Randy Orton is destined to go down as one of the greatest WWE Superstars of all time. He debuted in WWE in 2002 on SmackDown after training in Ohio Valley Wrestling, and joined Evolution in 2003 with Triple H, Ric Flair, and Batista, winning the Intercontinental Championship that year.
In 2004, at 24, he became the youngest World Heavyweight Champion, defeating Chris Benoit at SummerSlam, though he lost the title a month later. He won his first WWE Championship in 2007, beginning a series of 14 world title reigns (10 WWE Championships, 4 World Heavyweight Championships).
The Viper has since headlined multiple WrestleManias, including WrestleMania 25 and 30. He formed The Legacy with Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase Jr. in 2008, won the Royal Rumble in 2009 and 2017, and became a viral sensation thanks to his patented RKO Outta Nowhere.
Orton recently sat down with Stephanie McMahon for a surprisingly emotional conversation, which saw him detail recent struggles with severe anxiety and panic attacks.
Following his spinal fusion surgery (and facing the prospect of his wrestling career being over), Orton explained that he started questioning who he was without his pro wrestling career. "Here’s my identity. This is who I am. The one thing I know that I’m good at and I get respect for, and I can’t do it anymore. And for like, six months, I was under the impression that that was it. I got to like, a dark place."
"I was having like, panic attacks," Orton revealed. "And it was like, it started to become hard to fly. Started to become hard to stay in another bed, and I would be, like, up all night. Trying to go to bed at night and then not being able to lay down in bed, because my mind would start going, and then all of a sudden I’d get, like, hot, and I’d have to get out of bed walking around our yard, just like, taking deep breaths."
Explaining that he had to keep these moments from his children, Orton later explained that he was he was prescribed SSRIs (anti-depression/anxiety medication) to help him cope. However, after his situation improved, he was able to stop taking those six months ago.
"I just, I didn’t know if I could do this job anymore," he admitted. "I really feel like I’m in like, a good place. It’s kind of therapy to talk about it now."
Elsewhere in the interview, Orton praised Triple H, WWE's Chief Content Officer, for making WWE a more "talent-friendly" environment that, in his case, has helped with his recent mental health struggles.
"I was just talking to Hunter yesterday. He wasn’t at TV one week. Where is he? He was at Murphy’s softball game. It was the national championships," Orton shared. "Just knowing that in the past that never would have happened, and knowing that now it’s okay, like, it just, it’s almost like, without even knowing it. He’s leading by example.”
"There’s no question in my mind that if I say, 'Hunter, I’ve got this thing, and it’s very important to me and my family and my kids that I’m there,' there’s no question in my mind that they’ll say 'Done.' Like that is huge. That’s everything," Orton concluded.
You can watch the full must-see interview in the player below.