Residence’ star tells PEOPLE that he didn’t think social media was helping with his “mental health” or “perspective on the world” before making the decision to pull back

Social media came at a toll for Randall Park — but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t miss one aspect of the platforms.

The Residence actor, 51, tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue that he decided to quit social media for good following a series of panic attacks during the pandemic in October 2020. 

“I was on social media for a while, and then during the pandemic, it was such a scary time,” he recalls. “Also, there was an election going on during that time. It was just so much chaos, and negativity just in the air, but also specifically online, a lot of confusion and vitriol.”

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The upheaval amid the pandemic led Park to “suddenly” start having panic attacks. He shares, “I had never gotten panic attacks before, but I just kept getting them one after another after another. It was very concerning to me.” 

After receiving “the right help” following the episodes, he made the decision to “just get off of social media because I felt like, ‘Oh, I don’t think it’s helping me, helping with my perspective on the world, and my just mental health.’”

The Watson star initially thought stepping back from social media would only last “a few months,” however, he soon realized the time away was “so great” and decided to “stay off.” 

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The Fresh Off the Boat alum tells PEOPLE there is one aspect that he misses about being on social media, saying, “The one thing I do really miss is just connecting with people from other chapters of my life. That was a really fun aspect of social media.”

“Whether seeing their lives on their feed, and being kept up to date on their lives, or just random old  friends DMing me from elementary school,” he adds. “That was one of the sacrifices I had to make to get off because I really did love that aspect of it.”

Still, Park has no regrets about his decision to step back, saying, “For the most part, it just wasn’t for me.”

These days, he makes the occasional appearance in photos posted by his wife, Jae Suh Park, and says staying physically fit has helped him keep his mental health in a good place.

Last year, after witnessing his father’s death from cancer in May 2024 and turning 50 a few months prior, Randall reassessed his own health. He trained and ran his first marathon in New York City in November — something he says never crossed his mind until he was approaching his 50s.

“That’s part of the reason why I decided to sign up for the marathon, to give myself a goal, and to also prove to myself that even at this age, I can do hard things,” Randall explains. “That was the spark for me.”

He’s been keeping up with his fitness goals since running the marathon. “It’s for my mind as much as it is for my body. It keeps me optimistic and upbeat,” he adds. “It’s also been really fun. I probably wouldn’t stick to it if it wasn’t.”

The Residence is now streaming on Netflix. Watson airs Sundays on CBS at 9 p.m. ET.