Over the years, more and more celebrities and public figures have spoken out about their mental health struggles to bring awareness to issues and to better connect with their audiences. The main issue that celebrities are facing is a type of stress referred to as job burnout.
The Mayo Clinic describes job burnout as work-related stress that results in people feeling exhausted from their workload and powerless to fix the problem.
Chappell Roan has spoken out about the impacts of “celebrity burnout,” saying she feels so overwhelmed with everything happening in her career that she has no time to formulate a new mental health routine, and her old one no longer works for her.
As a result of her exhaustion, she canceled her shows for the All Things Go festival in Columbia, Maryland, and New York City.
This cancellation caused backlash from fans who bought nonrefundable hotel and travel accommodations. Other fans have praised her for prioritizing her mental health.
Pressure from fans, management, and extravagant contracts can hinder a celebrity’s desire to take a break from the spotlight.
Mike Tyson, for example, came out of a 19-year retirement after being offered more than $20 million to fight social media influencer Jake Paul last month. During the fight, Tyson only landed 18 punches compared to Paul’s 78.
Cillian Murphy, on the other hand, frequently turns down projects. The 48-year-old actor has said he tries to do only one movie or project a year and prefers not to work in the summer.
Murphy told GQ it has been a struggle to maintain his work-life balance and attributes his successful career to his wife, who cares for their family while he is away on assignment.
Some actors prefer to keep the profession in the family and encourage their children to start acting from a young age. Tim Allen’s daughter, Elizabeth, got her big break at just 13 years old in her father’s Disney+ show “The Santa Clauses.” Elizabeth plays the daughter of Tim Allen’s character, Santa, in the series.
Chris Hemsworth has also worked with his children in his recent Marvel movie “Thor: Love and Thunder,” though he said it was a one-time experience and does not want his kids to become child actors.
Child actors are more susceptible to burnout from long working hours and the lack of concern for their well-being in the industry. The term “child actor syndrome” is used to describe adults who grew up in the movie business and suffer from anxiety and depression because of it.
Kids also have to deal with the struggle of juggling school, work, and typical childhood activities like family gatherings and time with friends. There’s also the risk of drug and alcohol exposure.
Jennette McCurdy, the co-star of the popular kids show “iCarly,” came forward about the extensive mistreatment she faced from her mother when she was young. McCurdy said it was never her dream to be famous, but her mother forced her into the industry at just 6 years old.
While McCurdy was starring in “iCarly,” she was supporting her family as the main breadwinner of the household, with all her affairs handled by her mother.
Drake Bell, another Nickelodeon child actor from “Drake and Josh,” spoke out about the sexual abuse he faced as a minor in the docuseries “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV.”
Children have recently become a part of celebrities’ cash grabs, even though most parents are aware of the hardships that come with being in the spotlight at such a young age.
Baby Gronk is a popular example of parents pushing their children into a profession and excessively marketing them. Madden San Miguel, aka Baby Gronk, got his nickname because fans believe he plays football in a similar style to retired NFL tight end Rob Gronkowski.
San Miguel is only 12 years old and has more than 138,000 followers on his parent-run account on TikTok.
The trend of parents placing their children in the spotlight to profit off of them needs to come to an end. Extensive research has been done on the negative effects of child performers, yet parents are still trying to make their kids famous.
One of the most well-known examples of child exploitation on social media is the popular TikTok account @wren.eleanor which has around 17 million followers. Jacquelyn, Wren’s mom, has posted countless inappropriate videos of her daughter and received so much hate that she has since deleted all her videos and made her Instagram account private.
Jacquelyn was accused by TikTok users of catering her videos toward child predators because even though she has other children, she only posted videos of her young daughter Wren, which received hundreds of thousands of saves and suggestive comments.
Concerns over privacy also arise for celebrities and public figures, no matter their age. A lack of privacy can negatively affect personal relationships and increase the likelihood of depression and anxiety.
Celebrities of all ages deserve grace when dealing with mental health issues caused by their busy schedules and lack of privacy. Just because someone looks like they “have it all” doesn’t mean they aren’t struggling.