Guest Post by Scott Drochelman
Are you hurt
or are you injured? This is a question posed to thousands of boys growing up in
the world of sports. Starting at a young age we learn how to answer this. Hurt
means you can keep playing. Hurt means you can stay on the field. The question
actually means, “Are you going to be a baby or are you going to play through it?”
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| Photo: Jamie Williams |
The greats are heralded for their ability to play through
pain. Herschel Walker, legendary Heisman Trophy winning running back, known for
doing 1500 pushups and 3000 sit-ups every day of his life, once rushed for 150
yards after resetting a dislocated shoulder. Story upon legendary story have
been told about Herschel Walker, but something fewer people know about Herschel
Walker is that he was also diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder. He described
playing in games where he had the sensation of all the pain manifesting itself
in another player. The disorder allowed him to compartmentalize and distance
himself from the pain he was experiencing.
I use
Herschel Walker as an example for two reasons, one because I remember my dad
teaching me about the legend of Hershel Walker as a boy and I still admire him
to this day, and two because his condition speaks to a bigger issue when it
comes to men seeking mental health help. We are taught to compartmentalize our
pain and play through whatever ailment befalls us, often at our own peril.
Herschel
Walker didn’t learn about his mental health condition until he was nearly 40, “My life was out of control. I was not happy,
I was very sad, I was angry and I didn't understand why.” He became violent
with people in his life. He found everything he had built crumbling around him,
"I lost the person that was like everything to me," he said. "I
lost my wife and that's totally, totally devastating to me." The disorder
even led him to play Russian roulette on multiple occasions. It wasn’t until
things got drastic that he finally went to seek help.
So what will it
take? What will have to happen before men realize that there is no shame in
getting help? That the same traits that allow us to push through difficult
barriers can also turn on us and keep us from addressing the thing that is
destroying us. It doesn’t have to be that way. There is help for the pain that
you may be experiencing and if someone as legendary as Herschel Walker can admit
that he needed help, no one is going to take my man card if I seek help myself.
So am I hurt or am I injured? There is no shame in admitting there are times when I am hurt and I need help because if I always play hurt, it’s only a matter of time before I am truly injured.
Sources:
http://joeposnanski.com/herschel-redux/
Scott is the Program Developer for the Carson J Spencer
Foundation. Prior to working for CJSF, Scott worked in program development and
delivery in child abuse prevention, at-risk youth programming and adult
education. Scott develops curriculum for various programs and delivers
trainings within the community. His passion for violence prevention is a result
of his work with diverse populations and the desire to see a world without
suicide. Scott holds a BA in Journalism/Multi-Media Communication from the
University of Missouri.
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