Natalia Dyer fans, we’ve got a brand new listen for you…
Various reports released at the tailed of 2021, revealed that psychologists were seeing a huge uptick in younger people seeking out therapy since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, and Stranger Things’ very own Natalia Dyer (who BTW, was in the Hannah Montana movie?!) was one of them. During an interview on podcast, Reign with Josh Smith – which is now back for a brand new series – the star revealed that going to therapy during the pandemic helped her to set boundaries after the huge success of the sci-fi show.
“The pandemic was a really enlightening time for a lot of people, but for me as well,” she explains to host, Josh Smith. “I’ve gone to therapy at different points of my life but I went back to therapy during the pandemic, which was one of the best decisions I think I’ve ever made for myself.”
Dyer goes on to declare that she’s a big “advocate” of going to therapy because it offers her, and those like her, a space to give yourself “inward compassion,” something which is perhaps particularly needed in the unrelenting world of fame: “I think in this industry and with the visibility of this show and for me being an introvert, it helps me figure out what my boundaries are.
“I think boundaries are really important things just to stay afloat. So it’s a constant learning process, but for me it was definitely like, ‘okay, I need to take it back inwards,’ and just have a conversation with myself and keep that dialogue open. And for me it’s been just really, really a good thing.”
So what does the Nancy-playing actor think that seeking support has given her? Well, quite fundamentally, it’s given her back her sense of self: “I do think going to therapy really put me back in touch with myself and I think that’s the most powerful thing. It’s very easy to feel tugged in a million like directions and think, ‘who am I? And who am I really? And what do I like and what do they want from me?’ I think getting back in touch with who you are – which is transient, moving and changing all the time – just being in touch with that gut energy means you can really handle anything, with that inner peace within yourself.”
Well, we can’t argue with that.
The star also had just enough time during the interview to touch on who she hopes Nancy will romantically end up with in the final season of Stranger Things: “It’s really hard to think about who she’s gonna end up with between Jonathan and Steve, she loves both of them in different ways,” she explains. “It’s such a traumatic thing that they’re all going through, that they’re all bonded and they all care about each other. There’s so much more than just these romantic feelings going on.”
OMG, you can say that again. We could barely catch our breath during the latest season – and when we did we were mainly using any spare air in our lungs to belt out Kate Bush‘s Running up That Hill.
Although she did admit that she could see Nancy “not being with anybody in the end,”: “It’s just so much to process what’s going on, I don’t think she’s in a head space for romance really, personally and we’ve never really seen her single, she’s always been with somebody and I feel like maybe she has some single solo growing to do.”
Time will tell, we (begrudgingly) suppose. In the meantime, if you want to hear everything Natalia Dyer had to say in full, you can listen to the podcast here.