Mental Health and Sport
For those sports fans out there, it could not have slipped your attention that the boxer Tyson Fury has vacated his WBO and WBA Heavyweight Titles in order for him to get help with mental health issues he has been suffering with. This is not the first time that athletes have had to take a break or even walk away from their sports due to the presence of mental health issues.
When we read of the Fury case, it has been said that he used cocaine to deal with his depression. Actions like this show that there is still an apauling lack of understanding by sufferers of mental health issues as to how to seek out and get the professional help they need. This, of course, is not limited to boxing; footballers, cricketers, and track and field atheletes have all in the past had issues of mental health occur in its elite ranks.
Perhaps it is time that those who coach these elite athletes take mental health more in mind when working with their charges. As I and others have said before there can be no health without mental health. It is time to get that message across in all areas of life so that people can get the help they need without self medication and shame.
