Hayden Panettiere says she ‘thought people would have empathy’ for her mental health struggles in new interview

Hayden Panettiere thought speaking out about her mental health would be “easier” than it’s turned out to be. 

The actress, 35, appeared on “Today with Hoda and Jenna” Tuesday to promote her new movie “Amber Alert,” and talked with hosts Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager about how difficult it has been to share her mental health struggles in the wake of her brother Jaden’s death. 

“I thought it would be easier,” the “Heroes” star said when asked by Bush Hager how it’s “felt” to get “a hold of” her mental health “and then having a public conversation about it.”

“I thought that people would have empathy – [that it] was going to be the only thing that was there, but I had no idea how my body, my mind, was going to react to grief,” Panettiere added.

“It’s wild what stress and grief and all these hormones and running through your body can do… I mean, make you faint. My mother, when she got stressed – she’s gonna kill me for saying this – she used to get knots on her head.”

She continued, “It comes in all different forms, so nobody should be embarrassed by it or judged for it.” 

Speaking about the death of her brother, who passed away suddenly in 2023 at just 28 from an undiagnosed heart condition, Panettiere said she doesn’t think she’s been able to process the loss. 

“I don’t know that I fully have [processed it],” she confessed. “I think it’s something that transforms over time. Maybe the five stages of grief is for people who have had a heartbreak or find out some bad news. Yes, there are five stages, but there’s so much more in between.”

“And when you lose somebody that you saw in all of the important moments in your life, standing right next to you, it just rocks your world,” she said. “So it just changes … it changes.”

Panettiere’s remarks come days after the star released a statement addressing concerns over her well-being in the wake of a video interview she did with People magazine in which she appeared to slur her speech. 

“It’s unfathomable that I’m even in this position, but I feel forced to address it in a space where I won’t be criticized for how fast or slow I speak,” Panettiere wrote on Instagram Monday. 

“I hadn’t slept for two days prior to the shoot due to one of my dogs who was recovering from an emergency surgical procedure. It was an 8-hour shoot followed by an on-camera interview that was supposed to last for 1 hour.”

“Whether or not I am on medication is none of anyone’s business and is between me and my doctor,” Panettiere added, speaking directly to online speculation about her health. “I am doing interviews to promote my new film because I am proud of it. The real issue here is the toxicity of social media, and a news cycle that is driven by click bait.”

She continued, “Mental health is so important and I hope those reading this now understand that what you say hiding behind a computer screen can have a detrimental impact on someone. For those of you who have come to my defense amidst this chaos I am so grateful. Like I’ve said before, I am a work in progress. We all are.”

In her interview with People, Panettiere revealed that she didn’t leave her house after her brother’s passing, partly due to fear of being photographed by paparazzi. She also shared that she gained weight while mourning him, saying, “I didn’t feel confident to put on clothes and get out of the house.”

The actress has been open about her mental health battles in the past, having talked about her struggles with addiction and postpartum depression.