🔗 Share this article Crew Member Discloses Mental Health Struggle Following Deluge of Backlash Following Journey The scientist and activist, a bioastronautics research scientist, was a passenger on the New Shepard NS-31 rocket in April 2025. A Vietnamese-American astronaut has spoken candidly about her struggle with mental health after being subjected to a relentless barrage of criticism in the aftermath of a historic all-female space mission. Amanda Nguyen – recognized as a researcher and activist – was part of the short-duration mission in the spring, which also included celebrity crewmates. The high-profile flight was widely scrutinized by some, who challenged its value and environmental footprint. Reflecting on the situation, the astronaut, who was celebrated as the first Vietnamese woman in space, stated the intense backlash eclipsed her moment under an torrent of sexist abuse. “I told her my depression might last for years,” she recounted in a online statement, referring to a check-in call from a mission companion in the period after the journey. She characterized the news reports and online discourse as an unprecedented psychological assault. “Stuck in Texas, I spent a week unable to rise from my bed,” she wrote. “A month later… I had to hang up… because I could not speak through my tears.” Overshadowed by Sexism Ms. Nguyen, who has conducted studies in female health science and performed experiments during the flight, said everything she had worked for – including her studies and years of training to the symbolic importance of her background – was buried under the avalanche of sexist vitriol. She is most acclaimed for her tireless campaigning fighting for justice for survivors of assault. Her own dream of becoming an astronaut was paused after surviving a rape during her university years, leading to a long campaign for accountability. The Fog Begins to Lift Now, eight months after reaching space, she reports that the “fog of grief has started to lift”, and she thanked the well-wishers whose kindness were her lifeline. “You were my salvation,” she wrote. She noted that even with the backlash, important benefits had resulted from the experience, including increased focus on her women's health research and platforms for her activism. Flight Details The computer-piloted spacecraft departed its launch site in April, carrying the all-female team on a brief suborbital flight that crossed the edge of outer space. The diverse crew also comprised experts in multiple disciplines. The enterprise behind the mission is a private space firm established by a Amazon founder.
The scientist and activist, a bioastronautics research scientist, was a passenger on the New Shepard NS-31 rocket in April 2025. A Vietnamese-American astronaut has spoken candidly about her struggle with mental health after being subjected to a relentless barrage of criticism in the aftermath of a historic all-female space mission. Amanda Nguyen – recognized as a researcher and activist – was part of the short-duration mission in the spring, which also included celebrity crewmates. The high-profile flight was widely scrutinized by some, who challenged its value and environmental footprint. Reflecting on the situation, the astronaut, who was celebrated as the first Vietnamese woman in space, stated the intense backlash eclipsed her moment under an torrent of sexist abuse. “I told her my depression might last for years,” she recounted in a online statement, referring to a check-in call from a mission companion in the period after the journey. She characterized the news reports and online discourse as an unprecedented psychological assault. “Stuck in Texas, I spent a week unable to rise from my bed,” she wrote. “A month later… I had to hang up… because I could not speak through my tears.” Overshadowed by Sexism Ms. Nguyen, who has conducted studies in female health science and performed experiments during the flight, said everything she had worked for – including her studies and years of training to the symbolic importance of her background – was buried under the avalanche of sexist vitriol. She is most acclaimed for her tireless campaigning fighting for justice for survivors of assault. Her own dream of becoming an astronaut was paused after surviving a rape during her university years, leading to a long campaign for accountability. The Fog Begins to Lift Now, eight months after reaching space, she reports that the “fog of grief has started to lift”, and she thanked the well-wishers whose kindness were her lifeline. “You were my salvation,” she wrote. She noted that even with the backlash, important benefits had resulted from the experience, including increased focus on her women's health research and platforms for her activism. Flight Details The computer-piloted spacecraft departed its launch site in April, carrying the all-female team on a brief suborbital flight that crossed the edge of outer space. The diverse crew also comprised experts in multiple disciplines. The enterprise behind the mission is a private space firm established by a Amazon founder.