Once struggling with mental health, Michael Phelps encourages talks on the topic during the Mental Health Awareness month

The 23-time Olympic gold medalist, Michael Phelps, recently encouraged the public about the importance of opening up to each other regarding mental health issues. This comes during Mental Health Awareness Month (May), which is specifically designated to address the menace of mental health issues.

The 38-year-old himself stated a few years ago that he suffered from mental depression throughout his entire career and also remarked that his therapy sessions had helped him immensely during that time.

In a television campaign back in 2018, Phelps said:

"Throughout my career, I struggled with depression and anxiety at various times, and I found it so difficult to get the help I needed. As I started opening up and talking about my issues, I felt strength, not vulnerability."

Owing to this, Michael Phelps also joined a mental health and mobile therapy company, Talkspace, in 2018 and has ever since been involved in various campaigns launched by the brand that aims to encourage people to counter their mental fatigue and anxieties.

The New York-based company, Talkspace launched the Talk It Out campaign recently this year on the eve of Mental Health Awareness Month, encouraging the public to share their problems with therapists. Phelps is an imminent part of this welfare campaign.

Spreading information about this campaign to the public, the Maryland native took to his Instagram handle to share a video of himself explaining the need for therapy during mental fatigue and depression. He stated in the caption:

"To me therapy is life-saving. This Mental Health Awareness Month I’m joining Talkspace to share why it’s important to #TalkItOut. When I first started therapy, I didn’t know what to expect or everything that I would find out about myself. Even though I went to some dark places, I’m glad I stuck with it. I believe therapy can be helpful for everyone."

Michael Phelps suffered from post-Olympic depression throughout his career

Michael Phelps (photo: Getty)

Michael Phelps has been one of the most decorated Olympians. With a staggering 28 Olympic medals, Phelps is at the top and has participated in the quadrennial event.

However, recently, in an interview, the 38-year-old opened up about the post-Olympic depression that he faced throughout his career, which forced him to think about the next time he would get to experience such success after every Olympics.

In the interview with NBC, Phelps stated:

"I would say probably 2004. 2004 was my first taste of post-Olympic depression, you know, coming off such a high. "

All the depression and mental fatigue that Phelps faced during his career led him to become an active voice in mental health advocacy. After the conclusion of his career, Phelps aims to inspire a large chunk of the population to prioritize their mental health issues with TalkSpace.