So far, mental health is an issue I haven’t really discussed on this site. It can be a very touchy subject on all fronts. Yet, recently with Bell’s #BellLetsTalk campaign, I have seen a vast movement to really raise awareness in regards to mental health. This is absolutely fantastic. I, for one, believe that the only way we can begin to battle any sort of illness or disease is by first raising awareness about it. Not only does this draw attention to an issue existing in our society (one that many people may not know about), but it also opens the doors for those with the illness to come forward and talk about what they are going through. This is something that is absolutely terrifying in my experience. The fear of how people view you, or how they might treat and judge you, can be debilitating. Yet, with awareness, and the hope that people are becoming more understanding, it makes it much easier to open up and say, “yes, I struggle with this and I’m not always okay but I want you to understand.” For me, this was a turning point in my disease. Once I was able to open up and talk to people close to me about it, it made life easier. They understood my behavior, had more patience for me, and were able to help me cope with what I was going through.
But let’s shift our focus back to mental health for the time being. I will come back to mental health and chronic physical illness in a second, but I think it is only appropriate to address purely mental health. Before I had crafted Athletics for Life, I had tried to start up a club on campus. We ran out of time before the deadline to ratify passed by, but regardless, it showed me many things. The first thing was the astounding cohesion of the community when it came to support for their fellow students who were suffering. Without hesitation, I easily had 10+ students message me within half an hour of posting about help for creating the group. It brought tears to my eyes to know that people were so willing to help strangers. The second thing it taught me, which goes right along with what we are talking about here, is that chronic illness and disease doesn’t just have to be physical, but is also mental. To elaborate, I had one such fellow student who messaged me about the group. Through conversation we exchanged stories and what we struggled with, and they told me how they struggled with mental health. I almost felt guilty because I didn’t even think about that when I brainstormed the campus club. Yet, it made me realize, whether we experience actual, physically evident pain, or whether it is just chronic emotional, mental pain, it is still registered as pain. How could I not even think of this at first? With that said, I would like to say it outright and blatantly that Athletics for Life is not just about physical chronic illness but also mental health issues as well. I will be the first to say that I am not well versed in the realm of mental health disorders, but I do know through my studies that athletics and physical activity do in fact help with things such as depression and anxiety.
Like I said, I’m not well versed in mental health. But I would like to include it in what I am doing here at Athletics for Life. That being said, while I may not have much material at the moment, I can disclose that I am working on learning as much as I can about it, and begin writing more articles concerning mental health, how exercise and physical activity can help battle mental health disorders, and also begin holding events and build the community I have the hope of building for people suffering and struggling with physical and mental illness.
Now, before we close off, I do have one story I want to share. I touched on this very briefly in my intro articles and the About Me section. I bring this up because I think it is a forgotten part to many physical chronic illnesses. That aspect is the mental health of those with physical illness. Now, that being said, I am in no place or position to compare the mental health of any other individuals than what I’ve experienced myself, so in saying this I am not implying anything. Getting to the point, I had a small struggle with my own mind. This was not necessarily a giant struggle but it gave me a very brief glimpse into an entire world I had previously disregarded. If I had to compare my experience with depression, I would probably equate it to standing in the shallow end of a pool (let’s say water up to my ankles) and experiencing the feel and emotion of swimming, all the while knowing that the deep end lay just at the other end of the pool. I have previously written about how I basically locked myself in my room for an entire summer, and this is when it all kicked in. I didn’t want to go outside, I didn’t want to interact with anyone. I was terrified, I lost all my confidence, and I can honestly say it was probably the loneliest part of my life even with a loving family, and girlfriend (at the time) by my side. From the outside, yes it appeared as though I had a chronic illness, but other than that, life was good and I should be out there living it up. Except, I had no motivation to leave my room. I was too scared too. Now, I must admit, I never spoke to anyone about this. I can’t classify it as depression, nor can I classify it as massive anxiety. I have no idea. What I do know is that it was in my head, and it was a terrible fight that I am blessed to have win. I had to rediscover myself before I could battle back against my mind. The point is everything is linked. The body will follow where the mind goes, and vice versa. We must look at ourselves as a whole, for one aspect can affect the others. And with that said, I think it’s time we dive deeper into the mental aspects of things. Stay tuned for more articles to come!
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