hayden-panettiere-yahoo-style

New mom Hayden Panettiere says she was “floored” by the support from fans after she revealed her struggle with postpartum depression.

The Nashville star, 26, and fiancé Wladimir Klitschko welcomed daughter Kaya in Dec. 2014, and the actress later checked into a treatment center for PPD.

“I was always so terrified that people weren’t going to accept me,” Panettiere told Yahoo! Style. “I finally just went, ‘I’m tired of living afraid. I’m tired of living in fear of what people are going to think, so you know, I’m just going to put it all out there on the table and I’m not going to worry about the judgment.’”

As it turns out, her fans were more than willing to hear her truth.

“The more open I was, the more acceptance I got from people,” she shared. “I got so much support and so much love. I was floored. I feel much more exposed, yes, but in a great way.”

Ironically, her Nashville character, Juliette, also battles PPD.

“It was strange having to throw myself back into that frame of mind,” the actress said. “The way I do things is to pull from my own personal experience and sometimes even turn myself into what I’m portraying so that I can pull from my life and step into that person’s shoes by being able to relate.”

While the majority of her fans were supportive, some people feel postpartum depression is not a real ailment.

“It’s like you have no idea what you’re talking about,” she said. “If you think for one second that a mother wants to feel that way towards her child, you’re outta your mind.”

Over the weekend, the new mom shared family photos via Twitter.

The loves of my life ?? @Klitschko pic.twitter.com/MwpUKRxS4w

— hayden panettiere (@haydenpanettier) March 5, 2016

My ?? @Klitschko pic.twitter.com/g21MiJwZjD — hayden panettiere (@haydenpanettier) March 5, 2016

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