What Happened to USA Swimmer Michael Phelps – His Life after He Was in ‘Really Dark Place’

Michael Phelps, America’s most decorated professional swimmer, retired after making Olympic history. Despite his achievements, he struggled with the law and his mental health. Today, he channels his energy into philanthropic causes.

Michael Phelps is an American swimmer who holds the record for the most Olympic medals—28 in total, including 23 golds and 13 individual golds.

He joined the U.S. men’s swim team at just 15 and became the first American male swimmer to make five Olympic teams. At 28, he was the oldest individual gold medalist in Olympic swimming history.

At age 15, Phelps became the youngest American male swimmer at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, in 68 years. Although he didn’t win a medal then, he soon became a powerhouse in competitive swimming.

Phelps rose to stardom at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, winning eight medals, six of which were gold. He tied the record for the most medals in a single Olympic Games, previously held by Soviet gymnast Aleksandr Dityatin.

Shortly after his Athens triumph, Phelps was arrested for DUI in Salisbury, Maryland. He pleaded guilty and received 18 months probation, a $250 fine, and community service. The athlete admitted to letting himself and his family down.

However, that incident did not deter him as he kept up the momentum with his winning streak on a professional level. Four years later, Phelps dominated the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

He won eight gold medals and broke Mark Spitz’s record of seven golds in a single Olympics. He set new world records in all but one event.

He proved his capabilities yet again four years later at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Phelps increased his Olympic medal count to 22, surpassing gymnast Larisa Latynina’s record of 18. He won four golds and two silvers.

Despite how much he continued to thrive at the time, Phelps decided that it was time to slow down, or so he thought. After the London Olympics, he announced his retirement, saying he was ready to move on from swimming.

“I’m done. I’m finished. I’m retired. I’m done. No more,” he commented. “I just wanted to be done with swimming and didn’t want anything to do with the sport anymore,” he said of his mindset at the time.

Two years after announcing his retirement, Phelps experienced yet another hurdle in his life. In 2014, he was arrested again in Baltimore for DUI, speeding, and crossing double lines.

He took to social media, acknowledging the severity of his actions and apologizing to those he let down. Phelps pleaded guilty to drunk driving and was given a one-year suspended sentence, including 18 months of supervised probation. He managed to avoid jail time.

This incident led him to a treatment facility in Arizona, which he described as the most frightening experience of his life. He later said in a November 2015 interview, “I was in a really dark place. Not wanting to be alive anymore.”

He admitted that that dark period in his life was one of the toughest he had ever gone through. It was a significant learning curve for him and he vowed to grow from it. After going to rehab, the sportsman returned to doing what he does best.

Phelps made a remarkable comeback at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, becoming the first American male swimmer to earn a spot on five Olympic teams.

Yet that very same year, he confirmed his retirement, saying he was happy with his career and ready to retire. “I’ve been able to do everything I’ve ever put my mind to in this sport. And 24 years in the sport. I’m happy with how things finished,” he said.

Although putting his impressive career behind him, his dark periods have continued to remain a fixture in his life. In April 2017, Phelps opened up about his lifelong struggle with ADHD in a video for the Child Mind Institute’s Speak Up for Kids campaign, alongside Emma Stone and Jesse Eisenberg.

He got candid about his childhood and revealed that a teacher once told him that he would never succeed. As a child, Phelps was mistreated by his teachers, who treated his classmates differently compared to him.

“I had a teacher tell me that I would never amount to anything and I would never be successful,” the decorated athlete revealed. Phelps has lived with ADHD his whole life and it is a condition that he continues to live with to date.

Growing up, the swimmer could never sit still but he has since found a way to cope with his condition. “I think the biggest thing for me, once I found that it was okay to talk to someone and seek help,” said Phelps, adding taking that big step has changed his life forever.

Phelps said ADHD was a challenge but also made him who he is today. He emphasized the importance of seeking help and living life to the fullest.

Living with the condition is not the only thing that he is battling in life. In January 2018, Phelps spoke about his battle with depression at the Kennedy Forum.

He described how he fell into despair after the highs of his Olympic victories, often self-medicating with drugs or alcohol. After the 2012 Olympics, he spent days alone, not eating or sleeping, and not wanting anything to do with sports or to live.

Seeking help was a turning point for him, and he encouraged others to talk about mental health. Thankfully, Phelps’ family has been very supportive amid his battle with mental health.

The gold medalist is family-oriented and cherishes family dinners with his wife, Nicole Johnson, and their boys, Boomer, Beckett, and Maverick.

This routine helps him manage his depression. “Depression is something that will always be part of my life — it’s part of who I am,” Phelps said in a July 2021 interview. His foundation provides wellness programs for youth globally.

Phelps sticks to a disciplined routine of daily workouts, adequate sleep, and hydration. He also journals his feelings, using this technique to manage his mental health. He looks up quotes for motivation but sometimes falls into the trap of negativity.

Phelps often finds himself penning down negative words, including names he calls himself or what he goes through mentally. But his spouse has encouraged him to stop doing that and he respected that.

Johnson and Phelps, who joined the board of Medibio, a company focused on making diagnoses of mental health disorders, ensure their sons understand and express their emotions.

“They talk about their emotions. It gives me a lot of hope. I just want them to be as prepared as they can be,” said the father of three. His sons are well aware that there are times when he needs his own space.

Johnson shared that this teaches the boys compassion and patience. She also admitted that her spouse still struggles with “really severe moments” of depression” to date which she finds scary.

The couple has been together for decades after being in an on-and-off relationship for years. Phelps and Johnson met at the 2007 ESPY Awards and fell in love right away.

Their relationship had ups and downs, with breakups in 2008 and 2010. In 2012, Johnson texted Phelps to congratulate him on his Olympic success.

In 2013, he reached out to her and told her that he wanted to rekindle their romance. However, she declined. Johnson recalled telling Phelps that he only wanted to do what he wanted and that she did not want to waste her time.

The former Miss California USA was livid with the athlete then but he was adamant on fixing their relationship. He even contacted her mother to intervene which worked.

The lovebirds reconnected in 2014 and Johnson admitted they longed for each other. “We had both had different relationships, but we never found anybody who understood each other the way we did,” she added.

The couple got engaged in February 2015 and Phelps announced their engagement news on social media. They married in an intimate ceremony attended only by close friends and family in June 2016 and later had a second wedding which was a grand ceremony in Cabo, Mexico.

Michael Phelps and Nicole Johnson live in an upscale Paradise Valley home in Arizona, purchased for $2.53 million. This 6,010-square-foot Santa Barbara-style house, built in 2015, boasts five bedrooms, six-and-a-half bathrooms, and a swimming pool.

It features views of Camelback Mountain, smartphone-controlled automation, and patios with Concha Stone. Phelps enjoys the backyard’s fruit trees, including orange, tangerine, lemon, lime, peach, and apple.

Phelps’ journey from Olympic glory to personal struggles and back shows how resilient he is. Today, he focuses on his family and helping others through his foundation. Despite the dark times, the athlete has found ways to cope and continues to inspire many with his story.