Vikings defensive end Everson Griffen: ‘It’s true I am bipolar’
Star TribuneDec 03, 2021
In his first public comments since he was taken by ambulance for mental health treatment on
"It's true I am bipolar," he wrote on Instagram. "I will embrace it and I will be an advocate for mental health. I been running from it a long time. I'm not ashamed of it anymore."
A post shared by
Griffen wrote his struggles with bipolar disorder started when his mother,
"Went into a dark place, thought I was great for many years," he wrote. "I promise this time I will do everything the experts say. I love my family and I miss my friends. Thank you for all the love and support, but most of all thank you for all the prayers."
The 33-year-old is currently on the non-football illness list while he receives mental health treatment, after an impasse with police where he refused to come out of his home for several hours. Griffen called 911 shortly after
The same day, Griffen had posted, then deleted, a video on Instagram saying people were trying to kill him as he held a gun in his hand.
He was alone inside the house, with police outside, until he emerged willingly and agreed to be taken for treatment. Vikings mental health professionals assisted for several hours.
Griffen also spent four weeks undergoing mental health treatment in 2018 after two incidents that September — one at the
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