Matty Mullins Unmasks His Struggles With Panic Disorder and Mental Health

This month’s featured artist in Sound Mind’s Unmasked series is Memphis May Fire’s lead singer, Matty Mullins. Over the years, the four-piece rock band has stayed true to its sound and maintained its vulnerable lyrics. While some artists may lose sight of their identities while on the path to stardom, even after topping Billboard’s Hard Rock Albums chart, Memphis May Fire continues to be open and honest with their fans. Earlier this year, the band released its seventh studio album, Remade in Misery, which confronts topics like crippling anxiety, polarization, and self-righteousness. The record includes some of the band’s heaviest tracks to date such as “Bleed Me Dry,” “Death Inside,” and “Only Human.”

On the latest episode of Unmasked, Mullins shares his experience coping with mental health and a panic disorder. He experienced his first panic attack on a short flight to Florida)  and says he has never felt the same since.  It would take Mullins two grueling years of panic attacks, anxiety, and depression, privately, before seeking the necessary professional steps to work on his mental health. 

Mullins told Billboard, “Trauma changes us, changes our bodies, our brains, every cell in our being. And while this can feel disheartening, it’s important to remember that healing changes us too! Healing can become part of us, part of our identity, part of how we view the world and other people, and especially how we view ourselves.”

The singer-songwriter credits therapy and prayer for helping him get through the toughest time of his life. Once he started to do the work to improve his mental health and understand what he was experiencing, his outlook changed. Every person in this world experiences pain and trauma, but it is imperative to not feel ashamed of your pain. Unmasked was created to destigmatize conversations around mental health and foster a safe community for people to comfortably verbalize their experiences and feelings. 

Check out Matty Mullins’ episode of Unmasked, and stay tuned for more to come from Sound Mind. 

This content was created in partnership with Sound Mind.