Married At First Sight icon Cam Merchant has opened up about his darkest days in rehab and how wife Jules Robinson and son Ollie got him through it – though he hadn’t even met Jules yet.
WATCH: Cameron Merchant surprises Jules Robinson on her birthday
Before appearing on Married At First Sight in 2017, where he was matched with Jules and fell in love, Cam was a professional cricketer in Canada.
But after retiring from the sport in 2014, he found himself without a purpose and struggled to find the drive to even wake up in the morning.
“I couldn’t put pants on, and I was mentally and physically crippled,” he revealed on Gus Worland’s Not An Overnight Success podcast.
Things got so bad that he wound up without a home, at one time sleeping alone at Vancouver Airport for four days.
He eventually returned to Sydney and crashed on a friend’s couch before seeking help at the Currumbin Clinic in Palm Beach.
“I remember sitting in a hospital bed, in mental rehab, and I remember thinking the only thing that was going to keep me going was that I hadn’t been married yet, and I hadn’t had kids,” Cam confessed.
It was the thought of one day settling down and starting a family with a woman he loved that kept him going.
In a way, Cam owes that moment to wife Jules and son Ollie, who helped him realise those dreams years later. He even said in 2019 that meeting Jules “saved” him.
During his time in rehab Cam told himself: “You’ve got two choices here: either you’re done, or you’ve got an opportunity to still be happy.”
WATCH: MAFS’ Jules Robinson and Cam Merchant welcome their son
He seized that opportunity with both hands and went on to sign up for season six of MAFS, where he found Jules and proposed to her (for real) at their final vows.
They officially wed in November 2019 and announced they were expecting a child together in April the following year, welcoming son Ollie in October 2020.
Cam noted that like him, many young cricketers struggle mentally and emotionally when they leave the sport because they have no backup plan.
These days he’s loving life as a husband, dad and media personality, but Cam still shares regular mental health messages and support on his Instagram page.
If you or someone you know has been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, help is always available. Call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit their website.
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