“We need to be taking care of all parts of us” – Angela Lee on why mental health should also be prioritized in our daily lives

Recently retired ONE superstar Angela Lee has grown to recognize the need to prioritize mental health in everyone’s daily lives. It is a lesson she is looking to share with her time now that she is no longer competing.

The former ONE atomweight MMA world champion called it a career at the age of 27 back in September to focus on the next chapter of her life. It includes imparting the need to pay attention to one’s mental health, which she is doing through her newly formed non-profit organization Fightstory.

In an interview on the Keep It Aloha Podcast, ‘The Unstoppable’ reiterated the importance of taking care of oneself holistically, saying:

“It's just a part of life, really [mental health]. And when you talk about mental health you're really just talking about health, your mind, your brain, it's a muscle and your body, And we need to be taking care of all parts of us and I think that fighters and people in general, we need to make health a priority.”

Check out what she had to said below:

Angela Lee is no stranger to mental health struggles, as they nearly cost her life back in 2017 and are something she deals with every now and then.

That moved her to put up Fightstory, which is designed to help people going through mental struggles like her live their lives.

Lee became the ONE atomweight MMA world champion in 2016 and defended the title five times. She finished her ONE career with an 11-3 record.

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Recently retired Angela Lee pushes for non-profit Fightstory

When Angela Lee announced her retirement from the game over three months ago, she said that among the things she would be busy with was attending to her newly formed non-profit organization Fightstory.

Aimed at helping people struggling with mental health go through life, the organization has received wide support, which the former ONE Championship superstar said only served to inspire them more in their mission.

She spoke of her involvement in it during an interview with ESPN MMA last October, saying:

“For me, it's been a crazy journey and I have nothing but love for the sport and for ONE Championship for MMA. But I'm going to be redirecting my energy to Fightstory, the non-profit that I've created. And yeah, I’m gonna be looking to carry on the fight outside of the cage. I'm ready for this change.”

Watch the interview below:

Prior to announcing her retirement, Angela Lee was already on a self-imposed break to mourn the tragic passing of her younger sister and fellow ONE fighter Victoria, 18, who took her own life in December 2022.