美國國家橄欖球聯(lián)盟(NFL)安全衛(wèi)瑞恩·蒙迪在2015賽季結(jié)束后退役。當(dāng)時(shí),他并沒有像其他前職業(yè)球員一樣投身體育轉(zhuǎn)播或教練行業(yè)。2008年,蒙迪在第六輪選秀中被匹茲堡鋼人隊(duì)(Pittsburgh Steelers)選中,并在2009年獲得超級碗冠軍。退役后,他準(zhǔn)備挑戰(zhàn)體育界的一種文化,這種文化讓男性尤其是黑人男性羞于展現(xiàn)出情緒上的脆弱。
蒙迪告訴《財(cái)富》雜志:“我已經(jīng)到了難以承受的地步。在我成長的這個(gè)時(shí)代,特別是在體育界,我們根本無法談?wù)撟约旱那榫w。我知道這是不對的,但我沒有合適的語言、技巧甚至自信或勇氣,去向別人傾訴?!?/p>
蒙迪希望他的倡議能夠激勵(lì)其他男性,因?yàn)樗麄兘?jīng)常把社會(huì)信息內(nèi)在化,錯(cuò)誤地將情緒脆弱等同于軟弱。
情緒韌性與比賽
心理健康管理是整體健康的基石,會(huì)影響到賽場內(nèi)外的表現(xiàn)。蒙迪曾經(jīng)經(jīng)歷過焦慮和抑郁。他承認(rèn),當(dāng)他的心理健康狀況下降時(shí),他就會(huì)在比賽中付出代價(jià)。
他說道:“人們很多時(shí)候把運(yùn)動(dòng)員捧上了神壇?,F(xiàn)實(shí)情況是,運(yùn)動(dòng)員也是人,也會(huì)像其他人一樣有各種各樣的情緒和狀況?!泵傻涎a(bǔ)充說,能夠?qū)贡荣悏毫途o張情緒這種心理承受能力,和更大的心理健康挑戰(zhàn)之間存在區(qū)別,后者需要干預(yù),而且往往源于長期壓抑的情緒。
這也是為什么運(yùn)動(dòng)隊(duì)更加重視聘請表現(xiàn)心理學(xué)家和正念教練。蒙迪和許多其他心理健康倡導(dǎo)者一樣,認(rèn)識到情緒控制會(huì)對整體健康和表現(xiàn)產(chǎn)生積極影響。
雖然與過去幾十年相比,運(yùn)動(dòng)員們最近更樂于分享他們的心理健康挑戰(zhàn)并尋求幫助,就像他們對待自己的身體疾病一樣,但仍然有很多污名化現(xiàn)象。
在退役后的不到十年時(shí)間里,蒙迪一直在尋找治療師來幫助他治療焦慮癥和抑郁癥,但卻找不到一位醫(yī)療服務(wù)提供者,能夠理解影響他心理健康的復(fù)雜因素,包括醫(yī)療保健系統(tǒng)中的種族主義。在獲得高級管理人員工商管理碩士學(xué)位后,他于2020年創(chuàng)辦了Alkeme,這是一個(gè)以黑人執(zhí)業(yè)醫(yī)師為特色的心理健康平臺(tái),填補(bǔ)了醫(yī)療保健領(lǐng)域的空白。
自新冠疫情爆發(fā)以來,心理健康和保健已成為更廣泛的文化話題。然而,孤獨(dú)、抑郁和焦慮的高發(fā)率表明,資源并沒有惠及需要的人群。沒有人比蒙迪對這種差距的認(rèn)識更加深刻。他希望Alkeme能夠通過其在線社區(qū)和內(nèi)容庫繼續(xù)影響更多的人,這些內(nèi)容包括如何冥想、如何建立健康的人際關(guān)系、如何在工作中改善健康等方面的建議。
他說道:“長久以來,男性沒有談?wù)撨@個(gè)問題的空間,運(yùn)動(dòng)員更是如此?,F(xiàn)在,通過社區(qū)、品牌、對話和語言,我們創(chuàng)造了這樣一個(gè)空間,人們開始分享自己的故事?!保ㄘ?cái)富中文網(wǎng))
翻譯:劉進(jìn)龍
審校:汪皓
前NFL安全衛(wèi)瑞恩·蒙迪向《財(cái)富》雜志講述了他在職業(yè)生涯中與心理健康問題斗爭的經(jīng)歷。他說道:“我已經(jīng)到了難以承受的地步?!盉RIAN D. KERSEY VIA GETTY
美國國家橄欖球聯(lián)盟(NFL)安全衛(wèi)瑞恩·蒙迪在2015賽季結(jié)束后退役。當(dāng)時(shí),他并沒有像其他前職業(yè)球員一樣投身體育轉(zhuǎn)播或教練行業(yè)。2008年,蒙迪在第六輪選秀中被匹茲堡鋼人隊(duì)(Pittsburgh Steelers)選中,并在2009年獲得超級碗冠軍。退役后,他準(zhǔn)備挑戰(zhàn)體育界的一種文化,這種文化讓男性尤其是黑人男性羞于展現(xiàn)出情緒上的脆弱。
蒙迪告訴《財(cái)富》雜志:“我已經(jīng)到了難以承受的地步。在我成長的這個(gè)時(shí)代,特別是在體育界,我們根本無法談?wù)撟约旱那榫w。我知道這是不對的,但我沒有合適的語言、技巧甚至自信或勇氣,去向別人傾訴?!?/p>
蒙迪希望他的倡議能夠激勵(lì)其他男性,因?yàn)樗麄兘?jīng)常把社會(huì)信息內(nèi)在化,錯(cuò)誤地將情緒脆弱等同于軟弱。
情緒韌性與比賽
心理健康管理是整體健康的基石,會(huì)影響到賽場內(nèi)外的表現(xiàn)。蒙迪曾經(jīng)經(jīng)歷過焦慮和抑郁。他承認(rèn),當(dāng)他的心理健康狀況下降時(shí),他就會(huì)在比賽中付出代價(jià)。
他說道:“人們很多時(shí)候把運(yùn)動(dòng)員捧上了神壇?,F(xiàn)實(shí)情況是,運(yùn)動(dòng)員也是人,也會(huì)像其他人一樣有各種各樣的情緒和狀況。”蒙迪補(bǔ)充說,能夠?qū)贡荣悏毫途o張情緒這種心理承受能力,和更大的心理健康挑戰(zhàn)之間存在區(qū)別,后者需要干預(yù),而且往往源于長期壓抑的情緒。
這也是為什么運(yùn)動(dòng)隊(duì)更加重視聘請表現(xiàn)心理學(xué)家和正念教練。蒙迪和許多其他心理健康倡導(dǎo)者一樣,認(rèn)識到情緒控制會(huì)對整體健康和表現(xiàn)產(chǎn)生積極影響。
雖然與過去幾十年相比,運(yùn)動(dòng)員們最近更樂于分享他們的心理健康挑戰(zhàn)并尋求幫助,就像他們對待自己的身體疾病一樣,但仍然有很多污名化現(xiàn)象。
在退役后的不到十年時(shí)間里,蒙迪一直在尋找治療師來幫助他治療焦慮癥和抑郁癥,但卻找不到一位醫(yī)療服務(wù)提供者,能夠理解影響他心理健康的復(fù)雜因素,包括醫(yī)療保健系統(tǒng)中的種族主義。在獲得高級管理人員工商管理碩士學(xué)位后,他于2020年創(chuàng)辦了Alkeme,這是一個(gè)以黑人執(zhí)業(yè)醫(yī)師為特色的心理健康平臺(tái),填補(bǔ)了醫(yī)療保健領(lǐng)域的空白。
自新冠疫情爆發(fā)以來,心理健康和保健已成為更廣泛的文化話題。然而,孤獨(dú)、抑郁和焦慮的高發(fā)率表明,資源并沒有惠及需要的人群。沒有人比蒙迪對這種差距的認(rèn)識更加深刻。他希望Alkeme能夠通過其在線社區(qū)和內(nèi)容庫繼續(xù)影響更多的人,這些內(nèi)容包括如何冥想、如何建立健康的人際關(guān)系、如何在工作中改善健康等方面的建議。
他說道:“長久以來,男性沒有談?wù)撨@個(gè)問題的空間,運(yùn)動(dòng)員更是如此?,F(xiàn)在,通過社區(qū)、品牌、對話和語言,我們創(chuàng)造了這樣一個(gè)空間,人們開始分享自己的故事?!保ㄘ?cái)富中文網(wǎng))
翻譯:劉進(jìn)龍
審校:汪皓
“I just got to a place where I couldn't hold it in anymore,” former NFL safety Ryan Mundy tells Fortune about his mental health struggles during his career.
