Alexi Pappas: I Made It to the Olympics. I Wasn't Ready for What Happened Next. | NYT Opinion
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- Опубликовано: 6 дек 2020
- What if athletes and coaches were trained to look for depression just as vigilantly as they’d be watching for a hamstring pull? In the Op-Ed video above, Alexi Pappas, who lives in Los Angeles, argues that we should view mental health and physical health as equally important and as treatable as a torn ACL. She would know. She’s a record-setting runner who raced at the 2016 Olympics in Rio but came crashing down after she experienced clinical depression soon after.
While she had been trained to pay close attention to her body, she was ill equipped when it came to handling psychological wounds. Imagine if sports - and society - designated the same amount of resources toward mental health screening and treatment as they do to physical well being and viewed a healthy body and mind as equally important to success?
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"I thought she just didn't love me enough to stay". Heartbreaking. Her testimony is so brave. She was born an underdog came out a champion, gold medal or not.
"She didn't have to die" ... that whole part got me.
@@GQ2593 The comment was made about her mother taking her own life.
people that commit suicide are doing it because hey are in physical or mental pain. why do people always make it seem like it has to do with them lmao
@@joys8634 she’s talking about her mom what do you expect
@@walkingwounded8675 Opinions opinions
I'm glad she's using her platform as a pro athlete to bring awareness to this huge issue.
I agree
ruclips.net/video/c885vB1XTMs/видео.html
gotta admit, that wasn't my immediate thought. but after reading this, and taking a second to think about it, i agree
"She didn't have to die and that's so sad, because we would have been really good friends."
I know right. Im ugly crying
😭💔
devestating
"We are not gonna lose this time" 😭
😭💔
The holding yourself to such high standards mentality is a real life killer. I'm nowhere as accomplished as her but I definitely struggle with and know that feeling and how debilitating it is.
But you are accomplished. Don't dim that light and be happy and content.
*cries in Asian
...David Goggins...
Feel free to discuss
This was a surprisingly great video about fighting depression. You go girl!
It really was!! As someone who has struggled with depression, its it's really good to hear: you're injured, but you're fully capable of recovering. You can heal yourself with the help of others. You don't have to let this define you.
I really like her mindset and approach to her illness... it’s very inspiring, thank you
Same here.
This is so brave. This is not just one athlete. If you want to look further there is this great doc on HBO max called The Weight of Gold that talks about mental health issues among Olympic athletes.
I agree, reading Victoria Pendleton’s autobiography is what first made me realise the pressure, isolation, and depression that elite sports can result in.
There was a similar documentary done in Sweden many years ago which followed the athletes of the Swedish golden era in track and fields (early 2000s) in the aftermath of their careers. The translated name is "The price of the medal", and it's truly sad. I couldn't find a version with english subtitles unfortunately, but here's one in Swedish ruclips.net/video/Kg-miijBBrE/видео.html
I’m going to check out that documentary. Thank you!
This should apply to everyone, not just athletes. What she's saying makes so much sense and if doctors thought of it that way it would make a huge difference.
Absolutely! I think the greater difference is that the medical profession has had a couple of centuries to study bones and muscle fibers, but our brains are tricky tricky beasts. I do love her approach tho. It gives me hope and that’s the first ingredient to wanting to get better by any means necessary.
@@galaxylucia1898 completely agree with you. 😊
Brave young woman who has great potential to change lives both on and off the field of competition. All the best to her. In the COVID era and beyond, this poignant message is as timely as ever.
I went thru severe depression and anxiety and didn’t care about anything. Being a avid runner I stopped doing everything.
I even had thoughts of suicide and even rented my house for a small apartment to be next to my sister. Going back to running and teaching got me back to normal with medication too. TALK TO YOUR FAMILY AND SIBLINGS, DON’T BE ALONE!!
I too have depression... Major Depression. Thank you for speaking out for us, because it is an illness, not a light switch situation.
You will get better
I get it. After a brain injury (concussion) forced me to leave work it became worse. I was lucky to get support from a family doctor and spoke with someone every week to deal with anxiety (money and loss of job) as well as major depression. I was very isolated. I learned to use my own mind to talk myself through it. Try cognitive behavioural therapy. Please read Mind Over Mood. Speak with a professional. It is something I continue to have to work on. For many people 2020 has been a brutal year without the normal social supports.
Jesus can heal you
What a brave and strong woman!
Inspiring story that shows anybody can be vulnerable, even or greatest champions.
Nothing shameful about needing help. On the contrary, it requires courage to recognize it.
Much love and respect for her! 💪
That is absolutely a great perspective
I want millions of people to see this ---- and I find this brave woman's story so inspiring
@NOTREALLY HANKAARON whats up sheep ?
