Mental Health Care Saturday: Sports Edition

Happy Saturday! I hope your weekend is going really well, and I hope you're staying cool in his hot, hot weather. We've got some trigger warnings here. Let's talk about mental health. Specifically, from an athletic point of view. Not saying that I'm an athlete, but just saying that we put too much stress on the athletes. We showcase athletic abilities and create role models in our society. But the second that they show vulnerability, we turn and attack our "fallen heroes". The latest example is Ms. Naomi Osaka. This 23 year old champion has decided to take a break from tennis, to take care of her mental health. Now, I applaud her for doing this. I applaud her for using her platform to talk about something that we rarely hear athletes talk about. Often times, athletes are expected to be superhuman. They are above everything else and they never get hurt. And when they do get hurt, they just bounce back immediately. In the blink of an eye. With the swooshable wand or wealthy doctor. That thought is furthest from the truth. If anything, you're seeing more athletes coming out now, especially after they retire, with all of their different issues. With all of their different health conditions. With all of their flaws. They really don't live up to the image that the media created when they were popular and can truly unveil themselves. I applaud Ms Osaka because she decided- at the top of her game- to let people know that the French Open was not something she needed to do at this particular moment. She put a pause on everything to focus on her own self care. At the tender age of 23,  that is the best message she could send. May was mental health awareness month. We are barely removed from that when this young lady decided that her mental health was more important than the millions of dollars that she left on the table. More important than the $15,000 that she was fined for not doing interviews. More than the life of a sports star. She chose the life of a 23 year old, and I'm glad to see that her supporters are surrounding her. I'm glad to see that her endorsements have remained the same. I'm glad to see that she's actually picked up new endorsements, because it really highlights the fact that mental health is an important item that we need to work on in this country. I was shocked this week to find out that the NFL has failed again. They have used a formula that lowered the cognitive value of brain trauma for their black athletes because of supposed lower or inferior brain complex. Now in 2021, the NFL is trying to correct this misnomer. This policy has often denied retirees their benefits, or their claims of disability. I'm shocked that this story hasn't made more news like Naomi Osaka. Is it because she's a young lady and these are retired men? I'm not sure. That's a debate for another day. But on this hot Saturday, I hope that you are taking care of yourself. I hope that you are following her example. Take the time to really seek and search and find your mental health. Keep your mental dexterity in order. Make sure that your mentality is addressed this weekend. I really applaud this effort and I applaud the spotlight that Ms Osaka is shining on this topic.  I am standing with her. Standing for her. Standing behind her. Standing beside her. It's so totally and thoroughly important to protect your mental health in this crazy mixed up world that we are living in. But let me hear your thoughts. How is your mentality? How is your Saturday going? Are you protecting yourself today? Or have you exposed yourself to something that you don't need exposure to? Share your comments below. Thank you for reading this article and supporting this blog space. Please stay safe, healthy, and cool. Take Care and God Bless!!!