Hayden Hurst, who is a 2018 1st round draft pick, recently came out to speak about his battle with depression and anxiety and how it got so bad, he blacked out and cut his wrist in an apparent attempt to kill himself in college.
“I woke up in the hospital,” the Baltimore Ravens tight end told First Coast News in Florida this week. “I didn’t know what happened. I had to have a friend fill me in.”
“Apparently, I had been drinking and went into my apartment and cut my wrist. My friend found me in a puddle of blood. He called 911.”
The 26-year-old says that brush with death was the final straw needed to repair his life and well-being.
“I want to use my platform to help people,” he said. “For some reason, people equate mental illness with having to be ashamed. It’s something you shouldn’t talk about. I don’t think it’s anything to be ashamed of. Everybody goes through something. The best thing my parents ever did was just being available.
“There’s not really a right or wrong thing you can say or an answer that can change everything but just making sure you’re available and you’re understanding. If my story is going to change the narrative on this and people are going to talk about it more, then so be it.”
While he has gotten through his tough times, the 6’4″, 245-pound tight end admits he still has his struggles, saying he’s “not this superhero that’s portrayed on TV.”
“I’m a regular person. I struggle with depression, anxiety and things like that.”
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He said a conversation with his father on a golf course helped him realize the struggle was one his family knew.
“He told me the family history with his OCD,” Hurst said. “His anxiety and things as well. The depression he went through and it was easier than understanding, ‘Hey he’s been through this and he understands what’s going on.’ Then I laid out ‘Here’s what’s going on in my life.’”
In 2019, Hurst recorded 30 receptions for 349 yards and two touchdowns for Baltimore during the 2019 season.
