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“Stopped Believing in God” – Sean Strickland Breaks Down While Opening Up to Anxiety Induced Due to Traumatic Childhood

Published 01/02/2024, 3:24 AM EST

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via Imago

From a traumatic childhood to UFC success, Sean Strickland has seen it all in life. The UFC middleweight champion has never shied away from discussing his family problems. According to ‘Tarzan’, he had a problematic relationship with his father, who was mentally and physically abusive.

Although he did not reveal details, Strickland has repeatedly talked about the struggles of living in an abusive household. Recently, he appeared on Theo Von’s This Past Weekend podcast. On the show, they engaged in some deep and emotional conversations about the same.

Sean Strickland breaks down in the middle of the podcast

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Von and Strickland had a fun and engaging conversation. However, things got intense when the topic of childhood trauma came up. Somewhere in the middle of the podcast, ‘Tarzan’ revealed how he was mistreated at school and teachers considered him a “bad kid”. However, nobody really knew about everything he had to deal with at his home.

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“I remember laying in bed. I remember I stopped believing in God. It’s crazy sh*t,” he revealed. Next, the UFC champion paused for a few seconds, as emotions got the best of him. Taking a minute to get back, Strickland continued to narrate the emotional tales of his struggles.

Addressing the sensitive topic of anxiety, Strickland also talked about how severely it affected him. “When I was a kid, I used to scratch my gum. I have a hole in my gum. Just anxiety,” he said.

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However, Sean Strickland being Sean Strickland lightened the conversation shortly afterwards. “It’s all good, it is what it is,” he said. Overall, the conversation was a profound one, and fans would love to hear more from the UFC middleweight champ.

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Sean Strickland slammed Dricus Du Plessis for comments on his father

Recently, Sean Strickland and Dricus Du Plessis engaged in a controversial back-and-forth at a UFC press conference. Du Plessis took a bold step by taunting his future opponent about his father and his childhood trauma.

In the podcast, Strickland issued a strong reply to the African MMA fighter. “Don’t talk about like f**ing a kid being abused these things were all off limits”, he said. “And dude, like once he crossed that it was like… I tried to ignore it. I tried to f**ing ignore it.”

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The rivalry between Strickland and Du Plessis is growing to become a controversial one. Neither party is pulling any punches, literally and figuratively. Will this be a repeat of the ugly Edwards vs. Covington feud of UFC 296? Who do you think comes out on top? Let us know in the comments below.

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Written by:

Sushant Sharma

920Articles

One take at a time

I am a 24-year-old MMA enthusiast and a UFC Writer at EssentiallySports. My passion for mixed martial arts has been a significant part of my life for over five years. Having previously trained in boxing, I developed a deep appreciation for combat sports.
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Edited by:

Yeswanth Praveen