Former WWE Champion Big E has spoken about his battles with mental health and depression for most of his life, which included suicidal thoughts while at the height of his in-ring career.
One of the most charismatic and beloved members of the company, Big E became a firm fan favourite thanks to his time in The New Day alongside Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods. However, while speaking with Stephanie McMahon on the latest episode of the What’s Your Story podcast, the former World Champion opened up about much darker moments in his personal life.
Big E stated that his first memory of the struggles began when he was 9 years old, admitting he was not comfortable with who he was at that point:
“My first memory of struggling with depression was nine years old,” he said. “Looking in the mirror and just crying and thinking, ‘I want to be anyone but me,’ just feeling very much alone, feeling like truly anyone else but who I was, and I just was not comfortable in my skin.”
The former WWE Champion later recalled further struggles while he was in college, which included taking antidepressants and self-admitting himself into a psych ward|:
“My journey in therapy was not a smooth one,” he admitted. “I had many, many struggles. I was on antidepressants… I was on antipsychotic medicine as well. It got to a point too where I was even in a psych ward at the University of Iowa.”
The wrestler and analyst also recalled what happened while he was in the psych ward in 2007, noting that he was unable to have shoes with laces to prevent self-harm. Big E also spoke more about his multiple injuries that ultimately led to his first dream of becoming a pro football player being over, adding that football was one of the few things that kept him going at that time.
Unable to pursue a career in football, Big E then pursued a career in powerlifting before eventually finding wrestling, which led to his eventual WWE signing.
Big E Admits Mental Health Struggles Continued While In The New Day
Later in the interview, the former World Champion also spoke about suicide, admitting that he didn’t act on it as he did not want anyone to find his body and have to deal with that. Big E also stated that he struggled with suicidal thoughts while in The New Day, even though he was having “a blast” with 2 of his best friends.
“I still struggled with suicidal thoughts, even at the height of The New Day, when we’re taking off,” he shared. “So many times I didn’t know why I was here. I didn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
When asked if he still feels that way at time, the wrestler stated that he was not and that he feels in a much better headspace compared to the darker times.
Big E has not competed in a match since 2022 after suffering a broken neck on SmackDown following a suplex from Ridge Holland on the outside of the ring. Although fans have been hopeful that he could one day return to the ring, the former World Champion has stated in multiple interviews that it appears that his in-ring career has come to a premature end. Now focused on being a pre- and post-show panellist, Big E recently opened up about his future as a broadcaster.
H/t to Wrestling News.co for the use of transcriptions.
Featured image: WWE
