The ‘Today’ host is in excellent mental and physical condition after celebrating his 50th birthday and recovering from serious back surgery last year.
Carson Daly is feeling upbeat as he approaches his 50th birthday and is recovering well from major surgery last year.
According to the USC Spine Center, the Today host underwent an anterior lumbar interbody fusion procedure, in which an intervertebral disc is removed and replaced with a bone or metal spacer, on June 22 to commemorate his milestone birthday. On same day, he opened up to PEOPLE about how he is feeling following the procedure.
In fact, I feel fantastic. To be really honest with you, I feel a lot better starting my 50s than I did finishing my 40s. At least physically,” he tells PEOPLE. “My back is finally feeling better after my back surgery last year,” One year is needed. I underwent back fusion surgery and was in a terrible mood.
“I’m really on my bounce back right now as I enter my 50s, so I’m totally optimistic for the future,” he continues.
Daly also mentioned that he’s been in good mental health as he thought back on his personal experiences with anxiety and the work he’s done in recent years to promote mental health services.
“Recently, I’ve been on a genuine mental health journey. I spent a lot of time advocating for mental health. Additionally, I’ve been looking into my past to see whether I have panic disorder or generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). I think about where it originated from,” he says.
“So as I reflect on my life, I see that despite the fact that I’ve experienced panic attacks numerous times, I didn’t fully understand what they were at the time. Many of these took place during MTV’s spring break in Cancun. The scariest times of my life frequently occurred when I appeared to be enjoying the time of my life because I was coping with a mental health condition that I truly didn’t know what it was.
It’s good to not be okay, to be vulnerable, to be bold, and to talk to someone about how you’re feeling, the television star says he would probably advise his younger self. Don’t keep anything inside.
Daly continues by saying that a great deal of people, including himself, suffer in silence for years before seeking mental health treatment.
There are solutions out there, he says. “You can recover, and you’re not by yourself. There are so many people struggling with issues that you are unaware of. There is agony that many individuals are experiencing that is invisible.
“See, I have this whole notion that mental health should be celebrated as well as accepted. I believe that everyone has wonderful qualities. It all comes down to perspective. We need to redefine our perspective, Daly says PEOPLE.
“I might feel anxious, have a panic attack, think there is an immediate threat, and leave a room; my fight or flight response is wild, and I’m sensitive. But I could also have a bottle of wine while listening to classical music, watching a sunset, and experiencing a strong physical response of ecstasy. Or when I love and hug my children. He continued, “The love is so powerful.
“Sensitivity is the flip side of that anxiousness. I choose to see it that way, in which case I consider myself to be a superhero. I don’t view that as evidence that I am struggling with my mental health.
