On screen, Eddie Kingston plays the “tough guy.” Behind the scenes, he truly is experiencing real struggles with anxiety and depression. Kingston has opened up about his mental health issues in these ways: “Blindsided” interview where he spoke about why he has difficultly when accepting super fans reaching out to him while wrestling.
“I think it all stems from second grade and from that point on of never feeling that you’re good enough or waiting for the other shoe to drop,” he said. “Like I’m always waiting for something bad to happen or I’m waiting for me, which I was known for years, for blowing it up myself … so that’s why I’m like [the fans] better not love me because I’m known for doing this and that.”
Kingston believes the key to self-improvement is forgiveness. “What have I done to deserve gratitude?” he asks of himself. Remorseful for his past actions, Kingston refuses to take credit for his success. With a mindset of “I’m only human,” Kingston tries not to beat himself up over mistakes made in the past and tries not to worry about being perfect.
“It’s just very hard for me to accept that love because they don’t know me from my past, and I still have to forgive myself for my past,” he said. “I know that’s an every day thing, and I’m not gonna be done trying to forgive myself until I’m in the ground. I accepted that. But what I won’t accept is not trying to forgive myself. You know, because if I just live in my past, then I’m never gonna grow and I would’ve never got to AEW if I didn’t grow.”
