Emma Stone Reveals She Had ‘Massive Anxiety’ as a Kid

Emma Stone is a rising actress best known for her roles in Easy A, Superbad and the upcoming The Amazing Spider-Man. Although Stone is used to the glare of the spotlight now, she admits it wasn’t always that way.

In the May issue of Glamour, the 22-year-old admitted she used to have really bad anxiety which led to panic attacks.

“I had massive anxiety as a child. I was in therapy. From 8 to 10, I was borderline agoraphobic," she said. "I could not leave my mom's side. I don't really have panic attacks anymore, but I had really bad anxiety. There was a lot of fear, but [coming to Hollywood] was also very exciting."

Stone credits her career for curing her anxiety.

“It got me out of that. It made me feel great. I started doing improv the year after my tough two years. It helped.”

She also credits her mom’s best advice to helping her stay grounded in the Hollywood lifestyle.

"She is the greatest person on earth," said Stone. "She always helps me deal with things as they happen instead of planning them all out ahead of time. But that's one of 600 billion pieces of advice she's given me."

Stone, being a young star in the industry, feels the pressures of fame and staying thin, but doesn’t let it bother her.

“I’d be crazy to sit here and tell you that I’ve never thought about [the pressure to stay thin]. [But] I never can beat myself up about it. I definitely am not restrictive. You’re a human being, you live once and life is wonderful, so eat the damn red velvet cupcake.”