Jennifer Lawrence is shining a light on the intense struggles many face after becoming a parent.
At a press conference at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday (May 18), Lawrence opened up about some of the similarities between herself and her Die, My Love character Grace, who experiences postpartum depression and psychosis, per Page Six. The Hunger Games star has two children with husband Cooke Maroney, 3-year-old son Cy and a baby born earlier this year whose name has not been revealed.
"As a mother, it was really hard to separate what I would do as opposed to what she would do. And it just heartbreaking," she said. "I had just had my firstborn, and there's not really anything like postpartum. It's extremely isolating, which is so interesting."
While speaking how her character lacked "community" and wasn't surrounded by "her people," Lawrence got candid about the isolating nature of intense postpartum feelings, stating, "But the truth is, extreme anxiety and extreme depression is isolating, no matter where you are. You feel like an alien."
The Oscar winner also noted how becoming a mom not only completely changed her life on a personal level, but her kids have influenced her professional life as well.
"It changes your whole life. It's brutal and incredible. So not only do they go into every decision of if I'm working, where I'm working, when I'm working, they've taught me — I mean, I didn't know that I could feel so much and my job has a lot to do with emotion," she said, adding, "It's almost like feeling a blister or something — like, so sensitive. So they've changed my life, obviously for the best and they've changed me creatively. I highly recommend having kids if you want to be an actor."