Winter Athletes Talk About Mental Health Struggles
Newsy
Mental health: It's a conversation that many athletes will tell you hasn't always been an easy one.
During the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, star athletes like Simone Biles were very vocal about their mental health struggles. Now, the same thing is happening in Beijing. It's a conversation that many athletes will tell you hasn't always been an easy one.
"It's hard to talk about. It's hard to talk about our own struggles, it's hard to talk about things that we feel shame around, or that we were led to believe ... we're supposed to deal with on our own," said professional skier Drew Petersen. A post shared by Drew Petersen (@drewpeterski)
The struggle was on full display during the Summer Olympics last year, when Biles withdrew from competition because of her mental health. It was a pivotal moment winter athletes say shouldn't be left to fall by the wayside. "We need to talk about real stories, we need to talk about real human experience. And that's why I just pull no punches and then share as openly as I do," said Petersen.
