Jake Lloyd, identified for his position as a younger Anakin Skywalker in “Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace,” is giving followers an replace on his psychological well being struggles after he was identified with schizophrenia greater than a decade in the past.
“I can now accept taking on continued treatment, and therapy, and my meds,” he added. “Everyone’s been very supportive.”
Jake Lloyd completed his 18-month keep on the psychological well being facility on the finish of final yr and started dwelling at a brand new rehabilitation heart firstly of 2025 to proceed his remedy with the liberty to return and go.
He shared that “good things” got here out of his time receiving impatient remedy and that hitting “rock bottom” was wanted so he might “honestly take part in treatment, honestly take your meds, and honestly live with your diagnosis.”
Throughout her preliminary interview, Lisa Lloyd refuted claims that adverse criticism about “Phantom Menace” is what drove her son to give up appearing and affected his psychological well being, sharing that there was a historical past of schizophrenia on his father’s aspect of the household.
Jake Lloyd stays a fan of the “Star Wars” franchise and continues to have a constructive relationship with fan interactions.
“The experience I’ve had with the fans is immediately therapeutic,” he stated. “Right now, it’s still therapeutic. It’s helpful for people and healthy. It isn’t something I’d shy away from.”
He added, “I really do appreciate the time that’s been taken on us. I’m very appreciative.”
“He started talking about ‘realities,’” she stated. “He didn’t know if he was in this reality, or a different reality. I didn’t really know exactly what to say to that.”
He was taken to a physician who thought Jake Lloyd had bipolar dysfunction and was prescribed totally different medicines. Nevertheless, he struggled when he left dwelling to attend Columbia School Chicago and ultimately left in 2008 to maneuver in along with his mother in Indiana.
He was then identified with what was known as paranoid schizophrenia, however is now known as schizophrenia.
The Nationwide Institute of Psychological Well being describes schizophrenia as a psychological well being sickness that impacts how an individual behaves, feels, and thinks and may make it appear as if “they’ve misplaced contact with actuality.
Jake Lloyd additionally skilled anosognosia, which in response to the Cleveland Clinic, is a situation the place an individual’s mind can’t acknowledge their sickness and wish for medicine.
“He didn’t think he needed to take medication because he wasn’t sick,” his mother stated. “He didn’t think he needed to go to the therapist because there’s nothing wrong with him.”
Greater than midway by way of his keep on the psychological well being rehabilitation facility, Lisa Lloyd stated that her son was “doing much better than I expected.”
“He is relating to people better and becoming a little bit more social, which is really nice,” she defined. “It’s kind of like having more of the old Jake back, because he has always been incredibly social until he became schizophrenic.”
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. Extra from TODAY:
