Atlanta Falcons tight end Hayden Hurst is fighting to end the stigma surrounding mental health and depression. He knows how tough these things can be, despite being a star NFL player, he’s been through it all himself. Today, Hurst opened up about his struggles with depression and how it affected every facet of his life and well-being.
“When it first started happening to me, I had no idea what the hell was going on,” Hayden said via Falcons.com. “I’ve always lived my life minute-by-minute, I never let really anything affect me. Then all of the sudden this thing I’ve been doing since I was a toddler was being taken away from me.”
Hurst would go on to talk about how his depression sent him down a bad path of booze and drugs. At one point, he just wanted his nightmare to end.
“One night it just caught up to me,” he said. “At that point, I just wanted out. I fought for so long and I wanted it to be over. … For some reason I got a second chance at this thing and I really have never looked back. It was the best and worst thing that ever happened to me.”
Hurst isn’t the only NFL player to open up about struggles with anxiety and depression. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott has done the same thing. Hurst has said he admires how courageous Dak was to share his struggles.
“When you are the quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys and you’re scrutinized so much already and you come out and you talk about, ‘Hey, I was feeling this way with depression. I suffered loss in my family with suicide.’
“You don’t realize how much courage that takes to come out and talk about that,” the Atlanta Falcons tight end said.
When Hayden Hurst played Prescott and the Cowboys, he made sure to tell Dak how much he respected him.
A mutual respect. @Haydenrhurst and @dak have a tremendous amount of courage. 🤝
📹 Full Micd Up: https://t.co/Mq7QlEyaJD pic.twitter.com/eLTdeu627V
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 22, 2020
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Hayden Hurst tells Dak about his mother’s suicide prevention foundation. The two players plan on a collaboration some day, possibly after their NFL playing days are done.
Good for these guys for sharing their stories and fighting the good fight, and to the Atlanta Falcons for helping utilize their platform. Check out Hayden Hurst’s full story below. I guarantee it’s worth your time.
𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁 1: Hayden Hurst wanted everything to be over. But, he was given a second chance in life. pic.twitter.com/HXJd6JKmrL
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) December 3, 2020
𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁 2: The story of what Hayden Hurst did with his second chance may just save the life of someone close to you. pic.twitter.com/Pvg750bJar
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) December 3, 2020
Good for you Hayden Hurst, you have a fan for life in me.
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