Με τα μάτια του Royce White

Λίγοι θα τον θυμούνται.

Κυρίως όσοι έχουν πρόσφατο το draft του 2012, αυτοί που παρακολουθούσαν λίγο στενότερα τους Rockets τότε, άντε και μερικοί που τους αρέσουν οι πιο ιδιαίτερες και ανθρώπινες πτυχές αυτού που ονομάζω "NBA Life".

Μια τέτοια είναι η ιστορία του Royce White στον κόσμο που ζούμε.

O Royce θεωρείτο ένα από τα μεγαλύτερα fundementally skilled μπασκετικά ταλέντα της κλάσης του 2012. Παίζοντας στη μοναδική του κολλεγιακή χρονιά με το Iowa State ανακηρύχθηκε Big 12 newcomer of the year και επιλέχθηκε στην All First Team Big 12 από τους προπονητές της κατηγορίας. Στο τέλος της χρονιάς κατάφερε κάτι μοναδικό μέχρι σήμερα στο κολλεγιακό μπάσκετ: σημειώθηκε ως ο μοναδικός παίκτης στην Ιστορία που κατατάχθηκε στην ομάδα του ως πρώτος στις στατιστικές κατηγορίες πόντων, ριμπάουντ, ασίστ, κλεψιμάτων και κοψιμάτων σε μια χρονιά!

Η ιδιαιτερότητα του White ωστόσο, δεν ήταν το μπασκετικό του επίπεδο, αλλά η ασθένειά που κουβαλάει μαζί του από τη στιγμή που γεννήθηκε: Γενικευμένη αγχώδης διαταραχή. Η μέρα του draft ήταν μια ιδιαίτερα αγχώδης στιγμή για τον White. Μέχρι εκείνη τη στιγμή οι GMs των ομάδων του ΝΒΑ αποφάσιζαν ότι ένα pick ενός αθλητή με τα δεδομένα ψυχολογικά χαρακτηριστικά θα αποτελούσε ένα τεράστιο ρίσκο για να επενδύσουν πάνω του. Ο μοναδικός picker που έδειξε ενδιαφέρον και ρίσκο ήταν ο Kevin McHale των Rockets, που τον επέλεξε στο #16. O Young γνώριζε ωστόσο ότι η επιλογή του από μια ομάδα δεν σήμαινε και το de facto εισιτήριο του για μια επαγγελματική καριέρα.

Το Grantland έχει ανεβάσει ένα βίντεο με την εξιστόρηση του White για τον ψυχισμό του την ημέρα του draft, ο οποίος περιγράφει με θάρρος και φυσικότητα τα ιδιαίτερα συναισθήματά του, όντας ο εαυτός του και χωρίς να δείχνει να σκέφτεται αν τον ενοχλεί η αποδοχή αυτής της κατάστασής του από το κοινωνικό σύνολο.





Τα εμπόδια για τον White ήταν πολύ μεγαλύτερα απ' όσο μπορεί να φανταστεί ένας κοινός νους, κάποιος που δε μπορεί να μπει στο μυαλό του. Το άγχος και ο φόβος του ήταν τροχοπέδη για να σκεφτεί ακόμα κι ο ίδιος ότι μπορεί να αντέξει το έντονο πρόγραμμα μια επαγγελματικής ομάδας στο ΝΒΑ. Αρχικά ο φόβος του για τα αεροπλάνα ξεκίνησε να τον προβληματίζει μπροστά στην πρόκληση των 90+ προγραμματισμένων πτήσεων των Rockets για την επερχόμενη χρονιά.

Μετά από αποτυχημένες προσπάθειες να ακολουθήσει το άκαμπτο -σε προσαρμογές γι' αυτόν- πρόγραμμα των Rockets, ο White με τους δικηγόρους του προσπάθησε να διεκδικήσει την εισαγωγή ενός "mental health protocol" ως ενσωματωμένο όρο στο επαγγελματικό του συμβόλαιο.

"If I was an NBA player now without the protocols and safety measures,I would be risking my health, risking my life. What comes along with mental health if left untreated? Alcohol abuse, marijuana abuse, suicidal behavior, homicidal behavior, those are things I'm not willing to risk to play basketball, to have money, to have fame. That's it."

Οι συζητήσεις δεν οδήγησαν κάπου κι έτσι μετά άκαρπες προσπάθειες να ενταχθεί στο πρόγραμμα των Rockets και συνεχόμενες διαμάχες με τη Διοίκηση, ο White κατέληξε να βρίσκεται μεταξύ ομάδων NBDL και στο σπίτι του. Ανταλλάχθηκε στους Sixers μετά από έναν χρόνο για να τον αφήσουν τελικά ελεύθερο τον Οκτώβριο του 2013. Υπέγραψε δύο δεκαήμερα συμβόλαια με τους Kings για να κάνει τελικώς το ντεμπούτο του σε αγώνα NBA τον Μάρτιο του 2014.



Οι Kings δεν του έδωσαν νέο συμβόλαιο. Ο White είχε επιχειρήσει να εκθέσει τις απόψεις του στην προσπάθεια που έκανε να εξισώσει τις ψυχικές ασθένειες με τους σωματικούς τραυματισμούς στα πλαίσια της ισότητας στη μεταχείριση που επεδίωκε να λαμβάνει ως ανθρώπινο ον από τον εκάστοτε εργοδότη του (βλ. ομάδα ΝΒΑ).



Για τον White η καριέρα στο ΝΒΑ ήταν κάτι πρακτικά ακατόρθωτο, πλέον ο αγώνας που κάνει απέναντι στην ασθένειά του όμως δεν είναι ο σκοπός της ζωής του. Η ευαισθητοποίηση του κοινού στα θέματα ψυχικών ασθενειών είναι κάτι που δείχνει να τον ενδιαφέρει σήμερα,

Με αφορμή τα τελευταία κρούσματα βίας στις ΗΠΑ τον τελευταίο χρόνο, ο White μέσω του blog The Cauldron, ανέπτυξε τις θέσεις του μέσα από το πρίσμα που του προσδίδει η ιδιαιτερότητα του ως ασθενής ψυχικής ασθένειας και υπέρμαχος της ιδέας για ανοιχτό διάλογο πάνω στη σοβαρότητα των ψυχικών θεμάτων στην καθημερινή κοινωνική ζωή και την αναγκαιότητα να αντιμετωπιστούν και όχι να παραμεληθούν.

Απόδοση του κειμένου:

"I CAN'T BREATH, EITHER"

' Κλειστοφοβία (ουσιαστικό): 1) ο φόβος του να είσαι σε κλειστούς ή μικρούς χώρους, 2) άβολη ή δυσάρεστη αίσθηση που προκαλείται από την κατάσταση που περιορίζει ή απαγορεύει. Σε ακραίες περιπτώσεις, μπορεί να προκαλέσει αντίδραση τύπου "μάχης ή φυγής".

Ίσως θα ήταν πολύ βολικό να χαρακτηρίσει τις διαμαρτυρίες που υπάρχουν σε εθνικό επίπεδο για τις δολοφονίες από την αστυνομία, τον ρατσισμό και την κοινωνική αδικία, ως κρίσεις πανικού. Παρόλα αυτά, είναι σαφές ότι η χώρα μας πάσχει από μια συλλογική κλειστοφοβία που έχει ενταθεί τον τελευταίο χρόνο και μας έχει φέρει σε επικίνδυνο σημείο. Οι πολίτες και η αστυνομία αισθάνονται ότι βρίσκονται στο ίδιο σημείο. Απαντήσεις: - αν η απερίσκεπτη ή/ και η άσκοπη χρήση βίας και όπλων ή η φαινομενικά τυχαία και αντιφατική καταστροφή της περιουσίας και των επιχειρήσεων - χαρακτηρίζονται από πανικό, παραλογισμό και φόβο.

