Maurice Benard Celebrates His Birthday on a Special Podcast Episode
Maurice Benard Celebrates His Birthday on a Special Podcast Episode
Happy birthday, Maurice Benard! 🎉
To celebrate, we have highlights from a special episode of his State of Mind podcast, with his General Hospital co-star Dominic Zamprogna , who interviews Maurice.
Maurice opens up about how fame and ego fueled his anxiety, the early warning sign he now watches for when it comes to his mental health, and his birthday wish as he turns 63, and more.
Lisa LoCicero, aka Olivia Falconeri Quartermaine, joins the men for a playful, off-script “family reunion” spoof inspired by their longtime on-screen dynamic!
GH co-stars Nazneen Contractor and Carlo Rota, who play Justine and Sidwell, respectively, also give birthday wishes!
In a playful video filmed from a hot tub, General Hospital co-stars Nazneen Contractor (ADA Justine Turner, Sonny’s new love interest) and her real-life husband Carlo Rota (Jenz Sidwell) send birthday wishes to Maurice, who turns 63 this Sunday!
During a candid conversation on Sunday’s State of Mind with General Hospital co-star Dominic Zamprogna, Maurice Benard reflects on how the industry can make actors feel like they’re “not enough” and how that mindset followed him for years. “If we go back to ego, I figured out with all my anxiety and everything that I go through that it truly had to do with ego. I figured that out a little while ago.” He admits the realization came later than he would have liked. “So I’m glad, I just wish I had figured that out in my 20s and stuff.” Looking back on his younger years, Maurice says ego masked deeper struggles. “Because I was so in it, the ego and the, you know nothing can get to me, and nobody can hurt me… but what happens is because you I didn’t recognize it early enough, as it keeps rolling as you get older, now you’re affected.”
Maurice Benard on Bipolar Medication: ‘If I have to take it the rest of my life, I will’
Medication stigma becomes part of the conversation on Maurice Benard’s birthday episode of State of Mind, as General Hospital co-star Dominic Zamprogna asks the question many people quietly wonder. Maurice reacts, “People say that bipolars don’t like taking their medication and they’re, it’s true.” Dominic presses further, “Why don’t you like taking your medication? Where’s that rooted in?” Maurice, who has taken lithium for decades, explains the resistance isn’t about side effects. “It’s a in the in the mind. That’s I don’t know what it says, that I’m broken.” Still, he says his perspective has evolved. “But I think you, I have to get to the point now where I have to treat this medication like my lithium and if I have to take it the rest of my life, I will.” Dominic responds, “I think that’s what people need to hear.” Benard agrees that the medication doesn’t change who he is. “No, I feel great.”
Maurice Benard Reflects on His Mental Health Mission: ‘It’s the road I was supposed to take’
Maurice Benard on Faith and Suffering: ‘I always ask God, why?’
In a candid State of Mind conversation with General Hospital co-star Dominic Zamprogna, Maurice Benard reflects on the spiritual questions that have followed him through every hardship. “Every time that I’ve gone through something, I always ask God, why? Why Again? I’ve told you this. I mean, how many more times do I have to go through things? But I believe that he wanted me to suffer, and he wants me to suffer, to prevent other people from suffering.” Benard suggests that the pain he’s endured ultimately serves a greater purpose, helping others feel less alone in their own battles.
Maurice Benard on Turning 63: ‘All I want is joy’
Maurice Benard keeps it simple when asked about his birthday wish during a special episode of State of Mind, where General Hospital co-star Dominic Zamprogna turns the tables and interviews him, asking, “Maurice, do you have a birthday wish?” Maurice responds, “Sure. Let me tell you about the birthday wish. My birthday wishes? Seriously, my birthday, you know, I’m not big on holidays and birthdays. All I want is joy. That’s it. When I have joy, peace in here, that is the gift. I swear to you, not because I just said it last. When I have peace within, I cannot be f**ked with. Nothing bothers me.” He adds that when that inner peace is disrupted, everything feels off balance. “It’s just when all this other stuff goes, then nothing’s good. You know what I mean?”
Happy birthday!
