“Been Carrying Around a Backpack Full of Dumbbells”: Michael Phelps Shared the Dark Side of Being the Most Decorated Olympian, Earlier This Year

Michael Phelps has achieved massive feats in his swimming career. However, with the pressure and desire to be the best, Phelps also had to undergo extreme stress, which eventually led him to sabotage his mental wellness. The swimming GOAT stood under the mounting pressure silently for several years before letting it all out in 2015, when he went for therapy for the first time. Earlier this year, Phelps confessed to the negative side of being the most successful player of the sport. He also opens up about how he felt after his first therapy session. 

What’s the negative effect of being the most decorated player? What did Phelps feel after opening up about his issues? Was it an instant positive outcome or a negative one? Let us find out what Phelps said in the interview with Men’s Health earlier this year.

Michael Phelps recalled his emotions after his first session

It took an immensely long time for Phelps to take the road to therapy for his mental health issues. Before that, Phelps kept ignoring his anxiety and depression to give himself a psychological advantage against his rivals. But Phelps knew little about it. Phelps was on the edge when he decided to open up and turned his life around.

While talking with Men’s Health, Phelps revealed what the stress and anxiety of being the best did to him. Phelps said, “I got to the point where I didn’t want to be alive anymore.” He continued, “I was fed up with feeling like crap. I wanted to give myself a chance.”

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However, after feeling like crap for years, eventually, in 2015, Phelps opened up and decided to get therapy. And that was a life-changing decision for him. While mentioning the effect of the first therapy, Phelps recalled his emotions. He said, “I felt like I’d been carrying around a backpack full of dumbbells all my life.”. “I was finally able to like who I was.”, Phelps added.

Phelps wasn’t ready for his first therapy session

Although now Phelps can say that opening up about his issues is the best thing he ever did in his life, yet that was not the case in 2015. When he finally decided to see the therapist, Phelps was extremely nervous and anxious about how it would go.

A few months ago, in an interview, Phelps recalled those nervous moments and shared them. He said, “I remember the first time I went to a therapist, I was like ‘Oh my gosh, this is going to s*ck. I don’t want to go in here. This is going to be so brutal’.” However, he said, when he came out, “I felt like a completely different person.” From that date on Phelps has continued to promote mental health awareness and worked towards helping people get on the right track.

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Michael Phelps has gone through immense dark phases in his life but come out stronger every time. Phelps’ physical capabilities are much celebrated all over the world. But, his recent foray into prioritizing his mind, has only added to his several other achievements. What do you think of Phelps’s efforts? Let us know in the comments.