Δεν είμαι ψυχολόγος. Είμαι υπέρμαχος της ψυχικής υγείας, που η εμπειρία μου έχει προσφέρει έναν ορισμένο βαθμό ορατότητας. (ή "φήμη", ανάλογα με το ποιους NBA GMs θα ρωτήσει κανείς, αλλά αυτό είναι μια ιστορία για μια άλλη ημέρα), Αλλά ως κάποιος που ασχολείται με την αγχώδη διαταραχή κάθε μέρα, ξέρω πολλά για κρίσεις πανικού και της αδυναμίας να αναπνεύσει κανείς. Ως ένας Μαύρος Αμερικανός, είμαι ιδιαίτερα εναρμονισμένος με την ίδια αίσθηση να νιώθει κάποιος ότι κλείνεται και πνίγεται - η αφρικανική αμερικανική κοινότητα παραμένει ευρέως αδικημένη από τους τεράστιου μεγέθους εθνικούς πόρους μας, θεωρείται από μια σημαντική μερίδα του πληθυσμού μας ως ανάξια μιας βασικής μεταχείρισης.

Ξέρω πόσο αντιπαραγωγικό είναι η έλλειψη ενός βασικού πρωτοκόλλου, όταν μιλάμε για την ψυχολογική ευεξία ενός εργαζομένου. Η προσπάθειά μου για να δημιουργηθεί ένα σαφές πρωτόκολλο στο ΝΒΑ, μου έδωσε πολλές ταμπέλες, από μια πριμαντόνα, μέχρι σε ένα πρόβλημα αποδυτήρια και υποψιάζομαι ότι με έβαλε ανεπίσημα σε μια Μαύρη Λίστα, αν και ήμουν ένα draft πρώτου γύρου. Από αυτή την άποψη, ίσως αποτελώ μια μικρή αλληγορία για τον κοινωνικό διάλογο γύρω από την ψυχική υγεία: οι άνθρωποι σε σημαντικές θέσεις εξουσίας αντί να ασχολούνται με το θέμα, μάλλον το αγνοούν μέχρι να εξασθενήσει και να απομακρυνθεί.

Αλλά αυτό δε φεύγει.

Το πρόβλημα δεν περιορίζεται εντός της ομάδας των ιδιοκτητών και των GMs ωστόσο. Όταν πρόκειται για τα θέματα της ψυχικής ασθένειας και την ψυχική υγεία, είτε στις πιο φτωχές και ψυχικά τραυματισμένες κοινότητες ή ακόμα και εντός των τμημάτων που εργάζονται όσους αστυνομεύουν τους δρόμους, η συζήτηση με θέμα τον φόβο, το άγχος, το στρες και την κατάθλιψη παραμένει ένα taboo που στιγματίζει όσους συμμετέχουν σε αυτές. Η στάση που υπάρχει είναι ότι "καλύτερα θα θέλαμε να μην γνωρίζουμε".

Γιατί; Επειδή η ψυχική υγεία είναι ένα θέμα που απαιτεί και διευρύνει την ατομική και συλλογική μας ευθύνη για τους εαυτούς μας και τους άλλους. Είναι ένας καθρέφτης που αντανακλά το ποιοι πραγματικά είμαστε - κι εμείς εξακολουθούμε να τρέχουμε από τις αντανακλάσει μας.

Μπορούμε να συζητήσουμε για αιτία και τις επιπτώσεις, αλλά τα γεγονότα δεν επιτρέπουν μεγάλα περιθώρια κινήσεων: οι πιο καταπιεσμένα κοινότητες είναι οχυρωμένες σε έναν κύκλο της κοινωνικής δυσλειτουργίας. Η Αστυνομία μας χρησιμοποιεί βάναυση και μερικές φορές θανατηφόρα τακτική στις αλληλεπιδράσεις της με τις κοινότητες και στα πλαίσια της συζήτησης σχετικά με το "σωστό και το λάθος", η πιο σημαντική πτυχή της συζήτησης - ως συνήθως - απουσιάζει. Ο πολιτισμός μας εμπνέει και στη συνέχεια παραμελεί τις σοβαρές ψυχικές ασθένειες που υπάρχουν σε πάρα πολλούς από τους πολίτες του. Δεν μπορούμε πλέον να αντέξουμε να διαιωνίζεται αυτό το πρόβλημα με την πεισματική άρνηση αυτό να αντιμετωπιστεί.

Ως ευσυνείδητος πολίτης αυτού του κράτους, αισθάνομαι συμπάθεια για την Αστυνομία μας. Η δουλειά τους είναι επικίνδυνη και συχνά χωρίς επιβράβευση, πολλοί δε από τους αστυνομικούς εργάζονται εξαντλητικά και είναι κακοπληρωμένοι σε συνάρτηση με τη ζωτική σημασία του λειτουργήματος που υπηρετούν. Αξιωματικοί όπως ο Darren Wilson είναι άνθρωποι επιρρεπείς στο ίδιο στρες, φόβους και άλλα ψυχικά προβλήματα, όπως οποιοσδήποτε από εμάς. Λόγω του συνδυασμού της έκθεσής τους στο σφάλμα τους και τους κινδύνους της εργασίας τους, είναι μη συγκαταβατικό το γεγονός ότι δεν έχουμε ακόμα εγκατεστημένες πολιτικές για την ψυχολογική αξιολόγηση των αστυνομικών. Αυτό φανερώνει κάτι τρομακτικό για τον πολιτισμό μας, δηλαδή ότι προτιμούμε να αυξηθεί το επίπεδο οπλισμού των αστυνομικών, παρά να ληφθούν μέτρα που θα εξασφαλίζουν την υγεία τόσο αυτών, όσο κι εκείνων που υπηρετούν.

Έχουμε επιλέξει το φόβο αντί της κατανόησης, τον ανταγωνισμό αντί της συμπάθειας, και την ωμής βία αντί του ενδιαφέροντος για τον συνάνθρωπο.

Οι επιλογές αυτές έχουν ολέθριες συνέπειες. Είναι προφανές ότι κάποιοι από τους αξιωματικούς της Αστυνομίας μας θεωρούν τους εαυτούς τους ως στρατιώτες, παρά ως ειρηνευτικές δυνάμεις - μια σοβαρή συνέπεια της αυξανόμενης "στρατιωτικοποίησης" της αστυνομίας. Ο κίνδυνος αυτής της άποψης - κάτι που μετατρέπει τις κοινότητες σε εμπόλεμες ζώνες και δημιουργεί στην Αστυνομία το αίσθημα της αυτοσυντήρησης με κάθε κόστος, παρά την αποκλιμάκωση - είναι ότι υπάρχει μια ολοένα αυξανόμενη ρήξη στην εμπιστοσύνη και την επικοινωνία μεταξύ των αστυνομικών και των πολιτών. Και οι δύο πλευρές έχουν γίνει απάνθρωπες στα μάτια του άλλου, κι έτσι δε μπορεί να υπάρξει ένας εποικοδομητικός προοδευτικός διάλογος μέσα σε ένα τέτοιο κλίμα.

Δεν υπάρχουν εύκολες απαντήσεις σε θέματα όπως η εγκληματικότητα, η πολιτισμική και οικονομική φτώχεια και η βιαιότητα της αστυνομίας, αλλά χωρίς μια προσέγγιση που στηρίζεται στην αναγνώριση και τη θεραπεία των ψυχικών νοσημάτων, η πρόοδος θα είναι περιορισμένη.

Όταν φοιτούσα στο Iowa State, αισθανόμουν ότι το μπάσκετ ήταν μια δουλειά. Αυτό δεν σημαίνει ότι δεν είχα απολαύσει το περιβάλλον στο Ames ή ότι το να παίζω το παιχνίδι μου αγαπώ ήταν μια αγγαρεία - μάλλον το αντίθετο. Μου άρεσε πολύ η ζωή μου στην πανεπιστημιούπολη, αισθάνθηκα το δέσιμο με τους συμφοιτητές μου και τους οπαδούς μέχρι σήμερα, νιώθω ακόμη μια βαθιά και μακροχρόνια αγάπη για τον coach Hoiberg και τους συμπαίκτες μου.

