Speaking with TODAY.com, Phelps described his depression, saying, “I could put up a happy face in public, but behind closed doors, I was having meltdowns that no one knew about.” He struggled a lot, and it took him a long time to go to therapy, with Phelps describing how, “Being a male athlete, I think felt like I had to be big and macho and tough. We’re taught to stuff things down, and that sharing feelings is a sign of weakness.” Continuing, the father-of-three said, “I was almost ashamed of the things that I was going through and feeling. I also felt like I was trapped, and there was nobody that I could open up to.” Along with Phelps, his wife, Nicole Johnson, has spoken a lot about what spouses and family go through when someone they love is dealing with intense depression. In 2021, as Johnson saw Vanessa Bryant dealing with the death of Kobe Bryant and her daughter Gianna, she realized that she couldn’t be Phelps’ therapist. He needed outside help. Bryant told TODAY, “After Vanessa (Bryant) lost Kobe, all I could do was look at Michael and be like, ‘Can we please help you? Because if I lose you, I don’t know what I’m gonna do.’” She went on, “I used to think, ‘Oh, I can fix him. I can be his therapist. I can be what he needs.’ But what I’ve learned is that you can’t take ownership for how they’re feeling, no matter how badly you want to.” Now, Phelps advocates for mental health and encourages people to go to therapy. He told TODAY.com, “I’ll be the first to admit I was scared as hell when I went for the first time. I didn’t want to walk in and tell some random person the things that I was feeling — that’s hard.” But it was worth it: “If I hadn’t allowed myself to become vulnerable, I don’t know if I’d be here (today). We need to give things a chance,” he concluded.
