Feminist Amanda Nguyen Shares Struggles Post-Spaceflight

Amanda Nguyen, who made history as the first Vietnamese woman to reach the edge of space during Blue Origin’s all-female flight in April 2025, has recently opened up about her ongoing battle with depression. This revelation came after she faced significant backlash for her participation in the trip, describing it as an “avalanche of misogyny.”

In April 2025, Blue Origin, the private company founded by Jeff Bezos, organized the first all-female spaceflight since 1963. The crew, featuring pop star Katy Perry, journalist Lauren Sanchez, and activist Amanda Nguyen, undertook an 11-minute journey beyond the recognized boundaries of space. While the event was celebrated in many media outlets as a critical achievement for women’s contributions to space exploration, it also drew criticism regarding its costs and environmental implications.

Nguyen, at 34, labeled herself a “civil rights astronaut.” However, the intense negativity following her flight soon revealed underlying issues of depression. In a recent Instagram post, she explained that the onslaught from the press and social media was “something the human brain was not evolved to withstand.”

Following the flight, American news anchor Gayle King reached out to Nguyen to see how she was doing. Nguyen mentioned that she felt the effects of her depression could linger for years. The negative attention was so excessive that she found it hard to leave her home in Texas for an entire week, feeling too emotional even to converse with a senior Blue Origin team member a month later.

Interestingly, Nguyen mentioned conducting multiple experiments during her short flight. However, she believes that the significance of being the first Vietnamese female astronaut—especially during the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam-US War and as a child of boat refugees—was overshadowed by the harsh criticism she received.

Despite these hardships, Nguyen expressed her gratitude for the steadfast support from her followers, who she said “saved her life.” She emphasized the positive aspects of the flight, including increased media attention on her research related to women’s health and opportunities to engage with global leaders in her advocacy initiatives.