Για να είμαι πιο σαφής, εννοώ ότι κάθε άσκηση που απαιτεί την προσπάθεια και το χρόνο που ένας αθλητής της πρώτης κολλεγιακής κατηγορίας βάζει μέσα σε εβδομαδιαία βάση, ισοδυναμεί με μια θέση εργασίας πλήρους απασχόλησης σε κορυφαίο πανεπιστημιακό επίπεδο. Μέσα σε αυτό περιβάλλον "εργασίας", ένας προπονητής και το προσωπικό του, έχουν τον ίδιο ρόλο που έχουν οι εργοδότες/ επιβλέποντες, υπό την έννοια ότι πρέπει όχι μόνο να πείσουν και να κινητοποιήσουν μια ομάδα για να συμμετάσχει σε έναν κοινό στόχο, αλλά επίσης ότι πρέπει να δημιουργήσουν ένα υγιές και άνετο περιβάλλον για τους παίκτες, αν θέλουν την πραγματική μακροπρόθεσμη επιτυχία.

Στο Iowa State, ένιωσα την έντονη υποστήριξη από την πρώτη στιγμή που έφτασα. Ακόμη και οι μικρότερες ενδείξεις αναγνώρισης και κατανόησης είναι ασύγκριτα σημαντικές για κάποιον που παλεύει με θέματα ψυχικής υγείας. Όσο μεγαλύτερη υποστήριξη δέχεται κανείς, τόσο πιο ενθαρρυμένοι αισθάνονται οι υπάλληλοι/ αθλητές (εργαζόμενοι) ώστε να είναι ανοιχτοί και ειλικρινείς με τους ανωτέρους / προπονητές τους.

Λόγω του άγχους μου δεν έτρωγα πριν από τα παιχνίδια ποτέ. Το στομάχι μου ήταν πολύ νευρικό. Η ομάδα πάντα συναντιόταν για να φάει το πρωινό σε μια τεράστια αίθουσα συνεδρίων, κάτι που ήταν δύσκολο για μένα να καθίσω εκεί, όπου όλοι εκτός από εμένα έτρωγαν. Ο coach Hoiberg το αναγνώρισε και μου επέτρεπε να παραλείπω το πρωινό. Ακόμη κι αυτή η μικρή χειρονομία έχτισε την εμπιστοσύνη μεταξύ μας και με έκανε πιο ανοιχτό κι επικοινωνιακό σχετικά με άλλα ζητήματα.

Όταν είχα τα θέματά μου, το προσωπικό στο Iowa State παρέμενε ευέλικτο και προσεκτικό. Προνοούσε, αντί να αντιδρά. Δεν αισθάνθηκα ποτέ ότι στιγματίζομαι ή κρίνομαι ως ανεπαρκής, λόγω της διαταραχής άγχους. Αυτό το επίπεδο σεβασμού, εμπιστοσύνης και κατανόησης είναι ο λόγος που ήμουν σε θέση να παίξω στο πρώτο μου παιχνίδι εναντίον του Kansas μπροστά από το έντονο πλήθος στο Allen Fieldhouse και να αισθάνομαι το ίδιο φυσικό άγχος όπως οι συμπαίκτες μου, παρά έναν γενικό πανικό που σχετίζεται με τη διαταραχή μου. Είναι επίσης ο λόγος που κατατάχθηκα πρώτος στην ομάδα μου σε πόντους, ασίστ, ριμπάουντ, μπλοκ, και κλεψίματα (ο μοναδικός παίκτης στη χώρα που το έκανε), κερδίζοντας μια ομόφωνη Big 12 First All Team και σημειώνοντας εύφημο μνεία ως All-American.

Το μόνο σίγουρο είναι ότι αισθάνομαι περήφανος για ό,τι έκανα στο γήπεδο, αλλά η αλήθεια είναι ότι χωρίς το δίκτυο υποστήριξης που παρείχε το πανεπιστήμιο και το πρόγραμμα μπάσκετ του - το οποίο ήταν σε εναρμόνιση με την ιδιαιτερότητά μου από το ξεκίνημα- δε θα ήμουν στη θέση να τα καταφέρω. Αυτό πρέπει να είναι ένα από τα κύρια ζητήματα για οποιαδήποτε εταιρεία ή υπηρεσία, επειδή ένα υγιέστερο εργατικό δυναμικό είναι πιο παραγωγικό και αποτελεσματικό.

Ένας αστυνομικός δεν πρόκειται ποτέ να σταλεί εκεί έξω χωρίς ενισχύσεις, αλλά όπως ανακάλυψα στο πανεπιστήμιο, η καλύτερη "ενίσχυση" έρχεται πριν καν βγούμε από τις περιοχές εργασίας μας. Η προληπτική συμβουλευτική και οι περιοδική ψυχολογικές αξιολογήσεις είναι ανεκτίμητης αξίας για τους επαγγελματίες που βλέπουν τη χειρότερη όψη των κοινωνικών δυσλειτουργιών με μη φυσιολογική συχνότητα. Ένας αστυνομικός πρέπει να είναι σε θέση να αναγνωρίσει και να παραδεχθεί τις ανησυχίες και τους φόβους του στους συναδέλφους και τους ανωτέρους του, προκειμένου να διατηρηθεί η λογική του καθώς και η αποτελεσματικότητά του.

Όταν το NFL βρέθηκε βυθισμένο σε ένα σκάνδαλο οικιακής κακοποίησης (σ.σ. domestic abuse), σκέφτηκα ότι αυτός ακριβώς είναι ο λόγος που υποστηρίζω ένα βασικό πρωτόκολλο για το χειρισμό της ψυχικής υγείας στο ΝΒΑ. Δεν είναι δύσκολο να συσχετιστεί με χαρακτηριστικά του NFL, δηλαδή της αγωνιστικής βαρβαρότητας, οι τραυματισμοί στο κεφάλι, ο υπερβάλλων ζήλος στη χρήση των συνταγογραφούμενων φαρμάκων, και συζυγική / ενδοοικογενειακή βία.

Δε συγκλονίστηκα όταν έμαθα για το γεγονός ότι αρκετές μελέτες έχουν διαπιστώσει ότι οι σύντροφοι των αστυνομικών υποφέρουν από ενδοοικογενειακή κακοποίηση σε ποσοστά σημαντικά υψηλότερα από ό,τι στο γενικό πληθυσμό. Οι αστυνομικοί, όπως οι αθλητές του NFL χρειάζονται απεγνωσμένα συνεπή συμβουλευτική ώστε επαγγελματική τους καθημερινότητα δεν επεκτείνεται στην προσωπική τους ζωή.


O Norm Stamper, πρώην αρχηγός της Αστυνομίας του Seattle και υπέρμαχος της επιστροφής στην "κοινοτική αστυνόμευση" πιστεύει ότι "υπάρχει περισσότερος φόβος στην αστυνόμευση σήμερα. Λειτουργεί σε υπερβολικό επίπεδο. Οι αστυνομικοί στην πραγματικότητα δεν μιλάμε για τον φόβο αυτό". Δεν έμεινα έκπληκτος από το σχόλιο. Αυτό το είδος της έκφρασης αποθαρρύνεται και στιγματίζει. Η δική μου εμπειρία με την αρχική ανοιχτή συζήτηση σχετικά με τις ψυχικές ασθένειες στο ΝΒΑ με έκανε να πιστέψω ότι οι άνθρωποι στην εξουσία νοιάζονται περισσότερο για τη γενική εικόνα από τον εποικοδομητικό διάλογο σχετικά με την ψυχική υγεία των εργαζομένων τους. Ακόμα και κοινές πτυχές της ζωής, όπως ο φόβος και το άγχος, είναι θέματα ταμπού. Ως συνέπεια, ο φόβος αυτοκαταστρέφει και βράζει κάτω από την επιφάνεια, και τα αποτελέσματα είναι συχνά τραγικά.

