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Mychal Threets’ mental health is a work in progress.
Days after the Reading Rainbow host—known as Mychal the Librarian on social media—shared that he would be checking himself into a hospital amid concern for his own emotional wellbeing, he shared an update following the five-day psychiatric hold.
“I just wanted to apologize for worrying so many people,” Threets said in a video shared to Threads Aug. 22. “I just got back from a five-day stay at the hospital, a five-day psychiatric hold. I haven’t been OK for what feels like a very, very long time. I am not OK, but I have hope I will get to OK. I am on the struggle bookmobile.”
And while it may take a while for the 36-year-old to feel like himself again, he took time to thank those around him for their continued support.
“It’s gonna take a long time for me to be OK,” he added. “It’s going to take a long time, but I just wanted to say thank you to the multitude of doctors, nurses, and mental health workers I saw. It’s not enough but thank you. You saved my life.”
“Thank you to my family and friends,” he continued. “Thank you to you. 3-6-9, it’s okay to not be fine. We’re struggling. We’re human beings. We’re doing our best. Thank you for being you. Thank you for staying. Maybe I’ll see you at the library.”
The librarian’s update comes five days after sharing he planned to seek professional support for his worsening mental health struggles.
“I am not okay,” Threets wrote on Threads August 17. “Maybe I’ll never be okay. I’m seeking help. Going to the [hospital] tomorrow. In this moment I am safe. By God’s grace.”
Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images
“No matter what happens to me I will always be thankful for the extraordinary people in my life who worry, who help me,” he added. “Thank you for your care. I will always love you.”
E! News previously reached out to Threets for comment but did not hear back.
Reading Rainbow originally aired on PBS from 1983 to 2006 with host LeVar Burton at the helm. But in 2025, Threets became the new face of the popular children’s program when it relaunched on YouTube that October.
Previously, the influencer shared insight into how his experiences with depression and anxiety have impacted him amid his newfound fame.
Instagram/Mychal Threets
“I’m still a very introverted person,” he told People in an interview published Jan. 9. “I think because of what’s happened in life, I’ve become more extroverted. I’ve been more comfortable talking about the library, talking about library stories, talking about mental health, just because I love it all. But had I known all this was going to happen, I probably would’ve never started posting.”
But getting his positivity out into the world is what has pushed him forward.
“I still have hard days and I’d much rather be behind the scenes,” he explained. “But for a chance to amplify libraries, amplify people’s stories—essentially, I serve almost as a narrator of library joy, and I’m honored to do it.”
Keep reading for more stars who have spoken out about their mental health journeys…
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