@NOTREALLY HANKAARON hope you find happiness man .
Alexi is the real deal. So honest, intelligent, creative and a superb athlete.
Wow, wasn’t expecting such a powerful message and overall video. Alexi is amazing
This is an incredible video. She really hits home.
Way to go Alexi Pappas! Mental health is so important and can affect anyone. I hope this testimony will help others, and admire your strength for speaking out.
My dad struggled with mental illness his entire life. As a highschooler, he said a state record in the 4 x 100 relay. The focus and drive you need to achieve seems to go hand-in-hand sometimes with mental illness. He and his parents were in denial for most of his life about his illness. I’m glad that this young lady has confronted it and is reading it with the support of her family.
She literally has said everything that I have been preaching for while but she did a great job at explaining it. Her dad is a good man for making her understand by explaining the scratch on her brain analogy.
Lifting others while suffering from depression.. truly remarkable human being
So brave to share all this, HUGE message
Thank you Alexi for telling your story. It broke my heart when you talked about your mother "not loving me enough to stay". A very powerful video that highlights a very important issue, especially in this horrible year.
I love this so much. What a beautiful young woman. What a powerful message. So many people in my life need to hear this right now. Sending this to all of them. Thank you for delivering this message.
Absolutely! Mental health is one of the most important parts if being human! Happy for you that you are able to feel better.
Bless her heart. I love her approach and the analogy she used.
Spoken like a true high achiever. See problem. Identify problem. Crush it. I wish her well, but often its not that easy.
I agree. Our mind is not just another body part. The mind can inspect and influence itself. Yet there’s so much our brains do that we’re unaware of.
I’m not sure it was that easy for her, it sounds like her moms death was hurting her since she was 5. The problem was there for a long time and got really bad for a long time before she made a change.
@@jeremiah110nj agree with you, she has been running away from the pain of her mothers death for a long time and after achieving everything she realised that
I just think about how the producer of this segment directed her to reenact all these different scenes
I was thinking the same thing. Not taking away from her message at all, because it was very powerful and eye-opening to depression among athletes. But I assume that a good majority of these shots were taken for this video, and I can't really imagine someone saying, "ok, I want you to run towards us, and then we're do a close-up shot of you. Try to look depressed or how you felt when you were depressed." I understand the choice of wanting to show us, not just telling us, but I feel something as emotional as this, just having an interview with her, and then showing shots that already existed, such as some of her training videos, races, etc (which there were some in there for sure), would have been better rather than a reenactment.
This is really touching! I'm so proud and inspired by their bravery and their ability to shift their mentality towards healing. That switch that flipped in her mind is so inspiring and her attitude to use her previous experiences to inform her future out side of just sports is so cool! I'm sharing this with everyone I know. I think this year we all have been struggling with mental health.
She has and will continue to inspire people all over the world Thank you NYT and A P
@NOTREALLY HANKAARON your issues are you own pilgrim
I’m so pleased that she is putting this story of her experience and perception shift towards mental health out there. She is doing such a great service and it’s a brave woman. Best wishes to her on her life’s journey.
Thank you so much for sharing this, Alexi.
Such an important message❤️
This was actually so helpful! I feel for her and the loss of her mom and what could have been, but I’m extremely grateful for her unique insight and the courage to talk about depression and suicide and treatment. The silence and stigma about all of this is literally costing people their lives. Big thanks to this young lady.🙏🏾
This was a great message. I suffer from depression and didn't even know what it was for years. Figuring it out doesn't make it go away, but it becomes easier to deal with. I still get depressed but now know how to manage it. At the age of 67, I'm also a runner of 50+ years. Physical exercise helps so much. Thank you, Alexi, for stating this in such an eloquent way.
Thank you for sharing this. An intense story about an important topic we should be more open about.
YEASSSS! 100% agree with every single word she said. This is so true! We need to get better at dealing with mental health in the sporting and dancing world.
Thank you for your courage:) Truly a very deep subject that is often ignored. Very heartful.
Amazing. I love this video. From someone with OCD, I understand how important it is to recognize the moments your thinking trials off to endless thoughts.
I have met so many woman that actually go into running because they feel that when they reach the level of finishing a marathon, they can heal!! They feel so inadequate and suffer from low self esteem. They run from their pain and suffering instead of facing it, many suffered abuse and just never felt like enough.
Articulate, thoughtful, brave and powerful. This will help people. Thank you Alexi.
Thank you, Alexi for having the courage to share your story.
Thank you for creating and sharing this!
You’re amazing! Go girl!
Thank you for posting this ❤️❤️❤️
Alexi, you are literally amazing and you are helping a ton of people and other athletes by speaking your truth. Just be you, it's enough and you're doing awesome!
