Nicola Thorp exercises to help with her anxiety.
The \'Coronation Street\' actress - who plays Nicola Rubenstein on the hit ITV soap - has opened up about her struggles for Mental Health Awareness week after she went for a run for the first time this year and she explained how it\'s made her realise she has come out of a "bad patch".
Posting a candid note on Twitter, she wrote: "I think most people have something they recognise within themselves that marks the end of a bad patch.
"Not having a cig first thing in the morning. Making a meal for themselves. Calling their nan, or listening to a particularly song... all simple everyday things that seemed impossible during the dark times.
"Mine is exercise. I tricked myself into doing it today."
The soap star has spoken out to help inspire others who might be going through the same thing, as she admitted how difficult it has been for her.
Nicola, 30, said: "Despite knowing that exercise can be a huge help in the struggle against depression and anxiety, it\'s the last thing I could face doing.
"It\'s easy for friends and loved ones to say \'go for a run\', \'get outside, it\'ll do you good\'... but for complex and nuanced psychological reasons just walking to the shops sometimes feels like a marathon for some people."
Meanwhile, she has recently been working on a documentary and campaigning about the way schools educate children about contraception.
Speaking last month, Nicola explained how she wants her "future daughter" to be with a boy who is clued up on safe sex.
She said: "I constantly have my future daughter in my mind, and when I think it\'s not worth it, I do it for her or my future son.
"It\'s about the next generation. There\'s this stigma around periods and contraception - it\'s about breaking down that stigma and embarrassment."
