{"id":239966,"date":"2026-01-18T18:56:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-18T18:56:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/239966\/"},"modified":"2026-01-18T18:56:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-18T18:56:08","slug":"michel-phelps-opens-up-about-battling-suicidal-thoughts-and-advocating-for-mental-health-its-okay-to-talk-and-share","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/239966\/","title":{"rendered":"Michel Phelps opens up about battling suicidal thoughts and advocating for mental health: \u2018It\u2019s okay to talk and share\u2026\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

When it comes to elite athletes, Michael Phelps<\/a> is undoubtedly in the league of legends. The American champion swimmer is renowned for winning the most Olympic medals – 28 across four games.<\/p>\n

\"DespiteDespite his success in the swimming lane, Michael Phelps has had suicidal thoughts in the past. (AP)<\/p>\n

Also Read | Mental health expert shares 5 common mental health issues Gen Z is facing: Isolation, anxiety, depression and burnout<\/a><\/p>\n

Despite his unparalleled success, which often makes him appear superhuman, Michael happens to be very much in touch with his human side, as he revealed during his recent interview with Raj Shamani on the latter\u2019s Figuring Out podcast. The episode was released on YouTube on January 15.<\/p>\n

In a moment that felt deeply personal, Michael opened up about his struggles with mental health and how it transformed him into a mental health<\/a> advocate. It all began with the host asking him how he wished to spend his days now that he has retired from competitive swimming.<\/p>\n

Michael Phelps opens up about confronting suicidal thoughts<\/p>\n

The athlete shared that his primary focus in the days ahead would be his work in the mental health space.<\/p>\n

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people between 10 and 34 years of age. \u201cThat is frightening for me,\u201d said Michael, \u201cas somebody who has thought about suicide multiple times.\u201d<\/p>\n

Getting more in touch with himself is what got him out of that headspace, insisted Michael. That and understanding that it is alright to share and talk about things, and about the feelings that he has been experiencing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the past, all I would do was compartmentalise and shut them down,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n

Deciding to prioritise people with mental health issues<\/p>\n

Phelps acknowledged that there are innumerable people in the world who are likely suffering from similar mental health troubles as himself, be it depression or anxiety.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd for me, I want them to get the help and care that they need and deserve,\u201d he shared.<\/p>\n

Stressing the importance of the task, Michael observed, \u201cBeing able to save a life is way bigger than ever winning an Olympic gold medal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.<\/p>\n

This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When it comes to elite athletes, Michael Phelps is undoubtedly in the league of legends. The American champion…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":239967,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[3404,3419,134,527,554,141302,111,139,69,141301,8911],"class_list":{"0":"post-239966","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-anxiety","9":"tag-depression","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-healthcare","12":"tag-mental-health","13":"tag-michael-phelps","14":"tag-new-zealand","15":"tag-newzealand","16":"tag-nz","17":"tag-olympic-gold-medal","18":"tag-suicide"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239966","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=239966"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239966\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/239967"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=239966"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=239966"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=239966"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}