Weight Just Washed Away...Overnight

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It felt like an overnight body transformation. Literally, one night. I stepped in the shower and washed all the weight off my body. It did not matter if I was a freshman or senior, the first day of preseason was the most stressful and anxiety inducing day of the year. It revolved around mandatory meetings, physical examinations performed by the sports medicine staff, and ended with the dreadful, horrible, beyond nerve-racking fitness test on the track. It was my sophomore year, though. With a year of experience under my belt, I should have been more confident, used to the routine, and understanding of expectations. ItRead More →

Army of Athletes

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It may seem awfully unforeseeable, but I would like to compare a female athlete entering college sports to a female soldier entering the army. Though two extremely different undertakings, both have immense responsibilities, all while adjusting to a heightened level of physical and emotional demands in new environments. A freshman athlete is attempting to prove herself to her teammates, coaches, and opponents, and competing against veterans who have been in the program for three years already. The same goes for soldiers who are introduced to an unfamiliar type of training, and exposed to such intense pressure in the army. Both situations share a greater commonality, and that is the prevalence ofRead More →

In Hopes to Save the Next Madison Holleran

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I was shaken to the core as I read the horrific, yet all too familiar, story on Madison Holleran which has resurfaced all over social media. As a former college women’s soccer athlete at Michigan State University, I knew Madison’s pain all too well. The recent overwhelming number of posts, tweets, and links directing to the story legitimize the urgency I feel to raise awareness about mental health. ESPN published an article, Split Image, on a 19-year-old beautiful, Ivy League track star, who died after jumping from a parking structure to commit suicide. I can personally attest to the similar feelings of anxiety and depression in a quest forRead More →

Food and Fuel

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There are many contributing factors that led me to the development of a frightful, obsessive disorder, labeled anorexia. One, in particular, that stands out in my mind as an athlete is the drive to be the best. As a competitor, I was willing to fight, battle, and push further and further. When I sat down at the end of my freshman year, at my final individual meeting in the spring of 2003, I stared nervously at all three coaches. I sat quietly, anxiously waited to hear their feedback. There was nothing more intimidating than sitting in an office with three coaches to discuss your role in the program. The meeting’sRead More →

Dreams

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From the time I was a little girl, I always dreamed of playing soccer at the highest level. Of course, playing for the United States Women’s National Team in the Olympics or World Cup is a dream for most young athletes. Other than that, the absence of a women’s professional soccer league during my childhood made college soccer the pinnacle of success. So from the very beginning, I aspired to one day receive a college scholarship to play soccer and represent a prominant university. At the age of 13, my middle school English teacher assigned us a task one day. She had each student write a letter addressed to him/herself. The assignmentRead More →