Τα πρόσφατα γεγονότα και πλάνα με την αστυνομία να χρησιμοποιεί βίαιες και θανάσιμες τακτικές είναι τρομακτικά και ανεξήγητα - ένας ψυχικά άρρωστος άνθρωπος πυροβόλησε 14 φορές (αρκετές βολές στην πλάτη) από απόσταση ένα 12χρονο παιδί που πυροβολήθηκε μέσα σε δευτερόλεπτα από τη στιγμή που η αστυνομία κατέφθασε στον τόπο, χωρίς να του δοθεί βοήθεια ενώ η ζωή του έφευγε όσο περνούσε ο χρόνος. Ένας αθώος άνθρωπος πυροβολήθηκε και σκοτώθηκε σε ένα κλιμακοστάσιο, με τον επίμαχο αξιωματικό να στέλνει γραπτά μηνύματα στην Ένωση που ανήκει πριν καν καλέσει ασθενοφόρο. Ένας άνδρας πέθανε από πνιγμό, αν και ο ίδιος επανειλημμένα προειδοποίησε ότι δε μπορούσε να αναπνεύσει.

Ανεξήγητα, κάποιοι από εμάς ακόμα δεν βλέπουμε καθαρά ποιο είναι το σωστό που βρίσκεται ακριβώς μπροστά μας. Αντ' αυτού, βλέπουμε μόνο αυτό που θέλουμε να δούμε, αυτό που είναι αναμενόμενο από εμάς να δούμε (σ.σ. pre-programmed to see) μέσα από το πρίσμα των προκαταλήψεων και του ρατσισμού. Είναι η διαστρεβλομένη όραση που επιτρέπει στους ανθρώπους να βλέπουν τις φωτογραφίες του Darren Wilson με μόλις μια γρατσουνιά πάνω του, αλλά εξακολουθούν να πιστεύουν ότι τη ζωή του βρισκόταν σε κίνδυνο και οι πυροβολισμοί κατά του Michael Brown ήταν δικαιολογημένοι. Εν τω μεταξύ, ορισμένα από αυτά τα ίδια άτομα βλέποντας φωτογραφίες πολιτών των οποίων τα μάτια έχουν μαυρίσει και μελανιάσει από το ξύλο, δεν αισθάνονται καμία συμπάθεια.

Ούτε η Αστυνομία μπορεί να δει καθαρά ποιο είναι το σωστό. Αστυνομικός της Αστυνομίας του Milwauckee Christopher Manney, ο οποίος πυροβόλησε τον Dontre Hamiltion 14 φορές, ισχυρίστηκε ο Hamilton είχε "μυώδης σωματοδομή" και "σίγουρα θα εξουδετέρωνε εμένα ή σχεδόν οποιονδήποτε άλλο αξιωματικό θα μπορούσα να σκεφτώ, να σας πω την αλήθεια. Ήταν τόσο μεγάλος και μυώδης. Θα έλεγα ότι θα ήταν αδύνατο να ελεγχθεί αν ήσουν μόνος σου (απέναντί του)". Ο Manney ισχυρίστηκε επίσης ότι ο Hamilton ήταν "συγκριτικά νεότερος από εμένα, σε πολύ καλύτερη φυσική κατάσταση από μένα και πολύ ισχυρότερος και πιο μυώδης". Στην πραγματικότητα ο Hamilton ήταν 1,70 m. και 76 κιλά, ελαφρώς υπέρβαρος για το ύψος του.


Στον απόηχο των πυροβολισμών του Tamir Rice, ο αξιωματικός ο οποίος τους διέταξε περιέγραψε τον Rice ως έναν 20χρονο μαύρο αμερικανό. Ήταν 12 ετών. Ο Darren Wilson, που έχει ύψος 1,95 και βάρος 96 κιλά, περιέγραψε τον Michael Brown στην κατάθεσή του ως ένα τρομερό υβρίδιο (unholly hybrid) ανάμεσα σε Incredible Hulk και Sasquatch.


Αν και είναι εύκολο να αποδώσουμε στον ρατσισμό την αιτία για αυτό το χάσμα ανάμεσα σε αυτό που αυτοί οι αξιωματικοί είδαν στο μυαλό τους και στην πραγματική κατάσταση που συνέβαινε μπροστά τους, ωστόσο αυτό απλοποιεί κάτι πολύ πιο πολύπλοκο από έναν χαρακτηρισμό (σ.σ. ρατσισμός εδώ). Εν πάση περιπτώσει, ακόμη και ο ρατσισμός είναι μια ασθένεια του νου - ή όπως η Toni Morrison (σ.σ. συγγραφέας) θεώρησε "μια βαθιά νεύρωση όπου κανείς δεν εξετάζει αυτό που είναι μπροστά του".

Πράγματι, η υπερβολική διόγκωση της ηλικίας και η σωματοδομή των μαύρων αγοριών είναι επιδημική. Αρκετές μελέτες δείχνουν ότι τόσο το ευρύ κοινό, όσο και η αστυνομία, έχουν την τάση να αξιολογούν τους μαύρους άνδρες ως "απειλή", ανεξάρτητα από την αθωότητά τους, τη σωματοδομή και την ηλικία. Πάνω σε αυτό μια πρόσφατη μελέτη που δημοσιεύτηκε στο American Psychological Association's Journal of Personality and Social POsychology βρήκε έναν συσχέτιση μεταξύ λευκών ανδρών αστυνομικών με ιστορικό χρήσης βίας σε μαύρα αγόρια υπό επιτήρηση και χαρακτηριστικών "απάνθρωπης προκατάληψης" (σ.σ αναφέρεται ως επιστημονικός όρος). Η ίδια μελέτη διαπίστωσε μια τάση μεταξύ των λευκών θηλυκών φοιτητριών να θεωρούν μαύρα αγόρια μεγαλύτερα των 10 ετών ως «σημαντικά λιγότερο αθώα» από το αντίστοιχα λευκά αγόρια της ίδιας ηλικίας.

Με άλλα λόγια, η κοινωνία βλέπει τους μεγαλώσωμους νεαρούς μαύρους άνδρες, ως λιγότερο αθώα και πιο απειλητική στοιχεία από τους αντίστοιχους λευκούς της ίδιας ηλικίας. Εντός της κουλτούρας της Αστυνομίας το ίδιο ισχύει, με βίαια και δυνητικά θανατηφόρα αποτελέσματα.

Ως νεαρός μαύρος άνδρας ο οποίος αντιμετωπίζει μια αγχώδη διαταραχή και έχει διαστάσεις 2,04 μ. και 122 κιλά, αυτή η προκατάληψη μου δίνει δικαιολογημένο λόγο ανησυχίας. Αν και σπάνια αισθάνθηκα φοβισμένος στην παρουσία αστυνομικών, με προβληματίζει ότι πολλοί μπορεί να έχουν μια προδιάθεση να αισθάνονται φοβισμένοι στην παρουσία μου, ανεξάρτητα από την αθωότητα ή η πρόθεσή μου.

Η αστυνομία οφείλει να με δει ξεκάθαρα για αυτό που είμαι - και εγώ πρέπει να κάνω το καλύτερο που μπορώ για να τους δω επίσης (σ.σ. για αυτό που είναι εκείνοι). Διακυβεύονται πάρα πολλά στην αντίθετη περίπτωση.

Τα γεγονότα του 2014 δεν είναι μοναδικά: οι δολοφονίες του Michael Brown, του Tamir Rice, του Dontre Hamilton ή του John Crawford μεταξύ άλλων. Αποτελούν αναπόσπαστο μέρος ενός εκτεταμένου σχεδίου που υπάρχει για πολλές δεκαετίες όσον αφορά στην παραμέληση: τόσο των φτωχότερων κοινοτήτων μας αλλά και της αστυνομίας, με τα δύο μέρη τραυματισμένα και ανεπαρκώς υπηρετούμενα όσον αφορά τους πόρους για θέματα ψυχικής υγείας. Είναι ένα τοξικό μείγμα, που θα συνεχίσει να παράγει τοξικά αποτελέσματα.

Δεν έχουμε την πολυτέλεια να είμαστε αφελείς για περισσότερο. Γνωρίζουμε ότι υπάρχει ρατσισμός, ατομικός και συστημικός, εντός των αστυνομικών τμημάτων μας. Έχουμε σοβαρές υποψίες ότι πολλοί αξιωματικοί ενδεχομένως να πάσχουν από κάποια μορφή PTSD (Διαταραχή μετά από ψυχοτραυματικό στρες) που οφείλεται στις εμπειρίες τους στην εργασία. Επίσης, γνωρίζουμε ότι μέλη φτωχών κοινοτήτων βρίσκονται συχνά βυθισμένα σε κυκλική δυσλειτουργία που έχει περιπλέξει τα ιστορικά και κοινωνιολογικά θεμέλια, και αυτό παράγει μια έξαρση των ψυχικών ασθενειών που επιδεινώνονται όσο παραμένουν αθεράπευτες.

