Big Cass Opens Up About His Battle With Depression & Anxiety

Former WWE Superstar Big Cass (now known as CaZXL) is speaking out about his struggle with mental health issues.

Diamond Dallas Page’s DDP Yoga YouTube Channel has released a video of Cass speaking candidly about depression, anxiety and what it took for him to rise up from dark times he experienced while working for WWE and after his release.

As a WWE Superstar, Cass had finally achieved his life long dream. He was making big money, world famous and a success by virtually any measure. His confidence grew as he reached greater heights in WWE, but was never able to shake a deep feeling of insecurity and anxiety.

It’s one thing to be sad about something, but clinical depression is an illness some people have a difficult time grasping if they haven’t experienced it first hand. Some people think the person struggling with depression is weak or seeking attention, so many keep it to themselves. Unfortunately, that can lead to destructive behavior.

Instead of speaking to a therapist or taking anti-depressants, Cass self medicated by abusing alcohol. Things got so bad that he would hope to pass away in his sleep. When he looks back on how much alcohol he was consuming at his personal rock bottom, he’s grateful to still be alive. He was eating poorly, stopped working out, chain-smoked cigarettes and his life was falling apart.

He does not begrudge WWE for releasing him. “They had every right to get rid of me,” he admitted. His ‘moment of clarity’ came after suffering a seizure at a House of Hardcore event back in December. He took that as a sign from God to turn his life around. He was told in the emergency room that the seizure could have killed him.

Today, his top priority is happiness. When he focuses on himself, everything else falls in to place. He feels lucky to be alive. Cass finished the video with an inspirational message.

“If anybody out there suffers with depression or anxiety and you’re hiding it because there’s a stigma out there that you’re weak, you’re not weak,” he said. “Whatever it is, you need to go seek help. Whether it’s medication or talk therapy or whatever it is that you need, you need to get it, because hiding it deep down isn’t going to work. That’s what I did for a long time and eventually, ‘Pop!’ It’s just an explosion. Whatever you need to do fix it, make sure you do that, because keeping that sh*t bottled up deep down, it ain’t worth it. From someone that lived it, seek help.”