Inside Out 2 introduces the character Anxiety, who is so accurate that I cried watching one scene in the movie. Pixar’s newest sequel continues to follow the inner workings of the mind of an adolescent named Riley Andersen. Riley is 11 years old at the start of Inside Out, but she turns 13 prior to the second movie. With the start of puberty, Riley’s headquarters gets demolished to make room for Inside Out 2’s new emotions – ennui, embarrassment, envy, and anxiety – that add to the teen’s original five.

While all the emotions have an important role in Riley’s mind, Anxiety is the newbie who takes over in Inside Out 2, trying to prepare for every possible scenario that could occur. This creates conflict between Anxiety and Joy, who both believe they know what’s best for Riley. Anxiety grows increasingly irrational throughout Inside Out 2, despite her genuinely good intentions. This leads to a beautifully and painfully accurate scene at the movie’s climax that caused me to bawl my eyes out in the movie theater, surrounded by similar sniffles from other viewers.

Inside Out 2’s Anxiety Attack Perfectly Captures My Experience With Anxiety

The Inside Out Sequel Provides An Accurate Depiction Of An Anxiety Attack

At the end of Inside Out 2, Anxiety becomes panicked after accidentally creating Riley’s destructive belief that “I’m not good enough.” She goes into overdrive, trying to fix the mess she made. As she moves faster and faster, Riley starts showing signs of an anxiety attack. Her heart races, and her breathing quickens. Her leg starts shaking uncontrollably. Her facial expression indicates that she’s out of control and freaked out because of debilitating anxiety. As someone with an anxiety disorder, this accurate scene caused me to cry extremely hard because I have felt how Riley did at that moment.

My whole life, I’ve felt at odds with my brain, fighting to control the anxiety that pops up for various reasons or sometimes no reason at all. Anxiety attacks intensify all those day-to-day experiences, overwhelming my mind and body. Every detail in Inside Out 2’s anxiety attack scene, down to the look in Riley’s eyes, reflects my lived experience with generalized anxiety disorder. Moreover, despite the fact that anxiety feels and looks different for each person, the depiction in the movie includes the more universal symptoms, making it relatable for a larger portion of people who live with pathological anxiety.

Because of the accuracy, Inside Out 2’s anxiety attack could be one of the best and most profound scenes in a Pixar movie – which is saying something because the studio has never shied away from the tragic parts of life. It also proves the reason why accurate representation matters. There’s something meaningful about seeing a child onscreen experience poor mental health, and it will almost certainly allow the approximately 7% of children who experience issues with anxiety to feel seen (via NAMI). I only wish something like this had existed when I was a child.

Inside Out 2 Continues The First Movie’s Positive Representation Of Poor Mental Health

Inside Out Includes An Accurate Depiction Of Depression

While the depiction of Riley’s anxiety attack is meaningful, the positive depiction of poor mental health isn’t isolated to the sequel film. After the first movie came out, many viewers with depression – myself included – found themselves relating to Riley. Truthfully, I also cried in the theater while watching the first Inside Out, despite the fact that I don’t cry at movies often. This similarity wasn’t just noticed by the audience, though. Many psychologists spoke online about the fact that Riley seemed to be going through a depressive episode of some sort.

In Psychology Today, Dr. Janina Scarlet suggested that Riley shows symptoms of Adjustment Disorder with Depressed Mood, if not a full-blown Major Depressive Episode at the end of Inside Out. Riley begins acting recklessly, experiencing mood swings, feeling irritable, and losing interest in things she loves. She even pushes her food around on her plate instead of eating, which represents the changes in appetite that can happen with depression. All of these things create a painfully accurate depiction of another common mental health condition – though it’s worth stating that depression includes a range of symptoms that allow every person to experience it differently.

The Inside Out Movies’ Accuracy Is Thanks To Multiple Psychology Consultants

Consultants Helped Pixar Understand Adolescent Psychology

The positive depiction of poor mental health in the Inside Out movies is no coincidence. In order to ensure accuracy, Pixar brought on psychology consultants who helped advise on the brain, emotions, memory, and psychology. Dr. Paul Ekman and Dr. Dacher Keltner helped advise director and writer Pete Docter on the first movie (via The New York Times). These two psychologists ensured Docter understood the science behind these various complex topics.

Inside Out 2 followed suit by bringing back Dr. Dacher Keltner and bringing on another psychologist, Dr. Lisa Damour. These two helped the Pixar team understand emotions, the science of psychology, and issues related to adolescent girls. Dr. Damour specifically advised them on the topic of perfectionism in adolescent girls, which Riley deals with throughout Inside Out 2. She also emphasized that there is good anxiety and bad anxiety, both of which are portrayed by the eponymous character (via MovieGuide).

Ultimately, I am grateful that the Pixar team took the topic of mental health so seriously when approaching these films. By creating relatable and honest depictions of mental health problems, the studio is fostering a world that is more understanding of these topics and equipping children with the terms necessary to speak about their experiences. Moreover, films like Inside Out and Inside Out 2 help heal the inner child of adults like me.

Sources: NAMI, Psychology Today, The New York Times, TIME, and MovieGuide