Έχουμε ανάγκη από διαρθρωτικές μεταρρυθμίσεις.

Χρειαζόμαστε μια διεθνική συζήτηση για την ψυχική υγεία. Χρειαζόμαστε πολιτικές και πόρους πλήρως ανανεωμένες ώστε να συμβαδίζουν με τις ψυχικές ασθένειες που υπάρχουν στους κύκλους της Αστυνομίας και μεταφέρονται στην κοινωνία κάθε μέρα. Μια βελτιωμένη εξατομικευμένη εκπαίδευση και περιοδικές ψυχολογικές αξιολογήσεις θα ήταν μια καλή αρχή. Οι αστυνομικοί δεν είναι ρομπότ, είναι ανθρώπινα όντα. Ομοίως, τα άτομα στις φτωχότερες κοινότητες, συχνά "μαυροκρατούμενες", δεν είναι στατιστικά στοιχεία, είναι επίσης ανθρώπινα όντα. Μια κοινωνία δεν είναι μια επιχείρηση που πρέπει να συνδράμει σε έναν στόχο, είναι μια συνεργατική ανθρώπινη προσπάθεια.

Ο πολιτισμός και οι εργοδότες μας πρέπει να σεβαστούν αυτόν τον ουσιαστικό ανθρωπισμό. Τα θέματα ψυχικής υγείας δεν πρόκειται να επιλυθούν ποτέ μέσα από την παραμέληση. Αγνοούμε τη σημασία τους με δικό μας κόστος. Οι ψυχικές ασθένειες είναι τόσο πραγματικές, θεραπεύσιμες και συχνές, όπως και οι σωματικές ασθένειες.

Είναι οδυνηρό να θυμηθώ - τόσο οδυνηρό, στην πραγματικότητα, που δίστασα αρκετές φορές πριν καταθέσω με λεπτομέρειες σε αυτό το κείμενο, την απώλεια δύο φίλων μου από αυτοκτονία. Ακόμα κι αν δεν είχα δει άμεσα την τραγωδία, ένιωσα την απώλεια έντονα. Για μήνες μετά, είχα εφιάλτες στους οποίους παρατηρούσα το πραγματικό γεγονός και ξυπνούσα συντετριμένος και σε σύγχυση.

Εάν ένα άτομο μπορεί να βιώσει ένα δευτερογενές τραύμα τόσο έντονα, φανταστείτε τι μπορεί να σημαίνει για έναν αξιωματικό της αστυνομίας για έχει παρακολουθήσει πυροβολισμούς κατά συναδέλφου τους κατά την άσκηση του καθήκοντος. Ή να αυτοπυροβολήθηκε. Ή ακόμα να έχει καταφθάνει στη σκηνή του εγκλήματος και να βλέπει αίμα σε τακτική βάση; Δεν μπορούμε ευλόγως να αναμένουμε από τους αστυνομικούς, μερικοί από τους οποίους είναι νεότεροι από ό,τι είμαι, να επεξεργαστούν αυτού του είδους της ακραίας τραυματικής εμπειρίας χωρίς συνεπής ψυχολογική υποστήριξη.

Τώρα φανταστείτε τις κοινότητες στις οποίες ανήκουν o Michael Brown, ο Eric Garner, Tamir Rice και τα λοιπά αμέτρητα θύματα της άσκησης υπερβολικής εξουσίας δύναμης. Το τραύμα τους είναι εξίσου άμεσο και έντονο, αλλά η ψυχολογική συμβουλευτική που λαμβάνουν ανύπαρκτη. Με τον τρόπο αυτό, το τραύμα γεννά τραύμα. Η αστυνομία και οι δυσλειτουργικές κοινωνίες στις οποίες λειτουργούν, είναι εγκλωβισμένες σε έναν φαύλο κύκλο προβλημάτων ψυχικής υγείας με ανεπαρκείς πόρους για την αντιμετώπισή τους. Όπως καταθλιπτικό είναι οι δολοφονίες του Michael Brown και του Eric Garner, άλλο τόσο θλιβερό είναι να ότι βάσιμα πιθανολογούμε ότι θα υπάρξουν πολλά περισσότερα περιστατικά, γιατί η παραμέληση στα θέματα ψυχικής υγείας παραμένει τόσο ισχυρή συστημικά και πολιτισμικά.

Αν κάποιοι από εμάς δεν μπορούν να δουν καθαρά, ενώ κάποιοι άλλοι από εμάς δεν μπορούν να αναπνεύσουν, τότε ποιοι από τους υπόλοιπους που απομένουν θα έχουν το θάρρος να πρωτοστατήσουν για να ονοματίσουν και να θεραπεύσουν αυτά τα δεινά με στόχο τη βελτίωση όλων μας;

Royce White

https://medium.com/the-cauldron/i-cant-brea...er-a08516e2bef6

The battle within Larry Sanders
An ongoing struggle with anxiety and depression, and its effects on an NBA career
Originally Published: February 27, 2015
By Kevin Arnovitz | ESPN.com

State Of Larry Sanders

Henry Abbott and Kevin Arnovitz discuss Larry Sanders and the quest to find an active player to be the face of mental health in the NBA.

"We don't do a very good job with mental health," said an NBA team executive as he looked down at the sad contents of his boxed lunch and sighed. "We don't have any answers, and we're not doing a good job looking for them."

This was three years ago at the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics conference in Boston. I'd asked about the status of a player who had had some early success but had fallen off the NBA map after a short stint with the exec's team.

He lamented that, too often, he and his head coach were charged with the job of evaluating and counseling guys who, in his estimation, were likely suffering from mental health conditions that professionals should be diagnosing, then treating. The exec said that he had taken it upon himself to read up on current trends in brain research but that he was in far over his head.

About 15 months later, a general manager from a different team called and vented about his helplessness with a recent signee who, he suspected, was grappling with mental health issues. The player was visiting an independent psychologist not associated with the team, but his problems persisted. The league offered mentorship from player-development specialists who were well-versed in advising players on how to handle their newfound wealth and family issues, but the GM said it probably wasn't enough. Hunting for a solution, he approached the team owner about investing in a mental health program for his new signee.

"I just gave him $30 million worth of mental health," the owner said.

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Two months later, the general manager enumerated additional concerns he had, including the ineffectualness of the players' union in pushing for mental health reforms and a league substance abuse policy that punished players for smoking weed, but didn't do an adequate job of addressing underlying mental health issues that might be driving the offending player to self-medicate.

Mental health in the NBA is a difficult issue to speak about openly. Teams and psychologists are bound by a code of confidentiality, making it nearly impossible to share stories of players' successes or struggles. And as sympathetic as a team executive might be to a player with a mental health condition, his performance is ultimately judged on the productivity of those he puts in the locker room. The slightest inkling that a draftee or free agent might have a condition that could make him uncoachable or strain locker room chemistry usually means it's best to look for an equivalent talent who can perform the job without the baggage. And from the perspective of many owners -- in any industry -- mental wellness is something that's priced into compensation. Want worker's comp for your troubles? Check your direct deposit.

Skepticism has been bred on the players' side as well. A player with a torn ligament can examine an MRI result with a world-class orthopedic surgeon and actually recognize the tear. He undergoes a procedure, takes prescribed medication, goes through rehab. Along the road back to health, there are signposts -- pain, mobility, confidence in his body when he returns to the court.

With mental illness, progress is more difficult to measure. And for players who are accustomed to the more linear timetables and concrete results, that can be frustrating.

This presents a stubborn paradox for NBA teams: Mental health treatment for players can't realize maximum effectiveness until there are first-class services in place. But it's hard to sell owners, management and players on shelling out for first-class services until they're proved effective.

