Long before fitness icon Joey Swoll was on his stride to encourage gym positivity, he was battling himself out of a dark phase of life. Appearing in the Straight Outta Lair podcast with Flex Lewis, Swoll opened up about the time he almost took his life. Miraculously, his mother?s call saved him after he had swallowed down a dozen painkillers.?

Swoll talked about his nightmarish experience on Monday. He explained the chain of events that urged him to contemplate the drastic step. However, just like any other human being, he could not deny his mother?s love. He marvelously woke up healthy the next day.

Joey Swoll was done with life?

While the world battled the dreadful COVID-19 pandemic, the 40-year-old bodybuilder was dealing with a dark phase of life, per the interview. He had recently broken up with his girlfriend, who moved out of his house with his dogs. Swoll was alone in his L.A. penthouse. Thus, letting the intrusive thoughts run wild, the fitness icon decided it was time for him to let go of life.?

?I’m sick of feeling like you know I give, and I give, and I give, and there’s nobody there for me when I need them. A lot of people turned their backs on me, a lot of people had put knives in my back and I was just tired,? he expressed.

Therefore, after putting up a post on Instagram disguised as a suicide note, the American influencer emptied his bottle of Vicodin.?

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After swallowing around 15 pills with a beer in his hand, Swoll?s phone rang. Seeing his post, Swoll?s mother was deeply concerned and cried on the phone. Something shifted within the Instagram star after witnessing his mother?s distress.

He recalled in the interview, ?Mama, I?m fine. It’s just a post. I got off the phone with her, I remember just sitting there thinking- I don’t want to die I think. F*ck me! what if I don’t wake up.?

Thankfully, life gave Swoll another chance.?

It was not the end for Swoll

After acknowledging his will to live, the Instagram star was skeptical if he was going to wake up in good health the next morning, given his drug overdose. ?I prayed. I definitely prayed. And uh… I did wake up the next day. Thank God and decided to… that was pretty much me saying I have a f*****g problem here. I need to do something about it,? Joey confessed.?

Not leaving room for any more self-doubt, Swoll immediately moved out of L.A., since the environment had gotten too toxic for him. The lockdown scenario in the city also really got to him. The icon decided to move to Newport Beach, near his ex-girlfriend and his dogs. That is pretty much how Joey Swoll beat the odds and started life on a fresh note.?

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It is utterly disheartening to acknowledge that talented individuals like him would contemplate suicide. After the incident, Swoll was bound to take the much-needed break that he deserved. Especially after continuously working towards his goals for nearly a decade.?