Space Traveler Shares Mental Health Struggle After Deluge of Backlash Following Journey
A pioneering space traveler has spoken candidly about her emotional downturn after being subjected to a relentless barrage of criticism in the aftermath of a historic all-female space mission.
Amanda Nguyen – celebrated as a researcher and activist – was part of the 11-minute suborbital flight in April, which also featured well-known figures.
The much-publicized journey was met with derision by some, who challenged its value and environmental footprint.
Reflecting on the experience, Ms. Nguyen, who became the first Vietnamese woman in space, stated the intense backlash eclipsed her moment under an “avalanche of misogyny”.
“I told her my depression might last for years,” Ms. Nguyen stated in a online statement, referring to a supportive conversation from a mission companion in the period after the journey.
She portrayed the press attention and digital reaction as an unprecedented psychological assault.
“Stuck in Texas, I spent a week unable to rise from my bed,” she revealed. “Even a month on, a phone call ended with me hanging up, weeping uncontrollably.”
Eclipsed by Backlash
The researcher, who has focused her career on gynecological science and operated research during the mission, said everything she had worked for – including her lab work and years of training to the personal milestone of her heritage – was overshadowed under the deluge of misogyny.
She is most acclaimed for her tireless campaigning protecting the rights of victims of sexual violence.
Her own dream of becoming an astronaut was deferred after surviving a rape during her time as a student, leading to a years-long quest for justice.
A Path to Recovery
In the time since fulfilling her dream, she reports that the “fog of grief has started to lift”, and she expressed gratitude the well-wishers whose messages of encouragement were her lifeline. “You were my salvation,” she wrote.
She concluded that amid the criticism, important benefits had come out of the flight, including elevated attention for her women's health research and chances to influence leaders.
About the Mission
The self-operating New Shepard rocket lifted off from Texas in April, carrying the all-female team on a 11-minute journey that passed the Kármán line of space.
The diverse crew also included accomplished professionals from various fields.
The enterprise behind the mission is a commercial aerospace company founded by a Amazon founder.
