General Hospital star Maurice Benard is very open about his mental health issues. The soap star plays Sonny Corinthos, a mob boss, on the popular ABC daytime soap. His character is bipolar, and his need to be medicated is part of the storyline. However, that is also true for Benard as a person.
Maurice said he had a recent mental health crisis, and it forced him to take time off from General Hospital. Here is what the actor had to say.
Maurice Benard Opens Up About Mental Health Emergency
Just like Sonny on General Hospital, Maurice Benard also deals with mental health issues in his life. He has the same diagnosis as Sonny, as he also suffers from bipolar disorder. Maurice also has a podcast called State of Mind, where he interviews people and discusses their careers and struggles.
However, in his new episode, he did not interview anyone. Instead, Maurice sat, looked into the camera, and told his story. He titled the episode “True Friendship,” and he talked about taking time off from General Hospital and how some real friends stepped up for him to help him through a mental health crisis he was facing.
“I don’t want to relive it; I just want to tell the story of what happened,” he began. He talked about his anxiety issues and reminded fans of his real-life bipolar diagnosis. He then said that he was playing a character who was off their meds and that acting out these roles increased his issues even more.
He began to suffer from insomnia from his anxiety issues and would stay awake all night, unable to sleep. He sought out doctors to help and even found one that he called a “jerk” who spoke to him in a way that no doctor should ever talk to a patient. He also knew he couldn’t go to work in this condition and had to take some time off.
Maurice Benard Reveals His Friends Who Helped Him
The good news is that Maurice Benard has friends who care about him and have stepped up to help him. He said he called a friend one night, and they prayed together, and Maurice began to feel some relief. He also said his friends kept calling him to check in and ensure he was okay.
Benard explained that those friends were General Hospital stars Steve Burton and Jonathan Jackson. “It’s amazing the compassion that people have,” Maurice said about their friendship and understanding. He also said that Vanessa Marcil helped him during this tough time.
Benard’s anxiety and bipolar issues also cause him to doubt himself at times. He said he missed two weeks from work and knew that if he were gone much longer, there would be a recasting to find someone to step in for him. Despite his years on the show, Maurice said he thought that could cost him his role because someone better could show up.
He had nothing to worry about. Producer Frank Valentini was generous and compassionate with him, but he had to get back to work anyway. He showed up and shot eight episodes of footage in just two days.
Are you surprised to hear about the reason Maurice Benard had to miss two weeks of General Hospital? Please help send your kind words to him in the comments below.
