'My marriage split left me almost in a state of breakdown': Humza Yousaf reveals he sat crying on his sofa and did not eat or drink for 24 hours after splitting from first wife
- Scottish FM feared he would lose job if he told Nicola Sturgeon of mental anguish
Humza Yousaf has revealed he was almost ‘in a state of breakdown’ after the collapse of his first marriage.
The First Minister admitted that he sat crying on his sofa and did not eat or drink for 24 hours after splitting from first wife Gail Lythgoe in 2016.
But Mr Yousaf also revealed he did not tell then first minister Nicola Sturgeon of his mental anguish because he feared he would lose his job.
Opening up on the scale of his mental health battles on the podcast The Rest Is Politics, he said: ‘I remember that I knew I needed help.
'I was transport minister, my first marriage had broken down, it was a really tough time I was having, it was in the middle of difficult weather, transport minister is always a difficult job, and yeah, I didn’t really feel I had anybody to turn to.
![The First Minister admitted he sat crying on his sofa and did not eat or drink for 24 hours after splitting from first wife Gail Lythgoe in 2016](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/05/20/80885189-13048599-image-m-41_1707165670423.jpg)
The First Minister admitted he sat crying on his sofa and did not eat or drink for 24 hours after splitting from first wife Gail Lythgoe in 2016
![Mr Yousaf was married to SNP activist Ms Lythgoe from 2010 to 2016](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/06/00/80893383-13048599-image-a-5_1707179374484.jpg)
Mr Yousaf was married to SNP activist Ms Lythgoe from 2010 to 2016
![Mr Yousaf remarried in 2019 to Nadia El-Nakla and spoke of how he helps protect his mental health by ‘drawing boundaries’](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/05/20/80885187-13048599-image-m-43_1707165772369.jpg)
Mr Yousaf remarried in 2019 to Nadia El-Nakla and spoke of how he helps protect his mental health by ‘drawing boundaries’
‘And I remember actually just a whole day passing, I literally did not move from the right hand side of my settee.
For a whole 24 hours, I didn’t move, didn’t get up to drink water, didn’t go to the toilet, didn’t eat anything.
‘I remember just almost being in a state of breakdown, crying and upset, and not really understanding what I was upset at.
'But then at that point, 24 hours later, knowing I needed help.’
But he admitted he felt there was a stigma around mental health and didn’t discuss the matter with Ms Sturgeon or other colleagues because he worried about losing his job as transport minister.
He said the first person he contacted was a friend who was a psychiatrist and was told he should talk to someone who could ‘really talk through the issues that you’re dealing with’.
Mr Yousaf said: ‘I never spoke to Nicola about it, I never spoke to any of my colleagues about it.’
Asked by presenter Alastair Campbell if he felt there was a ‘stigma’ that meant a politician seeking help was a problem, he said: ‘One hundred per cent.
![The First Minister with his ex wife Gail Lythgoe (left) mother Shaaista and dad Muzaffar](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/06/00/80893385-13048599-image-a-4_1707179365453.jpg)
The First Minister with his ex wife Gail Lythgoe (left) mother Shaaista and dad Muzaffar
![Mr Yousaf said that he 'draws boundaries' with his second wife, such as by finding family time on a Monday evening and during the weekend](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/02/06/00/80893377-13048599-image-a-6_1707179494767.jpg)
Mr Yousaf said that he 'draws boundaries' with his second wife, such as by finding family time on a Monday evening and during the weekend
'I actually thought if they know about it I will not be in a job.
‘Now, I don’t think that would have been the case, Nicola would have been perfectly understanding, as would my government colleagues.
'John Swinney, who I’ve always been close to, I think these people would have been very understanding.
‘But it was just you didn’t hear about ministers with mental health challenges.
If they had mental health challenges, they left the job, and I didn’t feel like I wanted to leave at that point.’
He said he did not tell family but a friend recommended a trustworthy mental health specialist who could speak to him about the issue and help him ‘take some time out’.
Mr Yousaf said it was ‘the best thing I did’ and admitted he should find time to ‘check in’ with a counsellor again given how stressful his job is.
He remarried in 2019 to Nadia El-Nakla, and spoke of how he helps protect his mental health by ‘drawing boundaries’, such as finding family time on a Monday evening and during the weekend.
He also said he is ‘hurt’ by the breakdown in his relationship with Alex Salmond.
Describing Mr Salmond as the reason he joined the SNP, he said: ‘I feel the breakdown in the relationship with Alex is a matter of not just regret but I feel quite hurt about it all.
'Someone I looked up to now spends a fair bit of his time laying the boot into the SNP and trying to damage me.’
On Ms Sturgeon, he said: ‘I’ve always had that deep affection for Nicola. I worry about her to an extent as well, I mean she is dealing with a lot as we know about.
‘There’s certain elements who are seeking to try to tarnish her reputation.’