‘i Am A Fighter’: Ex-nfl Player On Surviving Suicide And Financial Abuse

In a span of 5 years, opening successful 2015, nan erstwhile National Football League backmost Erik Kramer tried unsuccessfully to dice by suicide, past mislaid hundreds of thousands of dollars aft a female he secretly joined plundered his life’s net while he struggled to heal.

Kramer nevertheless considers himself an “extremely fortunate man” and knows his “recovery – some intelligence and beingness – has been bonzer by immoderate definition”, he said successful an effort shared pinch nan Guardian. Wednesday marks nan merchandise of a caller documentary podcast aimed astatine unpacking his singular ordeal.

The Quarterback and nan Con Artist revisits Kramer’s victimization astatine nan hands of Courtney Baird and besides revives questions astir nan toll taken connected nan bodies and minds of American shot players. Those renewed questions travel aft a man who blamed shot for giving him nan incurable encephalon unwellness CTE fatally changeable 4 group astatine nan agency building which houses nan NFL’s office earlier sidesplitting himself connected 28 July.

“Do you blasted CTE for what happened to your dad?” nan podcast host, Johnathan Walton, asks Kramer’s son, Dillon, astatine 1 constituent during nan 10-episode series. Watson alludes to neurological investigation establishing a nexus betwixt nan athletics and nan illness that tin only beryllium diagnosed posthumously. Dillon replies: “I decidedly deliberation CTE is nan biggest contributor by far. I don’t deliberation that he was alert of what was going on.”

Kramer, 60, played QB successful nan NFL successful 10 different seasons mostly from 1991 to 1999 for nan Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears and what were past nan San Diego Chargers. The Los Angeles autochthonal is possibly champion known for teaming pinch nan hallway of fame runner Barry Sanders to nutrient nan Lions’ only playoff triumph from 1957 done 2023. And successful 1995 he besides group single-season records for astir passing yards and passing touchdowns for nan Bears.

Throughout those exploits, Kramer suffered from depression. And his information took a move for nan worse erstwhile his 18-year-old son, Griffen, who grappled pinch constituent abuse, died unexpectedly successful 2011. Things past darkened moreover much erstwhile – months later – Erik’s mother died from uterine crab and his begetter was diagnosed pinch terminal, esophageal cancer.

Kramer yet brought a weapon to a confederate California motel room and utilized it to sprout himself, reasoning successful his sick mind – arsenic his effort put it – “all my problems would beryllium over”. Miraculously, he survived and had capable money from his NFL profession to salary for nan aesculapian curen he subsequently required. The self-inflicted coiled near him pinch nan intelligence capacity “of a six-year-old boy”, he wrote. He added: “I could not process analyzable concepts aliases decisions.”

It was past that Baird reinserted herself into his life aft nan 2 had antecedently dated and surgery up.

What started pinch borrowing Kramer’s in installments paper for market runs while purportedly presenting herself arsenic “a doting caregiver” steadily escalated into taking up to $700 from him for herself daily, costing him arsenic overmuch arsenic $15,000 monthly, he wrote.

Baird yet was brought to ineligible relationship aft a puerility friend of Kramer’s became suspicious upon seeing packages from nan online marketplace Amazon piling up extracurricular his home. They were each addressed to Baird and paid for pinch Kramer’s in installments cards.

The friend, Anna Dergan, checked Baird’s slope records and noticed regular ATM withdrawals totaling thousands of dollars, excessive in installments paper transactions and rate advances and forged checks, according to Kramer. There was grounds Baird had moreover drained Griffen’s memorial account.

As Dergan called for authorities to analyse Baird criminally, nan second arranged to wed Kramer successful a courthouse ceremonial to which nary of his friends aliases family were invited. Kramer’s effort described that maneuver arsenic a “checkmate move”, and nan podcast explores really it hindered efforts to prosecute Baird for years.

He yet recovered to nan constituent wherever he comprehended he needed to divorcement Baird. Kramer says she alleged to authorities he had subjected her to home unit nan aforesaid time he informed her of his desire to divorce, prompting news sum astir him that he condemns arsenic “defamatory”. He has been fighting to correct nan grounds ever since.

Kramer yet succeeded successful having Baird charged pinch a twelve felonies successful 2020. She yet pleaded blameworthy to theft, personality theft, forgery and limited big maltreatment – but only aft Kramer was group backmost astir $700,000. That fig besides includes nan court-related costs incurred arsenic a consequence of his clip pinch Baird and his push to get his matrimony to her annulled.

At an August 2024 sentencing hearing, Baird, 52, only received six months successful situation followed by probation, partially because she came up pinch $170,000 successful rate arsenic restitution for Kramer, he wrote successful his essay.

Kramer said he dedicates astir of his days since having wrested himself “from nan clutches of a conniving con artist” to giving talks to various groups astir intelligence wellness and nan informing signs of depression. He said he grasps that he defied grim odds, pinch self-inflicted gunshot wounds making up only 1% of attempted, not completed, termination attempts.

So he said he has chosen not to beryllium bitter astir – and alternatively deduce inspiration from – nan events recounted connected The Quarterback and nan Con Artist, which is disposable connected each awesome podcast platforms.

“All of this made maine recognize nan truth. I americium a fighter,” Kramer wrote. “I don’t enactment down.”

• In nan US, you tin telephone aliases matter nan National Suicide Prevention Lifeline connected 988, chat connected 988lifeline.org, aliases text HOME to 741741 to link pinch a situation counselor. In nan UK and Ireland, Samaritans tin beryllium contacted connected freephone 116 123, aliases email jo@samaritans.org aliases jo@samaritans.ie. In Australia, nan situation support work Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other world helplines tin beryllium recovered astatine befrienders.org.