PRESS BOX: Sports shouldn’t take priority over mental health

.....While strides have been made in promoting the conversation of mental health, obstacles with gender and race remain. Male athletes, specifically Black males, undergo societal pressure to not open up about their mental well-being. Blackmer said that energy needs to be placed into making help more accessible for marginalized groups.

“In the media and also just in general we are stereotyped to be angry and emotionless and that’s not really the case. I deal with it by actively wearing my heart on my sleeve,” junior hurdler Sebastian Evans stated in an email.

Evans said he has a great support system that allows him to talk about his mental health, despite the societal pressure on men to regulate their emotions......

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Bethany`s Notes: Having a mental health issue doesn`t mean your weak. It doesn`t mean you can`t continue training (depending on the situation of course). Being honest about one`s struggles allows your coach to make adjustments to your training to make you your best physically when you are also working on your mental health.