Postpartum Depression: Hayden Panettiere Opens Up About The 'Painful' Condition, 'Women Need A Lot Of Support'

According to ABC news, Hayden Panettiere, who plays the role of Juliette Barnes in "Nashville," said that she relates with her character onscreen—like Barnes, Panettiere also suffers from postpartum depression.

"It's something I can very much relate to," Panettiere openly shared in an appearance on "Live! With Kelly and Michael" Monday.

"It's something a lot of women experience. When [you are told] about postpartum depression you think it's 'I feel negative feelings towards my child; I want to injure or hurt my child.' I've never, ever had those feelings. Some women do. But you don't realize how broad of a spectrum you can really experience that on. It's something that needs to be talked about. Women need to know that they're not alone, and that it does heal."

According to her, the shame and misunderstanding that surrounds the condition makes women want to keep silent and not talk about it.

"There's a lot of people out there that think that it's not real, that it's not true, that it's something that's made up in their minds, that 'Oh, it's hormones.' They brush it off," she said. "It's something that's completely uncontrollable."

"It's really painful and it's really scary and women need a lot of support," added the 26 year-old actress.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, postpartum depression, which happens after giving birth, is a condition that is both hard and debilitating. A survey has found that 8 to 19 percent of women reported having its symptoms.

"Women are amazing," said Panettiere. "We do something that no man can do on this planet. I mean, we grow a human being in our body!"

People reports that while talking about women getting pregnant, Panettiere also joked about her fiance, 39-year-old heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, who wished he could also do that.

“When I was pregnant, he would do this thing where he would suck in his stomach and then I would put my stomach to his so that he could feel when she was moving, almost like she was in his stomach,” explains Panettiere.

“He wanted to feel what it was like to have a baby as close to him as it was to me.”

The entertainment outlet reports that currently, Klitschko and 9-month old baby girl Kaya Evdokia are "inseparable."

“This kid loves water," Panettiere said. "She’s never cried anytime we’ve put her in the shower or the bath or the ocean—she loves swimming."