All the while, NBA players struggle in the shadows. Virtually everyone in the league can rattle off names of current or former players who needed serious help but never found it. A player who is getting razzed on social media for pouting his way through a season is actually dealing with the sexual assault of a loved one who lives across the country. Another player who seems uncomposed on the floor and confrontational with teammates and coaches suffers from acute anxiety and the prescribed medications are having an adverse effect. Read deeper into any story about fragile team chemistry or "off-court behavior" and there's likely a component of mental health embedded inside.

That's where Larry Sanders comes in.

The Milwaukee Bucks are a team that has tried to make strides in mental health treatment in recent seasons. About a year ago, they brought on a local licensed psychologist named Ramel Smith as team psychologist. Smith, 42, had spent most of the previous decade at the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin and with the state's department of corrections. Smith's office isn't more than 30 feet from the practice court at the Bucks' training facility in St. Francis, south of downtown Milwaukee. He wears team workout gear, and, unless you knew better, you'd figure he was a member of the training staff.

And that's the idea -- to impress upon players that Smith is an essential part of the operation. Even more important, the team wants players to know that Smith's services as a mental health professional are as integral to their overall well-being as any treatment being administered in the trainers' room. He travels with the team so he can observe who is gregarious, who might be expressing sensitivities, who is withdrawn.

After spending time with Smith in his office for about half an hour in December -- because of sensitivities about confidentiality, the Bucks requested our conversation be on background only -- I visited with Sanders, the team's center and second-longest-tenured player on the roster, in the Bucks' players lounge.

“
Dobbs There's no book. There are no guidelines. There's really not much guidance. Everything at once -- family, home ... life. Then, being a professional who has to perform on the court. It's intense: The minute something happens, it's on the Web. A million people are talking about it. Privacy is completely taken away. It's almost like that privacy is exchanged for money. But you can't buy peace."
”
- Larry Sanders
Before departing from the NBA and releasing a five-minute video documenting his battle with mental health issues, Sanders had spent all five of his NBA seasons with the Bucks. He had seen how the team's mental health services had evolved over that time as a young player who had wrestled on occasion with what we often term "off-court" issues. In 2013, he was cited twice in January for animal cruelty for leaving his dogs outside in the freezing cold, then in November was involved in a nightclub brawl, for which no charges were filed. In 2014, he tested positive for marijuana for a third time, which triggered a five-game suspension while sidelined with an injury.

After that suspension, Sanders defended his usage passionately. And from the outset of our conversation, he spoke candidly of his mental health struggles and put them into the context of his playing career.

"People don't take into account that we're all very young men," Sanders said. "Scientifically, the brain doesn't stop developing. ... A guy comes into the league and it's nine or 10 years before his brain stops developing, for them to be settled with their true emotions, their cognitive reasoning, their rationality. This is the last thing to develop. But we're put into these positions where we're put on a pedestal. But chemically, we're not even fully developed yet."

Science generally backs up Sanders' claim about brain development, as there's a trove of research that has determined that the brain doesn't reach full maturity until a person is in his mid-20s. In describing his condition, Sanders said his goal was to start a meaningful conversation about the burdens faced by those who suffer from mental health issues and to dispel popular perceptions: stigmas that dog those who deal with depression and anxiety, the language in which we talk about "head cases" and "mentally soft" players in sports and, in particular, notions that the fame and financial rewards that accompany life in the NBA should compensate for any suffering. Eleven weeks before reciting his testimonial for the video, he voiced many of these thoughts over lunch.

"I get put in certain situations now that I never did before -- we all do -- and we have to learn how to maneuver in those situations. There's no book. There are no guidelines. There's really not much guidance," Sanders said. "Everything at once -- family, home ... life. Then, being a professional who has to perform on the court. It's intense: The minute something happens, it's on the Web. A million people are talking about it. Privacy is completely taken away. It's almost like that privacy is exchanged for money. But you can't buy peace."

Sanders said he'd started seeing a psychologist after his first positive test result for marijuana, which requires a player receive treatment, during the 2013-14 season. He had torn a ligament in his right thumb and had his left eye socket fractured. He was prescribed Vicodin for the pain, he said, but hated it. In lieu of traditional painkillers, he said, he turned to marijuana.

"I'd had a good run of not violating, but after the eye injury, because I didn't want to use the Vicodin," Sanders said. "The effects it has on the body -- there's a lot of medication out there that will really [screw] you up. For me, my health, my safety. That's important."

That he preferred it to synthetic painkillers, which he maintained presented a high risk of addiction, was the extent to what Sanders had to say about marijuana. "I like to take a more natural approach," he said. According to the Centers for Disease Control, more than 16,000 people died from prescription painkillers in 2012. Research on whether marijuana can serve as an effective painkiller has been inconclusive, and you can find clinical studies that back up just about any point of view, including the idea that marijuana doesn't treat pain so much as the emotional response to pain.

Although Sanders prefers marijuana's natural quality and feels its effects are gentler, it's exceedingly difficult to find a professional clinician who will back him. They maintain that whatever effects it might have treating pain, marijuana unequivocally does not help mental health or performance and can exacerbate a condition such as depression.

"It has the potential to damage the brain," says Ira Glick, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford who has consulted for or worked with the NBA and NFL. "[Sanders] should have a competent physician to manage his pain problems, as well as diagnose and treat his mental and/or psychiatric problems."

Sanders said he didn't want to get caught up in a conversation about marijuana policy or its potential to treat chronic pain. If anything, he said, marijuana usage is merely a symptom of the much more debilitating mental health issues.

"Larry is right about that," said a league power broker familiar with Sanders' situation. "The league's substance abuse policy isn't structured to distinguish between mental health issues and substance abuse issues. The treatment plans are as much punitive as designed to truly help. There's got to be a better answer than the one we have."

By no means is Sanders qualified to explain the chemical complexities of the human mind, but scientists on the cutting edge of brain research and sports medicine aren't laughing at Sanders' explanations. Ask them about the relationship between athletic performance and mental health and they'll frame the issue in language that's eerily similar to what Sanders volunteered.

If a player tears an ACL, the menu of treatment options is pretty well-defined, and for an NBA player, that treatment will be top of the line. If the best provider practices in Germany, book a ticket. Want a second opinion? Be our guest. Surgeons Neal ElAttrache and James Andrews are practically celebrities. Teams will spare no expense to provide whatever resources are needed or desired for the player's rehab.

Sanders reached a buyout with the Bucks on the four-year, $44 million extension he signed in 2013.
The field where mental health and sports intersect is in its relative infancy. Sports psychologists started popping in with regularity a couple of decades ago, but most of them worked in the realm of performance -- say, for a guy who was having trouble finding the strike zone or converting free throws. If a player had issues that stretched outside the boundaries of the field of play, he'd be put in touch with a person from the league's player development program, the group that helps to mentor players on life management skills, or be given a referral to an independent medical professional.

Recently, more teams such as the Bucks have brought on full-time specialists, but this development is still very new. Many teams still believe that, in the words of one general manager, "It's dangerous to have someone on staff" because the presence of a mental health professional can breed "mistrust."

"There is often a view that sports psychology and mental health are on two different ends of a spectrum, and it's important to impress upon players that's not the case," says Chris Carr, sport and performance psychologist at St. Vincent Sports Performance in Indianapolis, who has consulted with the Pacers. "When a team performance psychologist is incorporated into the player's support system -- along with athletic trainers, physical therapists, strength coaches -- it allows each player the best opportunity to deal with their full psychological 'health' without stigma being attached."

This much we now know: When people suffering from a condition such as depression experience acute stress, this can affect the composition of their brain. When there's trauma -- incidents of abuse carried from childhood, or even something like, say, the trials of overcoming a potential career-ending injury -- that can compromise cognition. Disorders such as depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder require professional treatment that's no less regimented and aggressive than the world-class care athletes receive when they're rehabbing a knee injury or a torn Achilles.

"We talk about physical injuries all the time, such as a torn rotator cuff, and know that untreated injury can lead to serious concerns and possible surgery," says Dr. Laura Marin, the medical director at the Center for Dependency, Addiction and Rehabilitation at the University of Colorado Hospital. "The psychological equivalent would be something like major depression; if left untreated it could lead to more serious symptoms, such as weight loss, impaired concentration, loss of energy and motivation, suicidal ideation or substance use. This requires more intense treatment."

