Eddie Kingston continues to be an advocate for mental health.
Kingston has always been open and honest regarding his struggles with depression and anxiety, writing an open letter to the Players Tribune titled "I Got No Business Fucking Being Here."
With September being Suicide Prevention Month, Kingston spoke to Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated and reflected on the passing of Larry Sweeny (Alexander Whybrow).
“He’d be a multimillionaire if he were still here,” Kingston said. “And I also think he’d be with us in AEW. That hit extremely hard. I’ve never really gotten over his passing. A lot of us haven’t. He’s with me every time I’m in that ring. I really feel him when Bryce Remsburg is refereeing, because they also knew each other very well. Let’s put it this way, he would have been the best man at my wedding. A day doesn’t go by when I don’t think of him.”
Kingston said he had thoughts of suicide, but was saved by a phone call from Homicide.
“Homicide [wrestler Nelson Erazo], who is like my big brother, happened to call me. At the time, I felt a lot of shame about how things were going. I didn’t feel like myself. That was a regular phone call. But he gets me. He understands me. And he believes in me. So I knew I could fight through it. He stopped me from making a decision that would have hurt so many. We need to get the word ‘normal’ out of our vocabulary,” he says. “We make our own normal. No one is us; no one feels what we feel. We make the normal. And it’s not weak to struggle. People who think that are wrong. There are times when I’m still struggling. It’s hard, but I know for a fact everyone has that strength to fight through it," he said.
“You may think people don’t [care], but one person always does." @MadKing1981 shares his story.
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) September 21, 2022
September is Suicide Prevention Month. AEW is committed to the mental well-being of our talent, staff & our fans. We encourage anyone struggling to reach out & get help: @afspnational pic.twitter.com/2m6tKDaDYK
Kingston is set to take on Sammy Guevara at AEW Rampage Grand Slam. Guevara has said that he is not afraid of Kingston.
Fightful will have live coverage of AEW Rampage Grand Slam beginning at 10 p.m. ET on Friday.
