Mar 3, 2023 3 min read

Over the last several days this story has been on my radar, and I have chosen not to comment or say much publicly, but I think now may be the time to end my silence. The story: “Fetterman Checks In to Hospital for Treatment of Clinical Depression.”

Let me start by dispelling the rumors that I am a perfect human being who can show empathy and understanding in every situation. I’ve been on the sidelines or directly engaged in politics since the early 2000s, so I started thinking the things that political consultants get paid to pose as questions: Was there a disorder that was concealed from the public during the campaign? Or, why did his wife stay back in Braddock rather than be in D.C. for the State of the Union?

Then, the less aggressive, more human, perhaps more likable side of me kicked in and suddenly I was flushed with sincere empathy and concern for U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, a man I have sparred with during my time in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and his time as lieutenant governor.

The decision to seek psychiatric help could not have been an easy one and that’s why I felt the need to write and speak out. See, I have had my own personal challenges, some that I have lived out publicly and others that I have silently confronted. For the past several years I, like 13.2% of Americans, have been on antidepressants. The only difference is I refused them for a long time when my practitioners suggested them, because I worried about my political future and “what people would think.” And that was with the legal protections of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) being on my side, but I have had dinner with enough doctors to know that veil is sometimes pulled back.

This will come as no surprise because it’s been widely covered, and I’ve tried to be transparent about the fact that during my time in office, I developed a problem with alcohol. The isolation that is created in a divide between the imaginary and the real becomes staggering. We, as politicians, spend so much of our time telling you why we are the best candidate to earn your vote that many times elected officials are placed on pedestals that are unreasonable. Voters, at least those who are not complete cynics, have been conditioned to expect perfection.

So, with all this in mind, I have a thought to leave with you with:

Fetterman’s courage to ask for help, something politicians and men are not taught to do, should be accepted with the highest regard. I can’t see our politics ever aligning, but I wish him a quick recovery and his openness and honesty through this journey should be commended. Honesty should be the number one virtue we look for in a politician.

Matthew Dowling is a husband and father who resides in Uniontown where he served as a state representative for six years and currently hosts the podcast, Commonalities, on WMBS radio.