Braun Strowman candidly speaks about mental health and how a discussion with Vince McMahon helped him when he was battling thoughts of suicide.
2020 has been a tremendous year for Braun Strowman. In January, he defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to capture his first Intercontinental Championship, and even though he lost the championship at WWE Elimination Chamber, he would go on to defeat WWE Hall of Famer Bill Goldberg to capture the WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania 36.
Braun Strowman is the subject of the latest episode of WWE Chronicle and in the episode, “The Monster Among Men” opens up about reaching a point where he felt lost in his WWE career and how one conversation with Vince McMahon changed not only his outlook on his career but his outlook on life.
"I kind of just busted in on Vince one day in a meeting and was like, 'I need to talk to you,' and he kicked everybody out of a production meeting and sat down and talked to me, not like boss to employee, but like like man to man, like almost like a father-son talk," Strowman recalled. "He gave me such a level of confidence and reassurance in myself that day. It lit a completely new fire underneath my ass to be better at this, to continue to work my ass off because I knew it was for a cause. I got to the point where I was feeling like I was doing all this hard work and I was just spinning my tires in the mud and Vince reassured me that that's not what was happening and told me like, 'hey, not only do I want you here for the long haul, I need you here for the long haul.' [He] reassured me I am one of his racehorses and it's proven in this especially in this last year."
He continued, "I'm very thankful to have a relationship with him like that because I might not even be here. There was -- I don't even like talking about this out loud -- I was thinking about killing myself a couple of times and it's just... it's shitty that I got to that point and I should have talked to somebody sooner, and I never knew how much he cared about me. I thought I was just, you know, a number in the system, and that day he made me realize that I'm more important than just a number. I can't thank him enough for doing that."
Strowman recently lost his WWE Universal Championship to Bray Wyatt at SummerSlam but he will have an opportunity to reclaim the title when he faces both Bray Wyatt and Roman Reigns at WWE Payback on Sunday, August 30.
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If you or anyone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, there is help. You can reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
