DIY VIRAL
Pro surfer Private Smith open up about their past mental health problems Instagram post celebrating his 30th birthday.
“Oh man… 30 years old and what a journey life is! No one told me that life as an opportunity gets better every year. Slowly, the rules of the game unfold day by day,” the athlete posted on Friday, Jan. 3. “The magic only grows thicker, the colors become clearer, the purpose cultivated, the love that surrounds me grows. My connection to life only deepens. I am so grateful.”
Smith, 30, went on to explain that “at times” he closes his eyes and goes back to “visit a version of himself that was struggling.”
“Shocked, depressed, suicidal, heartbroken,” he continued in the touching post, which also included numerous photos of the surfer riding big waves, hanging out with friends and enjoying the beach. “I put my hand on his heart and say it was all worth it! Hang in there, it's all worth it!”
He concluded: “Thank you for all of you! Let the abundance flow and the light shine brightly!”
in the March 2022 interview with IndependentSmith opened up about a catastrophic injury he suffered while surfing in Indonesia, which left the surfer with mental health issues.
“I heard this crazy, very calm violin,” he told the publication at the time, referring to the moment he crashed while trying to ride a wave. “I had one of those moments where I was above the whole bay looking down. I could see my friends in the lineup. I saw boats in the bay. I could see the mountains. Then suddenly I realized that I was actually under water.
He continued: “I felt that maybe I was leaving my body. The strangest thing was that it was a very comfortable, very loving, euphoric state. There was no fear. It was just like home. “
Celebrities like Matthew Perry, Chrissy Teigen and others have been open about using ketamine infusion therapy to help treat mental health conditions. According to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), ketamine is a “dissociative anesthetic agent with some hallucinogenic effects” and “can cause sedation, immobility, pain relief, and amnesia.” It (…)
The slightly euphoric feeling was short-lived – when the surfer regained consciousness, he could not remember his name or address. As a result of the crash, Smith said he suffered a severe concussion and later realized that “something just broke” inside him.
“I couldn't even function anymore,” he explained at the time. “I had to spend 10 hours a day in my bed in the dark and just figure out what I wanted to do from there.”
After struggling with his mental health despite seeing a doctor, Smith said Independent he decided to try psilocybin mushrooms as part of his “healing process”.
“It brought me back to my childhood, to that fire that I had as a child,” he explained. “It reminded me that I am a good person and that I am here to do good in this world. It reminded me that I should use my head injury as a guide to healing.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
DIY VIRAL