As a kid, basketball never nourished Sanders. He was thrust onto the court as a high school sophomore because his mere presence beneath the hoop offered instant rim protection. But jock wasn't Sanders' tribe. He was both freak and geek -- an introvert who spent hours with a drawing pad and skateboarding the streets of Vero Beach, then Fort Pierce, Florida.

"Basketball wasn't ever my therapy," Sanders said. "It wasn't there for me as a little kid. It wasn't my go-to -- 'Go shoot some hoops.' For me, it was 'Go draw a picture. Go create some art.'"

Sanders said his difficult home life was a source of anxiety from an early age. At a young age, Sanders, along his mother and sister, vacated the house they were living in, moving around from a shelter to crashing with relatives.

"It was something I knew was there, just from observing him, and one conversation with his mom," Kareem Rodriguez, Sanders' coach at Port St. Lucie High School, said. "Unfortunately, his experiences are similar with a lot of young men. You knew he'd seen things, even if he didn't talk about them."

During the fall of Sanders' sophomore year of high school, a member of the basketball team saw him towering over a crowd at an open house for extracurriculars at Port St. Lucie and alerted Rodriguez. Like a lot of kids in central Florida at that time, Sanders drew inspiration from Tracy McGrady, only Sanders didn't have any discernible skills. Rodriguez was already establishing a few other post players, so he assigned Sanders to the JV squad, with which he caught up on Defense 101. Toward the end of that season and the beginning of his junior year on the varsity team, Sanders took off.

"He was so much of a factor creating missed shots," Rodriguez said. "The opposing team couldn't get to the rim. They just had to start throwing stuff up because he was there. It allowed us to take more chances. Our experienced guys got out on the wing and denied. His presence allowed us to create an entire identity defensively based on everyone trusting him in the back."

At Virginia Commonwealth University, Sanders established himself as a menace in the lane and grew to 6-11. He became even more aggressive as he built confidence that, as the most intimidating player in the gym, he had great control over what transpired on the floor and, in particular, in the paint. To some extent, this spilled over to his demeanor away from the floor in that, in the right context, he developed his inner extrovert, so to speak.

"When he started to gain some notoriety, if young kid came to say hello, or parent with a child, or an interviewer, he was so personable," Rodriguez said. "He'd be nice to the kids. He had quotes for the newspaper. It was amazing to watch him switch from being a shy person to being a budding superstar who could bring people in."

Managing his intensity has been an ongoing project for Sanders, something that has continued with the Bucks, who chose him at No. 15 in the 2010 draft. Rodriguez recounted moments when it was difficult to contain Sanders' temper -- a teammate getting hit hard on a breakaway, or a call going against him. At the pro level, there's only so much a coaching staff will tolerate from a young player, so Sanders had to get creative.

"I remember in my rookie year, he started getting a few [technical fouls]," Bucks big man John Henson said. "What he started to do was write Bible verses on his hands. If a call didn't go his way, he'd look at them and it would calm him down."

Sanders, who was been suspended twice for marijuana use, said he's putting basketball aside for now.
Eleven days after Sanders sat in the players lounge talking about the trials young athletes face with regard to their mental health, he logged his last minutes with the Bucks in the team's home loss vs. Charlotte on Dec. 23. For the remainder of the month, his absence was listed as an illness. On Jan. 2, Bucks coach Jason Kidd volunteered "personal reasons" for Sanders' presence on the inactive list.

Four days later, Sanders showed up to the Bradley Center in Milwaukee before a Bucks game against Phoenix. He denied reports that had circulated on social media that he didn't want to play basketball anymore and told the media, "I'm trying to get to the root of a lot of issues and get them corrected. Without getting them corrected, I don't think basketball is something I could do."

The next day over the phone, Sanders spoke about how he wanted to define accomplishment in life and finding his true self -- and how that had nothing to do with money. His thoughts were more discursive than our previous conversation had been. He spoke at length about how traditional ways of defining happiness cause people to distort their pursuit of actual happiness. Asked how he would respond to those who felt that he was squandering his talent or betraying his commitment to his team, he said he didn't have an answer and added, "There's no reason to listen to the conversation."

At that point, Sanders agreed that it would be useful for him to put a few of these ideas, along with the more general views he voiced in the players lounge about mental wellness and the challenges faced by young pro ballplayers, into a self-authored letter. A drafted letter composed of language he used was passed back and forth, with Sanders tweaking language here and there. For example, he wanted to make sure he didn't speak in absolutes and requested the language be moderated accordingly.

Sanders wanted some time to write a strong conclusion. Then, on Jan. 16, he was hit with another suspension for violating the league's anti-drug policy. The letter would also need to address this new development, and about a week later we met for breakfast in Milwaukee.

At breakfast, Sanders was approached by a 50-something financial analyst from suburban Milwaukee. Sanders' large frame had just folded itself into a chair at a window table in the cafe inside the Pfister Hotel.

The consultant apologized for the interruption, then paused for Sanders to give him an OK before continuing. Sanders smiled at the guy, as if to say, "It's OK, man. Two strangers can engage each other in a hotel restaurant without a security clearance." The smile reassured the man, who gently set his business card face down on the table in front of Sanders. He then flipped the card over and pointed to a message scrawled in pencil on the back, which the consultant chose to read aloud.

"Larry, you're a great ball player with a huge heart. Get back soon."

Sanders politely thanked him. The man nodded, apologized again for the interruption, then walked back to his table across the restaurant.

"There are people out there who don't judge, who just want to support," Sanders said. "They genuinely care and they express that because they can relate. They see the humanity in the situation. They say, 'Ah, I've been there.'"

As he worked on a turkey sausage and cheese croissant with green tea, Sanders discussed more specifically than he had on the phone how he'd been spending his time since leaving the Bucks. Sanders described the weeks since Christmas as "a mental and spiritual training camp." He spent the first few weeks of January at his Milwaukee home among friends and family or in solitude, with a good deal of time devoted to meditation, often led by an instructor, and yoga.

Despite a late start to playing basketball, Sanders developed into a dominant defender in the NBA.
"A lot of meditation," Sanders said. "It's been awesome. Meditation isn't about control. It's about surrendering, about letting your mind run free for a little bit. You just sit there, as a supervisor of your thoughts. You just observe them. It's a very strange spiritual experience, just allowing them to be there."

He declined to speak about his 4-year-old son, who is staying with family for the time being, and his mom, who he says has "seen enough in her life." He said he occasionally ventured out to a friend's apartment building, where he uses the treadmill for light work.

"The one thing I want people to understand -- I've been doing a lot of work," Sanders said of the period after his leave from the Bucks. "I've been productive with my health and well-being and my spirituality. That's important to me. It goes beyond everything else."

Sanders explained that, in mid-December, it became clear that the work in question couldn't be accomplished within the framework of the NBA season. Around that time, he said he started to feel achy and physically unwell, then declined even more after the Dec. 23 home loss to Charlotte.

"The thing about me is that I'm an all-or-nothing kind of guy," Sanders said. "I can't go in and not be fully there. I want to give it my all, out of respect for the work. That's why people admire when they watch. They feel like a guy is working as hard as he can. So I just want people to know that I'm working as hard as I can now, too."

After that loss, Kidd held a particularly tough practice in an effort to jump-start the team.

"Coach Kidd had it like we were in boot camp," Bucks forward Jared Dudley said. "He had us running, and he wanted to let everyone know how their role was defined."

According to Dudley, Sanders walked out of practice abruptly, before the sprints. Teammates had to pursue him to come back inside.

"It seemed weird at the time," Dudley said. "In this league, you're going to have players and coaches who disagree. That's the nature of the game. But I just thought that was odd."

A day or two later, Sanders left the team. Dudley reached out to Sanders by text, but he didn't hear back, which he said was uncharacteristic.

"He got along with everyone," Dudley said. "You could tell he was artsy. But he was a great guy. He went out with the guys, for dinner and stuff. I would just say that things started to change at the very end."