Your evident wish to help others and all that you have and will achieve comes from incredible strength. Sending you love and compassion.
God bless you! Thank you for being vocal and giving others hope!
This is so timely and powerful.
Really great to hear you talk about this, it's nice to hear successful people feel this way too
I remember when I was just getting into track in high school, Lexi Pappas was one of the big names to follow in the East Bay. It's amazing to see how far she has taken her career. Thank you for sharing your story and bringing attention to something that plagues so many of us.
Thank you for this excellent and succinct video. I really needed it today.
Incredible story. Thanks for sharing
Just came from watching that "Weight of Gold" doc with Michael Phelps and others. Thank you Alexi for your sharing and speaking up about the matter. It was heartfelt.
Keep your head up!! Thanks for the talk!!!
Hi The New York Times, I like your content. I love watching your videos.
Thanks for this 🙏🏼
This was an amazing video, very eye opening. Thank you, The Times, for bringing these stories to light!
Highly recommend The Weight of Gold which addresses similar concerns of mental health for athletes (particularly post-olympics)
Love that doc, so so powerful
This was a much needed video and all athletes should watch this. Mental health is in all groups
This was incredible. Thank you for addressing mental health in an authentic, vulnerable, and inspiring way. It’s a silent pandemic that must be spotlighted if it’s going to be overcome.
Gawd blimey I love these short clips. You guys are doing a bang up job
Thank you for sharing your story.
Thank you, thank you... You are powerful and have a powerful message. Let’s treat the athlete as a whole human being.
This is a great and helpful story. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for sharing your story!
'a mental health injury' instead of a mental health 'issue' does make it seems like something more resolvable. An issue can be so subjective, abstract, personal, but an injury is neutral, like a fact. She just put her finger on a way of destigmatizing depression, and taking away internalized shame that gets in the way of people getting help. Words are so powerful. I applaud her for everything she has accomplished, including this awareness that will help others.
Life saving message Alexi, Thank you for sharing...
Thank you for this video. Cheers
Thank you Alexi
This is such an important video. Treating our mental health just as importantly as the physical . Great video ❤️
Takes a tremendous amount of courage to speak out and share such a personal story that will help many others dealing with similar issues. Athletes are driven to treat their bodies as machines to feed the much larger machinations of coaches, trainers, sponsors and colleges profiting off of their abilities. It’s time to wake up to the realities of the roll that greed and desire to be number 1 dehumanizes gifted athletes.
I used to LOVE Alexi back when I was on my high school track team. Great video!
This is so important. As an NCAA athlete, we are provided with trainers, doctors, and PTs but never mental health care. Sometimes it's those who are successful who are hurting the most, especially in a perfectionist sport like running.
It really does need to stop being seen as an afterthought
I really hope this lovely young woman has good solid support around her. She has came through a very difficult part of her journey and as we all know, life's journey is a continual journey with ups and downs along our paths. Be strong
Alexi thank you for having so much courage. I bet you would have been great friends, but know you have much love and support.
This is really gold. Thank God for this young lady 💕✨ Definitely a treasure
mental health injury...this is a unique perspective. thanks for sharing alexi pappas. will watch more movies you make.
Thanks for sharing, Alexi.
Awe, I wish I could give you a hug. Losing a mom is the worst. Thanks for this video.
Well done Alexi and NYT. I am not a sufferer of mental health but this is how I have always seen depression/mental injury, ie, through the eyes of a physical injury, ie, it’s okay, needs to be addressed to help heal. Well done Alexi, well done...you have saved lives by making this public. You are a hero and I can’t thank you enough for saving mother’s, youth etc
Wow! Blown away by the honesty and courage. I dont have many heroes but I think I may have found one.
Fantastic honest and wonderful story. Outstanding 👍❤️💪
I love this video. I totally empathise with her. She's such a beautiful person.
Wow. Thank you for telling this.
Thanks for sharing. I hope that she is doing well now.
What a real and honest sharing!
❤️❤️ so inspiring
It really is
What an amazing, brave and inspiring video!
What an intelligent, brave champion for humanity! Great talk!
Extraordinaria pieza gracias por postearlo.
Best Nyt video of the year~
Alexi you are so brave to speak out like this. Your mom would absolutely be so proud of you.
Your story can help so many!
COVID and no-sport has been a challenge as a competitive Triathlete. I'm working on this myself and it makes me proud to recognize this. Thank you Lexi :)
Keep strong 💪
Oh Alexia stay strong woman , I was so happy to see you went to run for the greek team ! Φιλιά
Very important message.
Thank you for breaking the silence and stigmas that keep people sick for longer than necessary some ultimately sacrificing their life to end the ungodly amount pain and suffering.
Wow so amazing, and how true it is that mental health should be viewed in the light she lives!
Amen to that