on Australia’s most popular show, Home and Away… I wasn’t prepared “he stated.
Dan, who was 25 at the time, continued by saying that he used booze to cope with his celebrity.
“You mask it as ‘well, that’s just blowing off steam,’ and we’ve all done it. But I didn’t realise there was a better method, a better procedure, since that was just the way things were done around here “he stated
He went on to say that while learning on the job was fun, it was “not conducive to a great relationship, a great marriage, or a wonderful lifestyle,” and that he was still working and “kicking goals at work.”
“It wasn’t like I was a full-fledged alcoholic,” the 36-year-old explained, “but I was just getting drunk on weekends to alleviate this tension that I just wasn’t ready for.”
He stated he was “extremely thankful” for the position and the success of Home and Away and the characters, adding, “I wasn’t ready for celebrity – I just wasn’t.”
“But I wasn’t ready, and I didn’t know what mental health was or how important it was to take care of that things first.”
After ten years, Dan has resorted to meditation, writing, and a “process” to help him deal with his mental health, which we’ve seen on SAS.
Dan stated that he came on the programme to “become a better version of myself” when asked why he came in the first place.
Dan also mentioned in a piece to camera that he would be without his “meditation music” and candles while through the rigorous selection process.