When NFL safety Ryan Mundy retired from the game after the 2015 season, he didn’t enter a career with the cohort of former pros in sports broadcasting or coaching. Mundy, who was drafted to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the sixth round pick in 2008 and was a 2009 Super Bowl champion, was instead ready to challenge a culture that has shamed men in sports, particularly Black men, out of being emotionally vulnerable.
“I just got to a place where I couldn’t hold it in anymore,” Mundy tells Fortune. “I came up in the era, particularly within sport, where we didn’t have the agency to talk about our emotions. I knew something was wrong, but I didn’t have the language or wherewithal or even the confidence or courage to speak to someone about it.”
Mundy hopes his advocacy will empower other men who too often internalize societal messaging that wrongly equates emotional vulnerability with weakness.
Emotional resilience and the game
Managing mental health is a bedrock of overall health and affects performance both on and off the field. Mundy, who has experienced anxiety and depression, admits that his game paid the price when his mental health declined.
“A lot of times you can put athletes on pedestals. The reality is athletes are human beings, and deal with the same type of emotions and conditions that everybody else deals with,” he says. There’s a difference between being mentally tough to counter the pressure and nerves of competition, Mundy adds, and larger mental health challenges that require interventions and often stem from suppressing emotions over time.
It’s precisely why sports teams have put more emphasis on hiring performance psychology and mindfulness coaches. Mundy, like many other mental health advocates, recognizes how emotional mastery?positively influences overall health and performance.
While it’s recently become more celebrated than in decades past for athletes to share their mental health challenges and seek help as they would their physical ailments, there’s still a great deal of stigma.
When he retired less than a decade ago, Mundy searched for therapists to help with his bouts of anxiety and depression but wasn’t able to find a provider who could understand the compounding factors affecting his mental health, including racism in the health care system. After receiving his executive MBA, he launched?Alkeme in 2020, a mental wellness platform that features Black practitioners, filling a gap in health care.
Mental health and wellness have become a larger cultural conversation since the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, high rates of loneliness, depression, and anxiety point to how resources aren’t reaching the people who need them. No one sees that gap more than Mundy, who hopes Alkeme continues to reach more people through its online community and library of content that includes advice on how to meditate, build healthy relationships, foster well-being at work, and more.
“For the longest time, there was no space for men to talk about this. There was no space for athletes to talk about this,” he says. “Now space is being created through community, through brands, through conversation and language where people are starting to share their stories.”