Long before Lewis Hamilton became a phenom on the Formula One circuit, he privately battled depression.
“From a very early age, when I was, like, 13. I think it was the pressure of the racing and struggling at school. The bullying. I had no one to talk to,” Hamilton, 39, told The Sunday Times in a profile published on Sunday, September 29, noting he once sought treatment. “I spoke to one woman, years ago, but that wasn’t really helpful. I would like to find someone today.”
Hamilton has also participated in silent retreats and read books on mental health, such as Gary Chapman‘s The 5 Love Languages.
“You’re learning about things that have been passed down to you from your parents, noticing those patterns, how you react to things, how you can change those,” Hamilton told the outlet. “So what might have angered me in the past doesn’t anger me today. I am so much more refined.”
Hamilton is the only Black man to race in F1, where he’s accrued more than 105 victories. After 12 years driving for Mercedes, he will make the move to Ferrari at the end of this current season.
Lewis Hamilton Dave Benett/Getty Images for Selfridges
“It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions from the moment I signed the contract — telling my boss, that was terrifying,” Hamilton recalled to The Times. “But it is so exciting because I remember as a kid watching [F1 legend] Michael [Schumacher]. Every driver watches that car and you’re like, ‘What would it be like to sit in the red cockpit?’”
Hamilton initially started racing when he was 8 years old, thanks to a gifted go-kart from his father.
“I was hooked,” he gushed to the newspaper. “The adrenaline, the chaos, trying to control it. You feel it in your chest, your emotions, through your fingers, everything.”
Hamilton continued, “I think he just wanted something to do with me, this kid that had all this energy, that had no fear. … Something flowed through me, it was the only thing I was confident in.”
By 13, Hamilton was offered a spot on the McLaren driver development team. He joined F1 nine years later.
“You’re nice and friendly outside the car, but in the car, my dad would say, ‘You have to be ruthless, aggressive, sharp.’ In the car there are no friends,” Hamilton explained of his early racing days, noting he finally found a sense of belonging while attending a 2007 fashion show. “Everyone was wearing what they wanted.”
He added, “You didn’t feel like you were being judged because everyone’s on their own vibe. It was the first time I got into an environment where everyone was expressing themselves and I loved it.”
