Juventus striker Alvaro Morata fights mental health stigma: 11 athletes talk depression, from Ronda Rousey and Michael Phelps to Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson
Juventus striker Alvaro Morata fights mental health stigma: 11 athletes talk depression, from Ronda Rousey and Michael Phelps to Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson
'When your head doesn't work well, you are your worst enemy'
Juventus striker Alvaro Morata has opened up about his mental health in an interview with El Mundo, saying he 'came close' to depression during the difficult season-and-a-half he spent at Chelsea. 'I've never had depression and I hope I never do, but I came close,' expressed the 28-year-old footballer. 'I don't believe it is given the importance that it should. When your head doesn't work well, you are your worst enemy. During those times, it doesn't matter what you do, you are always fighting against yourself. Depression is an illness just like breaking your ankle.'
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'Even for my generation, in recent years, it wasn't seen as something normal to see a psychologist — but inevitably, it has to be something normal. Today it is more common and there will be a day when it will be compulsory,' said Morata.
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While mental health is still considered a taboo topic in many circles, big name athletes — from tennis, boxing, basketball and even the Olympics — are doing their part to break the stigma. From Serena Williams and Ronda Rousey to Michael Phelps and The Rock, here are athletes who have spoken out about depression, anxiety and other mental health disorders in sports.
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MICHAEL PHELPS: Retired swimmer Michael Phelps — the most decorated Olympian of all time with 28 medals — has always been open about depression. 'I’ll be the first to admit my mental health has been scarier than it's ever been throughout [the pandemic], so I can't even imagine what other people are going through,' he said this year. In 2014, he felt an urge to 'just end it all' after his second DUI arrest. In 2016, he retired from swimming. 'Yeah, I won a [expletive]-ton of medals. I had a great career. So what? I thought of myself as 'just a swimmer’. Not a human being.' Phelps, now the face of therapy app TalkSpace, uses meditation, journaling, working out, and yes, swimming, to help him get through.
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RONDA ROUSEY: UFC fighter Ronda Rousey revealed she felt suicidal after being knocked out by Holly Holm in 2016. Rousey was overcome by dark thoughts at the medical centre afterwards. 'I was sitting in the corner and was like, 'What am I anymore if I'm not this?'' said Rousey. 'Literally sitting there thinking about killing myself. In that exact second, I'm like, 'I'm nothing. What do I do anymore? No one gives a [expletive] about me anymore without this.'' Rousey’s relationship with then-boyfriend (and now husband), UFC heavyweight Travis Browne, helped her get through it.
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SERENA WILLIAMS: The 23-time Grand Slam champion was sidelined by injuries in 2011 and admitted it led to depression. 'When I had that second surgery, I was definitely depressed. I cried all the time. I was miserable to be around,' revealed Williams. Later, the tennis icon would open up about postpartum depression, which she preferred to call ‘postpartum emotions’. 'Last week was not easy for me … Mostly, I felt like I was not a good mom. I read several articles that said postpartum emotions can last up to 3 years if not dealt with. I like communication best. Talking things through with my mom, my sisters, my friends let me know that my feelings are totally normal. It’s totally normal to feel like I’m not doing enough for my baby,' said Williams in 2018, shortly after welcoming her first child, daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr.
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DEMAR DEROZAN: Raptors star DeMar DeRozan posted a tweet a mere two days after the NBA All-Stars game in 2018: 'This depression get the best of me…' It got the conversation started. 'It’s one of them things that no matter how indestructible we look like we are, we’re all human at the end of the day,' said DeRozan. 'It’s not nothing I’m against or ashamed of. Now, at my age, I understand how many people go through it. Even if it’s just somebody can look at it like, ‘He goes through it and he’s still out there being successful and doing this,’ I’m okay with that.'
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SHANE CARTHY: On the outside, 26-year-old Gaelic footballer Shane Carthy seemed to have it all — he was part of the Dublin team that won the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship and the National Football League in 2016. This year he’s bringing his ‘crippling depression’ to light and advocating for open conversation with his new book, 'Dark Blue: The Despair Behind the Glory'. 'It was only a year and a half into [suffering from depression] that alarm bells started ringing, and I was thinking, 'I need to speak up here.’ It was getting so much worse that a week after the All-Ireland final was the first time I thought about suicide,' he said 'I was living this idyllic life from the outside looking in. I was 18 years of age, representing the Dublin senior footballers. [But] I didn't want any part of the world. That's the internal dialogue I was having.'
Image Credit: Instagram/Shane Carthy
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ALY RAISMAN: Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman (pictured right) last year opened up about her anxiety and going to therapy. Raisman, one of the athletes who survived sexual abuse from former US Women’s National Team doctor Larry Nassar, said trauma can cause the 'lights to go out' in a survivor’s eyes.'Every day I feel differently. I've done so much therapy. I continue to do a lot of therapy, working on myself and finding things that make me feel good,' said Raisman.
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DWAYNE ‘THE ROCK’ JOHNSON: Action star and former wrestler Dwanye Johnson is outspoken about his bouts of depression. 'Struggle and pain is real. I was devastated and depressed. I reached a point where I didn’t want to do a thing or go anywhere. I was crying constantly,' said Johnson. 'Depression never discriminates,' he later stated. 'Took me a long time to realise it but the key is to not be afraid to open up.'
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DANNY ROSE: Tottenham Hotspur defender and English international Danny Rose opened up about his depression in 2018. 'It’s no secret that I’ve been through a testing time at Tottenham this season, which led to me seeing a psychologist, and I was diagnosed with depression, which nobody knows about,' said Rose. 'I was on medication for a few months … Nobody knows this either, but my uncle killed himself in the middle of my rehab, and that triggered the depression as well. It was really hard, and being referred to a doctor and psychologist helped me massively to cope,' said Rose.
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LARRY SANDERS: 'It’s hard for people in my field to respect mental health. We say that the game is 90 per cent mental, yet mental health doesn’t get the respect of, like, an ACL [knee injury],' said former NBA star Larry Sanders (pictured right), who would experience anxiety attacks as a child. In the NBA, he struggled to enjoy his accomplishments. 'I think I was going through a state of depression and I felt like I couldn't really bring myself to the table. I couldn't really be myself. You don't want to look like a damaged vehicle, man. You don't want to look like something is wrong with you. You want to play good, you want to make it seem like everything is okay. Going through something? Go through it in the dark. Because they're going to hold it against you… Such a crippling situation.'
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BRANDON MARSHALL: Former NFL receiver Brandon Marshall received a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder (BPD) in 2011 and has since made it his mission to battle mental health stigma. He and his wife launched Project 375 for that reason. 'We want to take mental health from a taboo topic to an everyday conversation,' he said. 'It is at the forefront of our country and now we need to change the narrative and break the stigma. People are talking about it — but are we talking about it the right way?' Marshall also sought help for isolation and depression. Earlier this year, he explained: '100 per cent there's a stigma attached to men and mental health, but that is being broken as well.'
Image Credit: Instagram/Brandon Marshall
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