I love the Olympics, I’m a Team USA superfan. What’s the best part of the Olympics, you may ask? Swimmers Allison Schmitt and Michael Phelps are, hands down.
I long for the day they write a book documenting the trials and tribulations of their lives, and can say with confidence that if the two of them had a T.V. show, my eyes would be glued to the screen. It’s like I’m talking about the Kardashian clan here, but seriously, they’re the best.
At the beginning of this summer, I thought I had already maxed out on love for Schmitt and Phelps. Man, was I wrong. While most swimmers were bound to the pool in preparation for the upcoming Olympic Games, Schmitt and Phelps were doing something different. Don’t get me wrong, they were most definitely still preparing for Rio in ways us common-folk can barely comprehend, but they were also doing their best to shed light on the negative stigmas surrounding mental illnesses. This was music to my young ears.
Through interviews with multiple media outlets, they, separately, told the world what they had been going through since competing in the 2012 London Olympic Games. Anxiety, depression, and even thoughts of suicide rattled in the champions’ brains. Schmitt stated that she was initially extremely hesitant to ask for help because she was embarrassed. She didn't want to bother people with her problems.
Sadly, this seems to be a common trend among athletes and young people alike: embarrassment to admit that you’re not okay. Although it was hard, both Schmitt and Phelps found the help they deserved in therapy, rehab, and just opening up about their situations in general.
Hopefully the fact that the world has two amazing Olympians to look up to will begin to break the negative stigmas surrounding mental illnesses. They came, they saw, and they conquered, and not only in the pool. They proved to the people of the world that you are not your illness and you are not your past. You are not your depression, you are not your anxiety, you are not your bipolar disorder. You are a person who lives with a condition, you are a person who can still succeed, and you are a person who deserves to be happy.
Allison Schmitt and Michael Phelps not only saved themselves by asking for help, but they also saved countless others by opening up and speaking positively about their struggles.
So, break the negative stigmas around mental illnesses. Even your favorite athletes are doing it.
