The program PrimeCast With PUNPUN opened up with a young actress. Yada Narilaya Kulmongkolphet. From an introverted child behind the camera to an actress bearing pressures, she revealed her little-known life off-camera. Growing up with a single mother, she faced stress from roles and appearance comments, as well as experiences with thyroid disease, asthma, and panic attacks caused by overwork. The industry's expectations, sudden panic episodes, and a changed life perspective as she began caring more for her mental health.
You entered the industry at age 13, right?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, I started with commercial casting. Gradually, I got roles in Nadao series. The first year was just commercials. By the second year, I began acting in series and dramas.
How do you think you grew up?
Yada Narilaya: I grew up with a very strict mother. She was a single mom and very close to me. She taught me to be very feminine, disciplined, to speak politely, and to be proper.
How was your childhood different since you worked from a young age compared to your school friends?
Yada Narilaya: It was different. Other friends had holidays to enjoy with family or friends or do activities, but I worked not only on holidays but also on regular days from early on.
What kind of child were you?
Yada Narilaya: Very quiet, an introverted and shy child who rarely expressed herself. But when in front of the camera or casting, I enjoyed being expressive.
Did your mother support your entering the industry?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, she was the only one in the house who supported it. She wanted me to work in entertainment. It wasn't really called work; she just felt proud seeing me perform. Every time she watched me work, she cried, feeling proud and touched.
When did you feel you wanted to be a full-time actress?
Yada Narilaya: From the very first year. I started casting for commercials and got many jobs. I barely went to school, maybe about 10 days, and realized this was my main career; being a student was secondary. I began working at 13-14 years old. In the first year, I shot over 70 commercials, working almost every day on fittings and shoots.
Were you considered beautiful from childhood?
Yada Narilaya: Not at all. I wasn’t a cute or fair-skinned child. I was skinny, dry-looking, with darker skin and had buck teeth as a kid.
You have asthma and hyperthyroidism?
Yada Narilaya: Yes. I think I inherited asthma from my mother, who has it. I didn't have asthma as a child but started developing symptoms over the past 3-4 years due to heavy work. I never had allergy tests before, but since we keep eight cats at home, I recently found out I'm severely allergic to cat fur, which triggered symptoms in the past few years.
What symptoms did you experience?
Yada Narilaya: I felt shortness of breath, chest tightness, and could only take shallow breaths, as if my airways were constricted and narrowed.
Did asthma affect your daily life or work?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, especially when filming underwater scenes. Humid and cold air worsens it. Underwater, breathing is already difficult, and it triggered cramps and panic symptoms because I couldn’t breathe well. After that, I became wary of underwater scenes.
Did action scenes requiring running affect you?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, anything with dust or smoke had to be avoided or minimized. During filming, I’d enter only when needed or always wear a mask.
What about the hyperthyroidism? What happened?
Yada Narilaya: I didn’t know I had thyroid disease. I thought I only had asthma and never got thorough tests. Symptoms like rapid heartbeat and easy fatigue I attributed to asthma. One day, while walking at home on a day off, my watch showed my heart rate at 150. I thought I had a heart condition and went to see a doctor about it. The doctor also checked my thyroid because thyroid problems can affect the heart. That’s when I found out I had hyperthyroidism.
What symptoms did the doctor say you would have?
Yada Narilaya: Rapid heartbeat, easy fatigue, hormonal fluctuations, irregular menstruation, and mood sensitivity. The doctor prescribed medication to control thyroid symptoms and reduce heart rate.
Hyperthyroidism normally affects which type of people?
Yada Narilaya: There’s hyper- and hypo-thyroidism. I have hyperthyroidism, which usually causes weight loss. Hypothyroidism causes weight gain, but I am actually overweight.
Isn’t hyperthyroidism supposed to cause weight loss? You don’t like being thin?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, my thyroid symptoms caused me to lose weight continuously. My cheeks became hollow, very thin arms, and I disliked that because it looked sickly, unhealthy. So I tried to eat more because I wanted to look healthier.
Did you have to force yourself to eat?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, I forced myself. Usually, people with hyperthyroidism are hungry all day, but I would feel full quickly. I tried to push myself to eat more.
How do you take care of your health?
Yada Narilaya: Before I knew I had asthma and thyroid disease, I pushed my body hard, wanting to give my best to work without paying attention to my health. Deep down, I knew I was overdoing it, but I thought it was okay because I was young.
I want to warn everyone that youth doesn’t guarantee good health. Young people can get sick too. When I first found out I had thyroid disease, I cried out of shock. I realized I had neglected my health by overworking my body. Now I regularly get health check-ups because the body is like a car that needs maintenance. You can’t see inside, so I monitor my condition closely.
I also started exercising more because before, I didn’t exercise at all. After work, I just rested. I enjoy yoga because my doctor advised against cardio or activities that raise my heart rate too much.
What about your diet?
