Olympic swimming great Michael Phelps has opened up again about his ongoing battle with depression, hoping he can help others who struggle with the disease.
“I'd like to make a difference, I'd like to be able to save a life if I can,” Phelps said Friday in an interview with CNN. “For me that's more important than winning a gold medal.”
Phelps won 23 gold medals, and 28 medals overall, in a glittering Olympic career that stretched from the 2000 Sydney Olympics through the 2016 Rio Games.
“I was able to do some pretty incredible things in the swimming pool and I struggled outside as well. There was part of my life I didn't want to be alive,” Phelps said.
Phelps has spoken before of falling into depression after each Olympics he competed in, hitting a low point after the 2012 London Games in which he stayed in one room for days.
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The 33-year-old, now married and a father of two, said his battle with depression hasn't ended.
“Two to three weeks ago I went through a scary depression spell. This is something that's going to continue to happen in my life,” he told CNN.
Phelps said speaking to a therapist was useful, as was the help of his wife, Nicole.
“(My wife) is my everything and my rock and helps me through everyday life. I definitely wouldn't be who I am without her. She was somebody who really helped me through my most recent time,” Phelps said.
“I do like who I am and I'm comfortable with who I am. I couldn't say that a few years ago. So I'm in a very good place and just living life one day at a time,” he added.
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