Senator John Fetterman was released Friday from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he had been receiving treatment for clinical depression since mid-February.
Fetterman’s spokesman, Joe Calvello, said in a statement that the Democratic senator is back in Braddock, Pennsylvania, to spend time with his family and constituents «for the next two weeks.» He plans to return to Washington, DC, when the Senate is back in session on April 17.
“I’m so happy to be home,” Fetterman said Friday. «I’m excited to be the father and husband I want to be, and the senator from Pennsylvania deserves.»
In his statement, Fetterman also expressed gratitude for the Walter Reed team in Bethesda, Maryland.
“I am extremely grateful to the amazing team at Walter Reed. The care they provided changed my life,” Fetterman said. “I’ll have more to say about this soon, but for now I want everyone to know that depression is treatable and treatment works. This is not about politics – there are people suffering from depression in red and blue counties right now. If you need help, please get help.”
The senator was being treated for «major depression» by a team led by David Williamson, Walter Reed’s chief of neuropsychiatry and medical director, Fetterman’s office said in a news release.
According to the statement, Williamson said Fetterman’s depression is now in remission.
Fetterman checked in for treatment on February 15, with staff mentioning a mental health battle they said escalated during his recovery from a stroke in May on the campaign trail.
When he was admitted, Fetterman had severe symptoms of depression but no suicidal ideation, according to a Williamson discharge report cited by Fetterman’s office. Fetterman’s symptoms had worsened in the 8 weeks prior to his admission, and he had low blood pressure that potentially affected cerebral circulation, Williamson noted.
After his voluntary admission to the hospital, doctors did not observe a new stroke and Fetterman’s depression was managed with drug therapies, according to the report. In the weeks that followed, Fetterman’s doctors said her mood improved and she began to sleep, eat and hydrate.
Fetterman also worked with speech-language specialists and was fitted with hearing aids after her doctors identified mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss, according to the report.
NBC News previously reported on Fetterman’s plans to return to the Senate in April, and Calvello told NBC News earlier this week that Fetterman is «in the zone» and «excited to be back in the Senate.»