- Kansas City Chiefs running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire opens up about his battle with PTSD
- The athlete credits teammates Travis Kelce and Kadarius Toney for having his back
- At a media availability Thursday, Aug. 1, Edwards-Helaire elaborated on the 2018 shooting involving him and his best friend
For Clyde Edwards-Helaire, playing soccer “is a lot more than putting pads on.”
At a media availability following Kansas City Chiefs training camp on Thursday, Aug. 1, the running back talked about those who have helped him through his recent physical and mental struggles — the latter of which includes PTSD — and credits teammate Travis Kelce for helping him cope.
“It’s really just mentally just not being present and it’s one of those things where early on — like guys paying attention, Trav [Travis Kelce]Kadarius [Toney] sometimes they even can — they’ll know in advance like, ‘Okay, Clyde might not — he’s not laughing, he’s not giggling, he’s not himself,’ Edwards-Helaire, 25, told reporters, recalling his teammates saying are: “We just have to make sure we’re checking him as a person, not just the energizer, the laugher, [or] the guy who kind of maintains the locker room.”
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Edwards-Helaire opened up about his ongoing journey with PTSD in a post on X on Monday, July 29, prompting questions about it during Thursday’s media availability.
“Living with PTSD is no small feat, it’s hard and very tiring,” he posted on X. “Within the last month I’ve had a lot of flare-ups and the amazing staff here at #Chiefs have helped me through some tough times. I will be back for the next training session! Well done, Glydro.”
On Thursday, he elaborated on a 2018 incident in which he and his best friend shot and killed an 18-year-old who was trying to rob them.
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“I’d say that’s probably where most of the stuff comes from,” Edwards-Helaire said. “I wouldn’t necessarily say it all stemmed from that. I have best friends who passed away at a young age from gun violence and they just weren’t in the right places at the right time and just knowing that I have people close to me or around me who … could be in the same places if I was.”
The two-time Super Bowl champion also suffers from cyclic vomiting syndrome, which has kept him in the hospital for dehydration, he added.
“Sometimes they admit me to the hospital, something like I can’t stop vomiting and simply, me [don’t] knowing [anything] pretty much to stop it,” said the player, who was the first pick of the Chiefs in the 2020 draft.
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Still, having teammates to lean on, as well as a coaching staff and coaches on the lookout, has helped the fifth-year player. Talking also helps, he said.
“My first few years, you’re just trying to block everything out and it’s like, ‘Oh, I’ll get over it at some point,'” he said. “And you start to realize that it just doesn’t happen. You get older and you realize, ‘Hey, no matter the age, no matter the person, no matter the situation, everybody needs help at some point.’ It takes courage to talk about it and having PTSD and dealing with it once people bring it up, it’s not something I always want to talk about, I never really know how my body or my mind will react it’s just something I can’t pinpoint or know exactly what will happen.”
Edwards-Helaire added: “I feel like talking is a big thing, but it’s just personal to get over that hump, to be able to know that honestly, it’s just that everybody goes through good things [and] bad … It’s a stepping stone. I’m only 25 years old and I’m trying to live the rest of my life healthy.”
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Source: HIS Education