Willow Nightingale reached one of the biggest milestones of her career at AEW Redemption by defeating Thekla to capture the AEW Women's World Championship. However, just hours before her championship victory, Nightingale shared a deeply personal insight into the mental health struggles she has been facing behind the scenes.

Appearing on AEW's Countdown special ahead of the event, Nightingale revealed that despite her upbeat personality and positive image, she has privately battled depression for roughly the past year while continuing to perform at the highest level.

The newly crowned champion admitted that fans often expect her to always be smiling, but maintaining that image has become increasingly difficult.

"I think there are a lot of expectations that come with being Willow Nightingale and being like the smiley happy person. It’s been hard. I think I’ve been depressed for about a year, and I’ve just had to find a way to strap a smile on, put my twinkly boots on, and find a way to keep going, and, um… I could sit here right now and tell you I’m on all these flights and I’m doing this so often.

"I’m missing my family’s birthday party. I’m missing weddings. But we all do it. What makes me more deserving than anybody else? It’s not even a matter about deserving. It’s just, I’m in this position. The opportunities are there. I’m taking them, and I’m excelling, and at the end of the day, that’s what makes you a champion," Nightingale said.

Following her title victory, Nightingale expanded on the topic during the AEW Redemption post-show media scrum. She spoke about recognising the signs of depression herself and praised AEW for providing mental health support, noting that the company has a therapist who travels with the roster. She also highlighted the importance of making mental wellbeing a priority within professional wrestling.

Nightingale's emotional revelations came on the same night she achieved the biggest accomplishment of her AEW career. Her first major title defence is already set, as she is scheduled to put the AEW Women's World Championship on the line against Mercedes Moné at AEW All In 2026.