Nathaniel Wood is locked and loaded ahead of his UFC 304 bout against Daniel Pineda this weekend and has accredited his anti-anxiety medications as a key reason why.
Wood spoke to MMA Junkie Radio about his mental health struggles and how medication helped him come back from a ‘dark place’.
“I have suffered with OCD and anxiety for as long as I can remember,” Wood told MMA Junkie Radio. “I know I had it when I was a child, but I didn’t know it at the time. I’ve been on my medication now for, on and off, probably nine years. There was one time where I would be on and off, and your dark cloud days come.
“There was one time where I was really, really, really bad for a solid month. When I went back on (Sertraline), I just said to myself I’m not coming off them – not for a long time. … I’m still on it now. I am still happy to take it. I’m still proud to say I’m taking it because if potentially coming off it will put me in a dark place again, then I’d rather just stay on it.”
Nathaniel Wood has been a UFC mainstay since his debut in 2018 and has been a pioneer in England’s MMA rise.
Wood looks to become a pioneer alongside Paddy ‘The Baddy’ Pimblett when it comes to speaking out about men’s mental health and has reiterated the importance of getting help.
Nathaniel Wood Opens up About His Issues When He Doesn’t Take His Medications-
“I have intrusive thoughts. I have a headache. Instantly, I might think, ‘Could it be brain cancer?’ So instead of just going, ‘I’m gonna move on, I will obsess over that – all day, potentially all night, without realizing until I put myself in a really anxious state.
“… It’s a very unexplained illness. A lot of people just think (OCD) is about being tidy or it’s about washing your hands. But there’s so much more to it that people don’t understand. Even I didn’t understand it until I eventually went and got medical help and realized that it’s a lot more complex than people think.”
Quotes via MMA Junkie
This is very prominent after Paddy opened up with his own struggles in a recent interview with Sky Sports.
Do you feel like more fighters should open up about their mental health struggles? Let us know in the comments below.
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