Donal Skehan has opened up about his mental health and how it’s something he has to work on by reminding himself to take a step back from life sometimes.
The Irish chef admitted while he still struggles with his mental health, he’s a lot happier since making the move back to Dublin.
Donal lived stateside alongside his family from 2016 to 2020, before deciding to leave LA four years later in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The 37-year-old revealed just how difficult it was being so far away from friends and family, noting it was like being in a constant ‘fight or flight’ experience.
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Opening up to the RTÉ Guide, Donal said: “When Noah was born, we had to battle, we had to battle to get health insurance in the US and being away from home, you lacked the usual support network of the wider family. We had to jump over umpteen hurdles to get to where we needed to be, and it felt like the rug was constantly being pulled from under us.”
Continuing, he added: “When we finally bought the house, it changed so much. Even the last 12 months has brought the stress levels down. But my mental health is something that I work on all the time.”
The father of two revealed while he loved LA he felt a much greater deal of security back home in Ireland.
He said: “I would have happily stayed in Los Angeles. I loved the lifestyle out there, but I always felt that we were treading the water in the States, having meetings, making new friends, whereas here there is a lovely sense of security and of being settled.
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The celebrity chef later admitted that his anxiety and stress levels are something he’s always trying to work on.
He added: “Even the last 12 months has brought the stress levels down. But my mental health is something that I work on all the time. Even making those documentaries was a reminder to try to always stay present and step away from the treadmill. I’m very aware of that when trying to combat my own anxiety or stress.”
