Maren Morris is opening up about her mental health and her marriage.
In the new issue of PEOPLE, the “Circles Around This Town” singer reveals that her husband, fellow singer-songwriter Ryan Hurd, helped diagnose her postpartum depression after welcoming their son Hayes Andrew in March 2020.
“I do check-ins all the time [with] therapy, which I’ve done for years, and my husband was a huge help diagnosing that too,” Morris, 31, says of her postpartum depression, which began to ease as Hayes turned 6 months. “Sometimes it’s just someone really close to you saying, ‘Are you OK?’ It’s so simple, but it kind of snaps you out of whatever fog you’re in that you think is normal, but isn’t.”
Between her postpartum depression and the weight of the pandemic, Morris, whose new album Humble Quest drops Friday, is more cognizant about her mental health than ever.
“I’m pretty sure everyone in lockdown and this pandemic has had to do a temperature check on their mental health, and maybe it’ll become a more perpetual practice going forward because of these two years, I hope it is,” she says. “I just think there’s not a stigma as much around talking about it and reaching out for help. It’s been such an amazing thing to know that I haven’t been alone in this, that other women have all been dealing with the same exact fears and anxieties; even just knowing that if I wake up in the middle of the night with a panic attack, I know that I’m not the only one.”
Morris is also grateful that 35-year-old Hurd, whom she married in 2018, has been by her side, she says: “I wouldn’t have made it through with my head this high without him.”
Humble Quest, Morris’ third major-label album, was inspired by her experience the past two years, including becoming a mom and growing in her relationship with Hurd.
“This was the most time we had ever spent with each other, and we had a kid, so we were getting to know each other in a deeper way,” she says. “We definitely got stronger.”
For Hurd, the admiration is mutual.
“I’m very proud of her. Maren is an incredible mother and partner, and our quiet little life at home has just made it incredibly difficult to leave and go to work,” he tells PEOPLE. “I’m really thankful for our little home bubble.”
Morris and Hurd are partners in both life and music. They met nearly a decade ago in a songwriting session shortly after Arlington, Texas, native Morris moved to Nashville.
“I had been told about her and her songs by a publisher friend, and they were trying to get us to write together because they thought it would be a good creative match, and it turns out it really was,” Hurd says of his and Morris’ meet-cute. “From the second that we started writing together it was a pretty natural fit, and it was really fun to have that creative partnership for a long time before we had anything else.”
The couple has frequently collaborated ever since. Most recently, Hurd is credited as a cowriter and background vocalist on Humble Quest.
“He was my closest and best writing partner during lockdown,” Morris says of Hurd, who inspired new tracks like “Tall Guys.” “Writing songs with each other is fun, but it’s not the only thing that ties us together. It’s a bonus.”
They recently reached a new milestone: Their duet “Chasing After You,” which hit No. 1 on the country charts last year, is nominated for the best country duo/ group performance Grammy (Morris is also up for Best Country Song for her protest song “Better Than We Found It”).
“It just feels so fateful in a weird, random way,” Morris says. “It’s full-circle, because I met Ryan nine years ago in a writing room.”
