Becky Lynch Talks Battling Depression Before WWE
WWE RAW & SmackDown Women's Champion Becky Lynch recently spoke with People and talked about how she suffered through depression several years ago before she signed with WWE. The bout of depression was the focal point of the headline, and it's interesting to note that WWE re-tweeted the article on their main Twitter account. The main WWE Twitter account rarely tweets Superstar media interviews, that is usually done by the WWE PR account and even then, not all of the media interviews are tweeted out.
Lynch talked about traveling all over the world wrestling at age 18, and then being forced to step away from the ring after suffering a bad concussion during a match. That concussion left h er with headaches, buzzing in the ear, vision problems and potential nerve damage. That is when she took up work as a flight attendant, a stunt woman, and took acting classes, work she has mentioned in some of her recent WWE promos. It was noted that in the end, the thrill of the ring and the battle with depression is what drew her back to pro wrestling.
"When I stepped away from it I just, I suffered from depression and always felt like I turned my back on this thing that I loved and this thing that has given me a purpose," Becky recalled. "I always felt like there was a part of me would fix it, and that part of me was this."
Lynch "felt the rush" for pro wrestling once again after wrapping stunt work for History's Vikings series in 2012, and contacted WWE for a tryout. WWE signed her to a developmental deal in 2013.
She continued, "I'm really grateful for those years. At the time it was hard to see where it was going to go. Looking back I'm so grateful because I wouldn't be where I am without having stepped away. And I also, want to have the appreciation that I do without it."
People also pointed to how Becky adopted a nickname that plays to her comparisons to Conor McGregor and WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin – The Man. Becky explained the nickname.
"When we look at different sports, we look at this in the industry here, any industry, you need a top person, the person of exceptional ability who is usually referred to as 'The Man,'" she explained. "They're the man, and up until now, the man has usually been a man. But when I rolled up, when I took that top spot, when I said, 'I'm the top dog, I'm the top star, I'm the face of this company,' I am now 'The Man,' and that's how it came about."
Becky was referred to as the biggest name in WWE now that she is holding both titles. She acknowledged how long it took to get to this point, and how tough it will be to stay there.
"Now I have two giant targets on my back, and I know that everybody's going to be trying to take me down and pay your due. The goal now is to make these titles the most talked about ones in all of WWE," Becky said. "It's to make these [women's titles] the most relevant titles in all of WWE. So that's double duty, and it's one thing to get to the mountain top, but it's a whole another thing to stay there. And now I'm going to have a lot of people trying to knock me off."