John Green Suffering From Depression, Reveals Hiatus

Author and YouTuber John Green announced on Tuesday, June 25 that he is taking a break from social media and online content creation. The 46-year-old said candidly that he is dealing with persistent depression, and he believes time off from YouTube and other platforms will help combat it. He said that fans can still expect to see him in person at VidCon Anaheim this weekend.

“I’m taking some time off and this is a video about why,” Green said in the 4-minute video. “I have not been doing that great. The headline is that I will be at VidCon this weekend and online for the next few days, but then I am going to take the month of July away from the internet entirely.” Green even intimated that the break might go on even longer if needed, saying: “We’ll see how I feel in August.”

Green noted that he has not needed to take a break like this in all of his 17-and-a-half years on YouTube – even when he felt he was going through times that were objectively harder than this time is for him. However, he said that he questions his judgement of that because of his understanding of how depression warps his perception. Green went on to give some well-articulated descriptions of depression and how it is influencing him right now in particular.

Green said that he will continue working on his next book during his month off, noting that he will need his full capacity to focus on that. Green is the author of eight books including the 2012 hit The Fault in Our Stars, which is likely the most familiar title to people outside of his fandom. The 2014 film adaptation catapulted Green to greater fame, and since then several of his other works have been adapted for screen as well.

Green and his brother Hank created VidCon in 2010, and the convention grew so fast that they sold it to Paramount in 2018. The event allows creators to meet up with each other and their fans, all sharing information on how to make platforms like YouTube work better. Green still plans on attending this year’s event which kicked off on Wednesday, June 26 and continues through Saturday, June 29.

It’s unclear how Hank intends to run the vlogbrothers channel during John’s hiatus, so fans are waiting for more details. John’s latest book, The Anthropocene Reviewed is available now in print, digital and audiobook formats. Few details are available on his upcoming book except that it is due out next year.