{"id":12946,"date":"2026-04-30T12:40:54","date_gmt":"2026-04-30T12:40:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/04\/30\/afl-player-nathan-odriscoll-opens-up-on-depression-and-mental-health-struggles-the-guardian\/"},"modified":"2026-04-30T12:40:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T12:40:54","slug":"afl-player-nathan-odriscoll-opens-up-on-depression-and-mental-health-struggles-the-guardian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/2026\/04\/30\/afl-player-nathan-odriscoll-opens-up-on-depression-and-mental-health-struggles-the-guardian\/","title":{"rendered":"AFL player Nathan O\u2019Driscoll opens up on depression and mental health struggles – The Guardian"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fremantle midfielder reveals he has experienced suicidal thoughts
Family and teammates offer love and support after social media post
The family and teammates of Nathan O\u2019Driscoll have expressed love and support for the Fremantle midfielder after he posted an unfiltered account on social media of his mental health challenges.
The 23-year-old, who has played just twice this year for his home town club the Dockers, shared on Instagram that he has come close to taking his life three times, and that recent weeks have been especially challenging after the death of someone close to him.
\u201cI\u2019m sharing this because speaking up matters. No one is there to judge you, every person I\u2019ve opened up to has supported me in ways I never expected,\u201d he said.
\u201cFrom the outside, it might look like I have everything, but what\u2019s going on internally can be a very different story. Everyone is dealing with something, and it\u2019s okay to not be okay.\u201d
The post triggered an outpouring of support. His older sister Emma, who plays for the Dockers in the AFLW, said she was proud of him \u201cas a person first, always\u201d, adding: \u201cWe are here to support you and make a change in this space so others feel as safe and as brave as you to speak up.\u201d
His younger brother Aiden, who was drafted to the Western Bulldogs but medically retired before playing due to a head injury, said O\u2019Driscoll was \u201cthe best big brother anyone could ask for\u201d.
Dockers teammates such as Caleb Serong, Murphy Reid and captain Alex Pearce offered their support.
Fremantle have surged to a 6-1 record this season \u2013 winning six on the trot \u2013 and O\u2019Driscoll has not played since he was omitted for the clash against Richmond in round three.
He said he was initially hesitant to share his story, but in the end it felt like the right time \u201cwith the recent focus on mental health around the league\u201d.
Carlton player Elijah Hollands was admitted to hospital last week<\/a> after a mental health episode<\/a> during a match against Collingwood, and there have been growing calls for a mental health round<\/a>.
O\u2019Driscoll said he has had both \u201cincredible highs\u201d and also \u201csome very low moments\u201d in his four-year career, revealing a struggle with anxiety and a \u201ca constant need to feel like I belong, and always putting others before myself\u201d.
\u201cI\u2019ve always tried to be a positive, selfless person, but I\u2019ve learned it\u2019s okay to put yourself first sometimes,\u201d he said. \u201cValuing yourself is just as important as valuing others.\u201d
Fremantle executive general manager, Joe Brierty, said the club was proud of O\u2019Driscoll \u201cfor speaking so openly\u201d about his mental health.
\u201cThis is a struggle many in our society deal with daily, and often silently, so it\u2019s an important conversation as our industry continues to evolve the mental health framework in place to support our people,\u201d Brierty said.
The club will continue to provide support to the midfielder, while O\u2019Driscoll said he was \u201cincredibly grateful\u201d for the people around him.
\u201cThere is so much good in this world. Whatever you\u2019re going through, it will get better. Reach out, stay connected, and be kind to yourself.\u201d
<\/span> In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline<\/a> is 13 11 14. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans<\/a> can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org<\/a> or jo@samaritans.ie<\/a>. In the US, you can call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline<\/a> at 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org<\/a>. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fremantle midfielder reveals he has experienced suicidal thoughtsFamily and teammates offer love and support after social media postThe family and teammates of Nathan O\u2019Driscoll have expressed love and support for the Fremantle midfielder after he posted an unfiltered account on social media of his mental health challenges.The 23-year-old, who has played just twice this year […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12947,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-12946","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12946","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12946"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12946\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12946"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12946"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnewstoday.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12946"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}