Does Amanda Seyfried have OCD? Health struggles explored as actress recently shares eczema diagnosis

Amanda Seyfried recently appeared on Vogue Beauty Secrets, a video series in which celebrities give a sneak peek into their make-up and skin care routines. Seyfried, in the video posted on March 18 to YouTube, revealed that she suffers from eczema and perioral dermatitis.

The Mean Girls fame star, who appeared on the video without any make-up, pointed towards her face and said,

“You might be thinking, ‘What’s that on her face?’… That’s my eczema, and I, too, suffer from perioral dermatitis.”

Seyfried’s candid revelation comes amid the actress’ series of health struggles. Amanda Seyfried also suffers from OCD, that is, obsessive compulsive disorder.

In 2016, during an interview for the cover story of Allure’s November issue, she had opened up about her struggles with obsessive-compulsive disorder in detail. Seyfried had been suffering from anxiety induced by the obsessive-compulsive disorder when she visited a neurologist, fearing that she had a brain tumor. However, after the MRI failed to detect a tumor, the neurologist referred the Jennifer’s Body actress to a psychiatrist.

Seyfried shared back in 2016 that there is a stigma attached to seeking help for mental illnesses, which often deters people from seeking help and coming to terms with their illness. In the interview with Allure, Seyfried was candid about being on medications, saying,

“Yeah. I’m on Lexapro, and I’ll never get off of it. I’ve been on it since I was 19, so 11 years. I’m on the lowest dose. I don’t see the point of getting off of it. Whether it’s placebo or not, I don’t want to risk it. And what are you fighting against? Just the stigma of using a tool?”

According to the Mayo Clinic, OCD is a combination of repetitive patterns of compulsive behavior that arise due to intruding thoughts, and the illness has the capacity to disrupt a person’s normal day-to-day functioning.

Seyfried insisted in her conversation with Allure that mental illnesses should be taken as seriously as other diseases and illnesses, inspiring people to feel unashamed while talking about their mental health struggles. She added,

“A mental illness is a thing that people cast in a different category [from other illnesses], but I don’t think it is. It should be taken as seriously as anything else. You don’t see the mental illness: It’s not a mass; it’s not a cyst. But it’s there. Why do you need to prove it? If you can treat it, you treat it.”

Seyfried’s diagnosis of obsessive compulsive disorder did not deter the actress from succeeding in her professional life or stop her from giving stellar acting performances.

The Long Bright River actress, who has won an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and a Critics Choice award, has been appearing on screen from the age of 15.

While talking about being an actor and suffering from OCD with InStyle, Amanda Seyfried shared that OCD is a part of her, and she uses it in a "positive way” in her professional life.

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Amanda Seyfried’s candid eczema revelation

Amanda Seyfried’s openness about her health struggles provides her fans with a lot of support. Fans, in the comments section of the video in which Seyfried showed her bare face, insisted that in a world where stars tend to use filters to hide their imperfections, the actress’ openness about her eczema and perioral dermatitis in a bare face is a breath of fresh air.

According to the Cleveland Clinic website, perioral dermatitis is a rash that appears around the mouth. As per the clinic, perioral dermatitis is one of the multiple types of dermatitis that can cause the skin to become “scaly, dry, and flaky with swollen, inflamed bumps.”

The Dropout actress did not seem to betray any sense of insecurity in the video while she appeared without make-up with the rashes on her face fully visible on camera. While she applied make-up, she shared,

“This is me doing my makeup to look pretty and clean.”

In addition to Amanda Seyfried’s acting prowess, the actress's frankness and honesty with regards to her struggles with health inspire generations of fans. The actress recognizes the importance of her positive influence and uses her popularity to emphasize the need to do away with stigmas related to health and well-being.