MMA Champion Angela Lee Opens Up About Her Own Mental Health After Her Sister's Suicide

Lee's non-profit organization Fight Story was created in Victoria's honor to encourage healing through sharing difficult stories.

Fact checked by Sarah Scott

On the outside, it would be easy to believe Angela Lee, 27, is one of the toughest women in the world. At just 19 years old, she secured the inaugural ONE Championship (ONE) women’s atomweight title, becoming the world’s youngest mixed martial arts (MMA) champion. She credits her fierce and competitive spirit to the family of fighters she was born into.

Angela is the oldest of four siblings (Christian, Victoria, and Adrian) and her parents are decorated competitors and instructors too. Her dad coached all the siblings, helping them all make a name for themselves in MMA. Angela’s sister Victoria was on track to surpass Angela’s accomplishments,  winning three fights and earning the nickname, ‘The Prodigy.’  Except that’s as far as Victoria’s MMA career went before she died by suicide on December 26, 2022.

It’s been complicated for Angela to make sense of Victoria’s suicide. In 2017, Angela was in a near-fatal car accident that she’s since revealed was not an accident, and in fact, was a suicide attempt. But since then, Angela married fellow mixed martial artist Bruno Pucci, became a mom to her now 2-year-old daughter Ava, and did a lot of “self-recovery.” Lee explains to Parents that it was “a process and a journey to get back to some sort of normal, to where I'm feeling okay.”

"Every single one of us is facing a battle every day. I believe we're all fighters—and speaking the truth and advocating awareness for mental health is what I believe will save lives."

Angela Lee

With September being National Suicide Prevention Month, Angela is ready to share her—and Victoria’s—story. “I want to speak to those struggling—and maybe even more importantly, speak to their circles of family and friends. They need to understand how crucial it is to have uncomfortable talks and provide the space so those struggling feel comfortable opening up," explains Angela.

Victoria’s death changed everything for Angela. She’s since shifted her focus away from her MMA career (Angela has not competed since Victoria’s death). Instead, she has been channeling her grief into a mental health nonprofit organization she founded called Fight Story, inspired by Victoria's life and to keep her legacy alive.

“It’s to inspire, heal, and unite the world through stories. Stories that are struggles, but also triumphs from fighters of all walks of life—not just those you see in the cage or the ring" Angela explains. “Every single one of us is facing a battle every day. I believe we're all fighters—and speaking the truth and advocating awareness for mental health is what I believe will save lives."

Looking back at her time in the MMA, Angela feels nothing but love for the sport but has reflected on the price that comes with such an elite level of competition. “There can be a lack of balance—which goes for anything in life. Things get out of balance, you start getting tunnel vision, this one thing becomes your whole life and you put it on this pedestal when really, it’s just a small part of the bigger picture of your life,” Angela explains.

In the MMA world, the public-facing persona of the fighters is an important part of the “entertainment” aspect of the sport. The problem then becomes that many fighters “hide” behind their “character” or “mask” to protect their image, brand—and themselves.

“I'm not saying everyone must put all their emotions on their sleeves, but you need to find an outlet to let them out—whether with your spouse, close friends, a coach, or even with journaling. Journaling is one of the best things that helped me get my thoughts down,” says Angela.

It’s how Angela came to terms with what she was burying beneath the surface too. “I believed with all my soul that I did extremely well under pressure. I told myself I thrived under it,” she explains. “But it became this buildup and I never fully addressed everything that I was feeling and going through.” Angela reiterates that her family is very loving and close, but you can have a loving, stable, secure family without feeling you have a safe environment to share your true feelings.

With that said, Angela did feel very close to Victoria. With an eight-year age difference, sometimes Angela felt more like a mother figure rather than an older sister. The one thing that always brought them together, however, was training and being on the mat.

“It was a good environment—there wasn't this unhealthy competitive rivalry going on. Our love for each other was always above anything else. We just wanted to see each other succeed,” remembers Angela. In fact, Angela always tried to make it clear to both Victoria and her youngest brother Adrian that they didn’t have to follow in their family’s footsteps. Angela knew they were tough enough and more than capable of succeeding. But, Angela was also well aware of the mental and physical toll fighting could take. She encouraged them to explore other paths and talents if they so desired.

But Victoria seemed to be thriving in the MMA world. Angela remembers her as the most amazing, unique, inspiring individual. “I'm just so lucky to have been her sister and for us to have that relationship. Not many people got to know her like how I did—and that's something special I hold on to," Angela explains. “She would speak her mind; she would stand up for what she believed in, she was very talented—and she accomplished a lot even though it was a short time here.”

Victoria’s main goal was to find something that could help people. Angela knows the idea for Fight Story was put into her lap by Victoria. “It was her way of saying, ‘Hey, Sis, here you go. We have this to do now.’”

Angela believes that Victoria hid her inner struggles because she didn’t want to worry her family or be a burden. “Victoria was always so considerate and had the biggest heart.  But the people who love you, who truly care about you, they want to hear the good, the bad, the ugly—everything—because we care about you and want to help you through it,” says Angela. “I know Victoria knows this now—I talk to her all the time about it.”

"Victoria was always so considerate and had the biggest heart.  But the people who love you, who truly care about you, they want to hear the good, the bad, the ugly—everything—because we care about you and want to help you through it . . . I know Victoria knows this now—I talk to her all the time about it."

Angela Lee

The purpose of Fight Story is to unite people who may be hesitant to share their dark thoughts for fear of worrying their family or friends. “You may think [you’ll upset family and friends], but the truth is that we love you, and we want to know [what you’re going through]. It takes a lot of courage to share your truth, but it's so worth it,” says Angela.

In the aftermath of  Victoria’s death, being a wife and mother has taken on new meaning for Angela. It’s become imperative to create a safe, open space for her family. Even though Ava is only 2 years old, Angela and her husband want Ava to always feel comfortable sharing how she’s feeling with them—or others that she trusts.

Having a safe space to share difficult emotions was not how Angela grew up. “I love my parents. They're amazing," Angela says. "They did the best they could with what they had but I think with each generation, we're supposed to get better and do better, because we've learned more, and have more experiences. I know Ava will have more tools as she grows up to navigate through life—and I'll be there right by her side.”

As Angela gets ready to mark one year since Victoria's death, she says she is doing a lot better but admits that some days are harder than others. What’s helped her the most is doing whatever she can to stay in the present moment.

“Otherwise, you’ll go down a dark, deep tunnel of would've, could’ve, should’ve regrets. That's stuff you can't change. It happened already, it's in the past and we can't do anything about it” Angela explains. “I used to be thinking about the future all the time, planning and visualizing. But, you can overwhelm yourself thinking about where you think you should be.”

Overall, Angela wants everyone to show more kindness and understanding for each other. “You never know what someone's going through—or what they've gone through. Life is tough—but it can be so beautiful too. Look for those little moments of beauty, hope, and love—it can make all the difference."

For those wondering what's next for the champ professionally, Angela is expected to make an announcement live on Prime Video during the ONE Fight Night broadcast this Friday night. We'll update this article with any news from Angela.

Help is Available

If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988, visit SuicidePreventionLifeline.org, or text "START" to 741-741 to immediately speak to a trained counselor at Crisis Text Line.

Related: 13 Signs Your Child Might Be Suicidal

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Read the original article on Parents.