Comedy star Felix Lobrecht - From the psychiatric ward to the red carpet
Podcaster and comedian Felix Lobrecht (34) spent the first three and a half months of the year in a psychiatric hospital. In the interview podcast "Hotel Matze ", the 34-year-old has now revealed new details about this time. For Lobrecht, 2022 was "the most successful year" of his life from a comedy perspective.
But after the second arena tour with his comedy program "all you can eat", he fell into a deep hole and was constantly physically ill. "It felt like I was going downhill all the time," Lobrecht reveals. As a result, he admitted himself to the clinic on January 1, 2023.
"From the loony bin to the red carpet and back again"
The outlook for his professionally demanding year 2023 in particular, including the premiere of his autobiographical Neukölln film "Sonne und Beton" (Sun and Concrete), presented Lobrecht with mental problems, as he had an "insane workload" ahead of him. The podcaster and comedian also reveals that he continued to work during his stay in hospital. The production of his weekly podcast "Gemischtes Hack" with Tommi Schmitt (34) continued from the clinic during this time.
Lobrecht also commuted out of the psychiatric ward for events such as the Berlinale premiere of "Sonne und Beton": "I really went from the psych ward to the red carpet, that was completely crazy, and back again," Lobrecht reveals.
Felix Lobrecht specifies time-out plans for 2024
At the beginning of the year, Lobrecht had already announced his intention to take a break from the show for at least a year in light of these events, as he was feeling ill and exhausted. In his new interview, the comedian confirmed this by saying: "I'm now taking a break for at least a year with live shows, tours and so on, podcast continues, on the one hand because I enjoy it, because it's not so much effort, and on the other hand we simply have contracts." You can't "just chill out like that", but that's also "completely okay".
"I'm really taking a year's break from my job as I did it before," says Lobrecht. He only wants to devote himself to writing new material during this period in as stress-free a way as possible and free from deadline pressure. The comedian is also planning to "just spend some time in Berlin". In his opinion, he has had too few opportunities to do this in recent years due to constant touring and other commitments.
Lack of "self-sufficiency" as a major problem
Lobrecht also offers a very personal insight into his inner life in the interview. In his opinion, people who regularly perform professionally on stage need "too much confirmation from outside" in order to "somehow appreciate themselves and feel good about themselves".
"Encouragement is important to me because, as blunt as it sounds, I simply haven't learned in my life to develop something like self-sufficiency, that I'm enough for myself without external confirmation in order to feel good about myself," says Lobrecht. For him, things like "affection" and "confirmation" are "always linked to performance. You have to do something to make other people appreciate you, think you're cool, like you, whatever."
After his stay in hospital, however, he is already feeling much better with these problems.
Read also:
- During his hospitalization, Felix Lobrecht continued to produce his weekly podcast "Gemischtes Hack" with Tommi Schmitt, demonstrating his commitment to his work even in challenging circumstances.
- The comedy star's autobiographical film "Sonne und Beton" (Sun and Concrete) premiered amidst his time in the psychiatric ward, adding another layer of complexity to his professional life.
- Psychiatry played a significant role in Lobrecht's life, as he sought help and eventual treatment for his mental health issues, eventually leading to his hospitalization for several months.
- Lobrecht's stay in the psychiatric ward was a stark contrast to his red carpet appearances, as he navigated the ups and downs of his career while dealing with his mental health struggles.
Source: www.stern.de
