Ella Purnell is a British actress, getting her start at a young age in theater and movies like Maleficent and Never Let Me Go, and series like Sweetbitter. Her growing acting career aside, Ella is known for her confidence, strength, and her ability to maintain her physical and mental well-being. What’s her advice? Here are some tips we dug up on how Ella Purnell prioritizes her health and wellness.
1. Hiking
She posted photos on Instagram of her exploring the outdoors and hiking, very beneficial to overall health and well-being. According to the Cleveland Clinic, “in addition to being a good form of exercise, walking through nature comes with other health benefits like lowering your blood pressure, improving sleep and reducing depression and anxiety.”
2. Confidence is key
She focuses on mental strength, in addition to physical strength. "As a girl we are made to feel ashamed of having confidence. If we have a bit of self-confidence, people think you are really full of yourself. People think you are cocky or too sassy and we have to play nice all the time. I think what I learnt in Sweetbitter was the pressure of this job can really get to me as it was my first time doing TV and the first time as a lead. I kept questioning, ‘are you sure you want me?’ I was really freaking out and I doubted myself a lot, I have never really valuated my own self- esteem and it was the first time I have ever had a real crisis of confidence,” she told Glamour.
3. She’s working on her strength
She’s sure of herself and stands behind what she believes. “I also learnt when it comes to young people, feminism, mental health or politics, my opinion is important, I do have an opinion and I’m entitled to an opinion. I think it has been interesting for me to learn how to speak up for myself, which I think comes from leading a show. Everyone’s looking at you and you have to have the answers. I feel more confident and comfortable in my own skin. Growing up in the film industry is terrifying because you have to conform to so many ideals and ideas. But then you hit a certain age where you don’t care, and you just learn to be yourself,” she told Glamour.
4. She’s fine with not being “perfect”
She doesn’t strive for unattainable perfection. "You want to project an image that you’re perfect and people ask, ‘what are your beauty secrets?’ You want to come up with these great, amazing routines but really, I barely take my makeup off at night! But I am done with trying to project perfection, it’s refreshing to be like, ‘I don’t know, I’ll let you know when I figure it out!’ There’s a pressure for young actors and actresses to be working all the time and to stay relevant so when it comes to interviews you have to stand for something,” she told Glamour. “Everyone’s got a thing and I am still figuring out what is my thing?”
5. She prioritizes mental health
She took to Instagram to say, “happy world mental health day my dudes!!!!! This is my favourite day! I love talking about mental health!! My mental health! Your mental health! Emotions! Feelings! Pain! Trauma! Hurt! Healing! Recovery! Life! Sorry I haven’t been very open about mine lately. I’ve been busy filming and press and moving house and really all of those are just excuses because I’ve actually just been feeling a bit lost and overwhelmed & I couldn’t find the time or the words. Some words I do want to share with you today though - I wrote a chapter of this book called ‘It’s not okay to feel blue (& other lies)’, by @scarcurtis. It came out a week ago. I wrote about what “mental health” means to me. It’s very honest, very personal, and very mad. I write about depression. I write about manic mood swings and anxiety and self harm. I write about the little voice in my head that tells me I am shit all the time. I’m incredibly proud of it, and incredibly honoured that my name is included amongst some of my heroes. This book is one of the most beautiful, touching, relatable things I’ve ever read. If you are struggling, or you feel alone, or you want to laugh, or you want to cry, or you just want to feel something, this book will help. You really are not alone, believe us! It’s okay. Be kind to yourself. 💙 Love love always love. 💙”