Yada Narilaya: I used to eat a lot of fried foods like fried pork and chicken rice, tonkatsu, and spicy dishes. Now I eat less fried food and choose boiled dishes like clear broth shabu-shabu with minimal dipping sauces to avoid excess sodium.
How about your sleep?
Yada Narilaya: Sleeping is very difficult because filming often lasts from early morning until late at night, sometimes past 10 p.m. I get about 4-5 hours of sleep or less. On real days off, I try to sleep 7-8 hours.
Any other health tips?
Yada Narilaya: I try to limit caffeinated drinks because of my thyroid, so just sip a little tea, green tea, or coffee. Though honestly, I still drink soda sometimes (laughs).
Do you get deeply involved with your series or film characters to the point you can’t detach?
Yada Narilaya: Not that I can’t detach immediately after a cut, but I develop repeated behaviors until the project ends. For example, in the series 'Seub Sandan' where I played Kaimook, a maid who is quiet and always thinking, I, normally talkative, became quiet and introverted afterward. People around me noticed and asked why I changed, including my mother.
Was it severe?
Yada Narilaya: It’s understandable because some scenes trigger emotions or memories or wounds, and once opened, they can’t be stopped. It’s more than acting; it’s revealing real feelings, so it’s not advisable.
Did you have similar effects playing Ming in 'Rang Song'? That role must have been intense.
Yada Narilaya: Very intense. I didn’t realize it at the time, but people around me said I changed. I felt normal but my mother noticed me sitting alone and being withdrawn, adopting mannerisms from previous roles like sitting with a straight back.
For 'Rang Song,' you lost weight down to 38 kg. What was your normal weight?
Yada Narilaya: Before filming, I weighed 45 kg. A nutritionist monitored me, measuring weight and muscle mass. They advised that going down to 35 kg would be dangerous due to bone mass loss, so I was encouraged to increase to 48-49 kg before starting. Later, I dropped to 38 kg within a month by eating very little. Food was delivered every 2-3 days, gradually reducing portions.
What side effects did you experience during that time?
Yada Narilaya: Many. I became very sensitive, and my hair fell out in handfuls. About a month after losing weight, I noticed hair loss. I felt hazy but had to manage filming, university studies, and exams. I was very hungry and irritable.
Did your thyroid condition lead to panic disorder?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, it seemed to be asthma combined with thyroid issues triggering panic attacks. The asthma made breathing difficult, and exposure to smoke on set worsened it. I was frequently rushed to the emergency room due to severe bronchial constriction and wheezing. At that time, I didn’t know I had thyroid disease.
Now knowing you have thyroid issues, how did that add to the panic?
Yada Narilaya: My heart raced excessively. Combined with emotional trauma and work fatigue, it overwhelmed me. Once, in public, I started crying uncontrollably—a panic attack triggered by stress, asthma, and thyroid. My hands trembled, my heart pounded, and I struggled to breathe, feeling crushed and suffocated.
What did you do then, being in a crowd?
Yada Narilaya: It was in public after work while eating. Luckily, I was with Dr. Jeab Lalana, who noticed and quickly moved me to an open, ventilated area. She calmly guided me to breathe slowly, and changing from indoors to outdoors helped me feel better.
As an actress, do you receive hurtful comments?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, on everything, especially my appearance. When acting in dramas and films, I usually wear minimal makeup—almost none—and no eyelash extensions or curled hair. It’s natural makeup. Still, comments say my face isn’t beautiful enough or not suitable as a leading lady.
How do you handle that?
Yada Narilaya: I let it pass. Of course, it affects me, but I focus on doing my best to make the performance believable, even if viewers expect glamor. Positive comments lift me up, but negative ones make me question if I should improve or develop further.
You had darker skin and weren’t considered pretty when young. Any tips?
Yada Narilaya: I started with skincare and body care, then changed my diet. As a child, I loved soda and snacks and didn’t care about sun exposure. Later, I avoided sun exposure to protect skin from damage and aging, improved my diet by eating more fruits and vegetables, often homemade by my mother.
Do you remind yourself to ignore the negative comments with confidence?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, but encouragement is crucial. Dwelling on negative comments makes you embody those words, affecting your appearance and self-esteem.
Are you using Buddhist teachings to heal your mind?
Yada Narilaya: Yes, healing started when I was 18. My mother sent me to a meditation retreat at year-end because she wanted me to be less stubborn. Initially, I wasn’t interested. On the first day of meditation, I felt itchy and found it hard to keep eyes closed. After persevering, by the second and third days, I enjoyed the calmness. I compared it to a glass of swirling water settling clear as sediment sinks. I felt peace for the first time, gaining mindfulness to think about what to do or avoid.
How do you see yourself in five years?
Yada Narilaya: I can’t imagine because I feel I’ve matured mentally beyond my age. I don’t want to think about what challenges lie ahead. Life isn’t easy; each problem makes me grow. Sometimes I worry I might become a monk one day (laughs).
It really worries me whether I can keep this bright energy despite life’s hardships. But it would be great if I keep healing myself and have supportive people around me with positive energy.
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