Jaguars WR DJ Chark speaks out about his struggles with anxiety and depression
May is Mental Health Awareness Month and athletes all over the world are speaking out to help raise awareness and share the various ways they’ve learned to cope with pain.
Former Tiger wide receiver DJ Chark took to Twitter to relay a message about his struggles with anxiety and depression via the NFL account.
“Growing up my whole life I was always dealing with a lot going on at the same time,” Chark said. “So I didn’t really know how to handle life, school, relationships-once I got to college I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression.”
The former No.7 reflected on the times he was fearful about things that weren’t in his control-he found a safe haven with his sports psychiatrist who was able to prescribe him anxiety medicine that he takes to this day.
Related
Many disagreeing with Paul Finebaum's take on LSU's Week 1 matchup
Opening himself up to the process of therapy allowed him to take the steps needed to start to cope with his daily thoughts and feelings.
Many times as an athlete you don’t want to pay any mind to the negative thoughts in your head — you don’t want to admit that anything is “wrong.” You don’t want to appear as weak because it may give your competition some sort of upper hand on you.
This couldn’t be further from wrong. Chark realizes that with the help of therapy he was able to gain the tools he needed to take control of his life again and take his game to the next level.
“Positive mental health to me means freedom, being able to think with a clear mind, act with a clear mind. It helps with communication and being able to make decisions under stress.”
Related
4-star prospect Kam Dewberry locks in official visit for June 4
The Jaguars wideout lists out the various ways he’s able to maintain a healthy state of mind:
“To stay mentally healthy I love to spend time with my loved ones and my family — being able to go home and spend time with my wife, being able to go home to my two dogs and deal with them.”
By surrounding himself with the people that he cares about and trusts, Chark is able to communicate his struggles and his joys on a daily basis. With open communication he is able to pinpoint his stressors and conquer them head on.
“If you’re struggling with mental health just know you’re not the only one-just know everyone in this world deals with something, and it’s okay to speak up and ask for help,” Chark said.
“Once you get help the feeling of being in control of you life- no one can take that from you.”
Whether you’re an athlete or not-if you struggle with performance anxiety, or anxiety in general-it’s okay to talk about your feelings.
It’s okay to show emotion. It’s okay to feel. It’s okay to care.
Allow yourself to be scared and vulnerable-just because you’re an athlete doesn’t mean you’re not a human being. Anxiety and depression are not weaknesses-they are just obstacles that you learn how to manage and overcome.
Come June 1 the fight to end the stigma surrounding mental health doesn’t end. We’re in it for the long run.
List
Where each LSU player landed in the 2021 NFL draft
