“I was at a point where I was scared to live.” Lions RB David Montgomery shared a powerful story about overcoming struggles with mental health early in his NFL career.
On the “Fantasy Dirt” podcast this week, Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery shared a powerful story about mental health struggles he dealt with back in his rookie season in the NFL, and the priority his mental health still has in his life today.
“When I was a rookie, I had a really, really stressful time in the league,” Montgomery said. “I was at a point where I was having suicidal thoughts. It was just a depressing and a scary year.”
Montgomery noted that pressure from fantasy football players were not helping his mental journey through an arduous rookie season.
“I was at a point where I was scared to live,” Montgomery said.
The Lions running back told the podcast hosts that he was very close to “doing something that I knew I shouldn’t have done that would’ve changed the trajectory of my life or change the trajectory of everybody else around me.” But it was a phone call from his nephew that he credits for literally saving his life.
“He didn’t say anything about football, he didn’t say anything about how fast I was. He just said, ‘Uncle Dave, I miss you. How are you doing?’” Montgomery shared.
It was at that point that Montgomery vowed to himself that he was not going to let any strangers or anyone else control his own self worth.
Since then, Montgomery has been working with mental health professionals, including weekly sessions with a therapist, to keep his mind right.
“It was scary, but I’ve got a really good therapist,” Montgomery said. “I’ve been working with a therapist for five years now. Being able to regulate and express my emotions, and being able to allow myself to know, ‘I am enough.’ And I’ve been through a lot of things and I’ve been to a lot of places where people don’t even know who I am, but I get to create that perception for myself—to how I view myself, how my son views me. I’m having the best time of my life, and I’m enjoying life for exactly what it is. That’s why I have a mental therapist, and it’s been great.”
If you have a moment, please consider watching the entire interview here.
Thursday, October 10 was World Mental Health Day. If you are looking for any resources or help with your own mental health, the Center for Disease Control has a helpful list of contacts and resources. If you are having suicidal thoughts, please consider texting 988 — the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
