I was really shocked when Wade Belak passed away here in Toronto. He was such a fun guy, but it's the same story often. You just don't know a person sometimes...
I think as skiers, we're the type of people that chase the highs in life which ultimately makes some of the lows even lower. Skiing pulled me out of a dark place and I know it has for others as well but there is a flip side. The battle with depression is different for everyone and I hope as time goes on we can look at it with less of a stigma and support people who are going through it so they don't feel like they are weak and battling alone because they are not.
I have had my own struggles during my life and am thankful for good friends and good therapists. I would bet that many people outside my circle of close people would have not guessed what was going on.
This is one of the reasons that I don't get riled up when I see LV antics on Instagram and/or Twitter. She is building a brand that is Lindsey Vonn, whether she's on the USST or not, she'll be Lindsey Vonn the brand for years to come.High level winter sports stars can go form hero to "nobody knows your name" very quickly, and those who are being guided to have a purpose and a challenge when the competition ends should be in much better shape. Somebody like Ligety will be just fine. Though I am not a fan of hers in many ways, LV will be as well. Those a rung or two down? Some may be at risk, and I hope that those close to them reach out to them, and help them. Even if it's helping them to transition to life after competing.
The Specturm has recently been redefined and is indeed very wide. More people are added to it due to better and more refined testing, e.g. ADOS, which is now the "Gold Standard" for assessments. Here, in and around Silicon Valley, a lot of the brightest people seemingly are somewhere there. Steve Jobs was autistic, wasn't he? Heck, Bill Gates can't even look people in the eye. Regardless, head injuries (CTE) is also something where research seems to be evolving, with medical experts finding more linkage to depression and suicide with football players and MME participants being prime examples. Other people are simply chemically imbalanced.Some day there will be personalized medicine to help everyone get the right therapies and medicines they need, but we are many years away since the emphasis for immune sequencing and all that leading-edge research is with oncology.In my journey into learning about autism (primarily high-functioning, formerly known as Asperger's) I have learned that autistic people are at LEAST 50% more likely to suffer from depression and at least consider suicide. High-functioning autistic people often also possess the ability to hyper-focus on a specific goal or activity, or to become quite obsessed with one, something that is certainly a hallmark in a highly accomplished person in anything in life. Autistic brains truly function differently and are often highly gifted in one area or another.
Being "on the spectrum" as it is called, is also under-diagnosed, particularly in girls and women.
It makes me wonder how many of our famous athletes, or musicians, etc. (think: Chris Cornell) are high-functioning autistic who are never diagnosed and never get at the very least the internal peace of knowing that "yes, I'm different, yes, I see the world differently, and yes, it's OK."
When I hear about athletes like Speedy Peterson, then watch that video, the first thing that comes to my mind is that he could have had undiagnosed autism. Autistics are also much more likely to be sexually assaulted, particularly as children.
Regardless, I think these highly accomplished individuals have a very centered focus and purpose, and when that focus and purpose is suddenly gone, they really struggle. It's very sad to see the potential and know the pain they must be feeling.
People of all walks do much better with a purpose.
........... The issues probably are multi-factorial.
But I do think in whole, the physical part is a much smaller issue compared to the psychological and mental issues. The later requires WORK to get though those issues and find meaning and happiness, and not a just take these pills and it will fix your brain.
Plenty of non-athletes also are depressed and try to find meaning in life despite being in all accounts physically normal. Additionally plenty of athletes who aren't in contact sports are also depressed after their career.
Finally, whole sections of humans with quantifiable poor physical and social situations are not depressed at all and are happy.
I, too, went through depression. I was in my late 30's. I remember waking up in the morning and fighting urges to pull the covers over my head and not face the day.
How do you deal with that bombshell that you SHOULD be happy, but you're not?
You are correct about the diagnosis part, but our interactions with friends and family when they are showing signs of depression can mean the difference between getting help or not.Any mental health diagnosis can only be done by a mental health professional personally interacting with an individual. We can speculate about this or that person's mental health and mental state, but it feels icky to me because it can be both harmful and inaccurate. And CTE can only be diagnosed after death.