Erin McClean has leapt to the defence of her husband, James McClean, after he made controversial comments about mental health.
In an interview with the Sunday Independent, the Derry man claimed he viewed seeking help for mental health as 'weakness'.
James explained that Erin suggested he 'needs to speak to someone' about issues that have happened in his personal and family life, but he's never considered doing so.
'As a man, I see that as weakness. I don’t need to open up,' he said. 'I see it as a weakness that I’d have to speak to someone about my feelings; my emotions.'
James' comments appear to have landed him in hot water, as thousands of individuals across the country have sought help for mental health, and thousands of others who have their reasons for not speaking up often find themselves with even more troublesome headspaces.
On Monday, Erin released a statement to defend her husband. She began: 'As somebody who loves James, I want to respond to some of the comments around his interview with the Sunday Independent about the issue of mental health.'
'James made his comments in the context of admitting that I have been strongly encouraging him to seek therapy, to deal with issues from his early life as well as to face the end of his career,' Erin continued. 'I do not agree with James' opinion on the subject of therapy and mental health.
'In the book, [I] talk about my worries about how James will cope with life after football. I am proud that in the process of working on the book, he has opened himself up to difficult conversations and has allowed people to see some of his vulnerabilities.'
'He is struggling at the moment, and has been for some time. He may not agree with me sharing that, but I've told him that I need to explain this,' Erin said. 'I'm working on getting him to a place where he recognises that speaking about this is not a sign of weakness.
'When James is suffering from stress or anxiety about a situation, his instinct is to lash out. It has been a daily battle in a year where I feel he hasn't been given the support that he requires when he is clearly struggling.
'I know James to be very supportive to personal friends of ours when they have gone through difficult times. While he continues to push back at the idea of therapy for himself, that does not mean he does not care about other people's struggles or the importance of seeking help.'
How They Met: Irish football star James McClean and wife Erin
