"The Last Ship" star Eric Dane is finally speaking up after a bout of depression.
During a guest co-hosting stint on "Today" last Monday, the former "Grey's Anatomy" actor said he's now "feeling great" after acknowledging what he was going through and making a conscious effort to take care of it.
Eric Dane revealed that before he was diagnosed with depression, he went to see other doctors who could help him if something was physically ailing him. But he said that the depression "hit him like a truck" and he felt really odd.
In April, Eric Dane decided to take a break from filming "The Last Ship" Season 4 so he could focus on getting better.
The actor did not return to the set until June, which delayed the show’s season premiere.
Listening to one’s body
Eric Dane shared with the rest of the "Today" hosts that it was a good thing that he listened to what his body was telling him.
"[Depression] is a very serious thing," he said. "It’s very real, and that was the scary thing when you wake up and you’re like, ‘I don’t want to get out of bed.'"
Eric Dane also said that he dealt with depression "all his life" but before this latest battle, his condition had been manageable. Now, he admits he is a taking medication called Pristiq which helps levels off the brain chemicals that causes emotions to go out of control.
Return to ‘The Last Ship’
With his condition under control, the actor is back at work on the set as “The Last Ship” is also in the midst of filming Season 5. Meanwhile, Season 4 will premiere on TNT on Sunday, Aug. 20, at 9:00 p.m. EDT.
The new season of the drama series will open with Eric Dane’s character, Tom Chandler, living in seclusion in a fishing village in Greece.
Viewers will recall that Chandler left the Navy at the end of “The Last Ship” Season 3 because he believes he's no longer fit to command the U.S.S. Nathan James.
But as much as Chandler tries to live a life of peaceful anonymity in his new home he becomes embroiled in a fighting ring in his tiny village and catches the attention of a mafia boss named Giorgio (Jackson Rathbone).
Will the former commander become part of a mafia?
Meanwhile, Chandler's former crew is on a new mission to stop another global threat that could lead to a famine. The virus that the U.S.S. Nathan James contained in the earlier seasons apparently morphed and has now affected agricultural and food supply.
How Chandler will be reunited with his crew is what viewers will have to watch out for in “The Last Ship” season 4. Check out the teaser below.