Back at breakfast, Sanders said his goal was to start a meaningful conversation about the burdens faced by those who suffer from mental health issues and to dispel popular perceptions: stigmas that dog those who deal with depression and anxiety, the language used in sports to characterize such people and, in particular, notions that the fame and financial rewards that accompany life in the NBA should compensate for any suffering.

"I want to open that door for guys," Sanders said. "It's hard for people in my field to respect mental health. We say that the game is 90 percent mental, but yet mental health doesn't get the respect of, like, an ACL. The game is 90 percent mental, but we're going to ignore your mental health."

Sanders declined to describe his vision of what such a solution should look like because, he said, he's not a mental health professional. He did introduce some small-scale suggestions. He said he'd love to see a network of meetings in every NBA city -- similar to Alcoholics Anonymous -- where players can gather in support of one another away during down time on an off day or after shootaround at a site away from the arena. Many players find solace at chapel, but Sanders said he'd prefer something nondenominational that doesn't occur just moments before tipoff, when guys are consumed with their pregame routine.

"We need a culture of support," he said. "A place where we can come together and there's no judgment."

One of Sanders' pet theories is that elite defensive players are particularly susceptible to mental health conditions because playing defense at an NBA level demands a strong degree of nervous energy. As evidence, Sanders points out Ron Artest and Dennis Rodman as examples of players who, like him, are wired differently.

"Anxiety is a big part of playing defense," Sanders said. "I think there's a reason defensive players are the guys who fall into that category. They use that anxiety."

As plates were cleared, Sanders volunteered his plan. The next morning, he was scheduled to check into a mental health facility 45 minutes from Milwaukee to get more intensive treatment for his depression and anxiety. It would be a 30-day program run by top-flight professionals that could finally provide him with the care he sought. As he described the daily regimen of counseling, he seemed at peace with the decision.

Weeks before he admitted in video that he checked into a facility at Rogers Memorial Hospital, Sanders asked that the news of his enrollment there not be made public. He acknowledged that, in some respect, the request contradicted his belief that mental health issues needed to be destigmatized. But as long as he was pursuing advanced treatment, he didn't want the issue shrouded by any buzz generated by the public admission of his status.

Sanders' stint at the mental health facility was brokered by several parties, including his representatives, the National Basketball Players Association and the Bucks. As a provision of his drug suspension, Sanders was required to receive drug treatment, but, according to sources, his agents and the players' association pleaded with the league to have Sanders treated under the purview of mental health rather than substance abuse.

"That wasn't an easy fight," said a source close to the situation.

According to two sources close to the process, Sanders had stopped returning the Bucks' phone calls and, before his drug suspension kicked in, had stopped going to practice and meetings. The Bucks had worked with the league to offer Sanders multiple mental health referrals but eventually became frustrated enough to consider more punitive measures, like a suspension from the team.

Ultimately, all parties came together for "a grand compromise," according to one of the sources. Sanders would receive independent treatment, meaning the facility had no relationship with the NBA or with the Bucks. It was an arrangement agreed to by all parties but facilitated solely by Sanders' representatives and the players' association.

The NBA Player Association's general counsel, Gary Kohlman, declined to comment for this story.

"We view it as a shared responsibility, one that includes the player, as well," NBA spokesman Michael Bass said. "We've worked hard to remove the stigma associated with mental health and the notion of 'getting help' for players, but that's an ongoing process and one that the league, teams and [players' association] are committed to."

“People come to me and say, 'Coach, I'd love to be in his shoes.' I say, 'You might want to be in his shoes, but you wouldn't want to be in his mind.'”

- Kareem Rodriguez, Larry Sanders' high school basketball coach, on Sanders
During the first two weeks of his stay at the facility, Sanders sounded upbeat. He texted about Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch's truculence with the media during the lead-up to the Super Bowl, which he said gave him insight into his own temperament (though Sanders has always been far more communicative and friendly with the media). Sanders said he was continuing his regular meditation and enjoying his sessions with professionals on staff at the facility.

However, more than a week before his scheduled departure from the facility, Sanders checked out, much to the consternation of those who helped orchestrate his treatment program. The plan was to stay four weeks, but Sanders departed more than a week before his scheduled departure and flew to the Caribbean.

"He says he wants the best treatment, but then he rejects the treatment," said an involved source who was disappointed because he said Sanders' advocates went to great lengths to find him a treatment regimen that would allow him to address his issues.

Soon after he departed the facility, Sanders instructed his agents to seek a buyout from the Bucks, against their advice. For his part, Sanders didn't have anything unkind to say about any parties involved in his treatment, including the Bucks. Those who have been working closely with him to arrange for care said that the team's management, after some initial resistance, had been responsive to Sanders' situation. At the time Sanders signed a four-year $44 million contract extension in August 2013, the Bucks agreed to extend Sanders mental health protections. This meant that, should Sanders suffer from conditions that could be diagnosed as mental health-related, he'd be protected under the terms as long as he complied with a mental health treatment plan -- just as is the case contractually with the recovery from physical injury. In other words, he would have gotten paid even if he didn't play basketball.

Sources who have been active in arranging care for Sanders worry that the financial security that comes with the buyout of his contract with Milwaukee for "about 40 cents on the dollar" presents a real risk that he won't seek the treatment he, by his own admission, desperately needs and will fall into a routine of bad habits. One of these sources agrees with the characterization that surfaced in December reports that Sanders no longer wanted to play basketball.

"This is an important issue, but Larry is not the person to be the public face of it," the source said. "He says all the right things, now he has no credibility. You have to ask, 'Does he sincerely want treatment, or just to be left to do whatever he wants?'"

If he had remained under contract with the Bucks, Sanders still would have been able to draw a paycheck despite not playing as long as he complied with a mental health treatment plan, according to sources. Now that he's off contract, there's no structure in place for him.

"He could've gotten paid, gotten full treatment, support," another source close to the negotiations said. "But that would've meant going to practice, getting coached, being part of the team, stop smoking weed, doing the treatment."

Some close to Sanders' situation are unsurprised by his actions. They portray him as a guy who excels at framing themes like these eloquently, but more to service his own image than to bring light to a misunderstood issue.

"He says all the right things, and a lot of these things are right on, no question," one source said. "If guys had access to better treatment, and people were more open-minded about it, we'd have a much healthier league. But I don't think he buys it."

A couple of agents I've spoken to regularly about the issue of mental health in the NBA have been watching the Sanders situation closely. Both expressed concern that Sanders' pursuit of a buyout could be detrimental to the cause of getting elite mental health care for NBA players going forward.

"I have a real fear that teams will stop negotiating those mental health protections in the future," one leading agent said.

Sanders' high school coach, Kareem Rodriguez, expressed concern for Sanders moving forward. Rodriguez has remained in contact with Sanders and conveys a certain protectiveness of him as he shares details.

"I'm extremely worried about him," Rodriguez said. "But I believe he's very aware of what his struggles are, and I hope he's focused on getting the helps he needs. It bothers me when I read things about him that's not true. They don't know his struggles.

"People come to me and say, 'Coach, I'd love to be in his shoes.' I say, 'You might want to be in his shoes, but you wouldn't want to be in his mind.'"

Ο Larry Sanders επιστρεφει στο μπασκετ μετα απο δυο χρονια
Θα τον θελατε στους μπακς που οπου και να παει να παιξει θα συνεχισουν να του δινουν 2εκ/χρονο μεχρι το 2022 ως μερος του buy out του οταν τους παρατησε πριν 2 χρονια για να κανει τσιγαριλικια ελευθερα?

Ο Sanders είναι μια ιδιαίτερη περίπτωση, είχε και έχει σημαντικά mental issues να αντιμετωπίσει...
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/1235442...iety-depression

Από τις γνωστές περιπτώσεις αυτός και ο Royce White είχαν το θάρρος να το αφήσουν να βγει προς τα έξω.
Για τον White με είχε απασχολήσει η περίπτωση, είχα γράψει και ένα άρθρο στο blog, όταν το κράταγα κάπως πιο ζωντανό...
http://nba-observer.blogspot.gr/2014/12/royce-white.html

Γνώμη μου ότι δε θα ήταν το ιδανικό περιβάλλον γι' αυτόν σε μια επιστροφή στο Milwaukee, σε καμία περίπτωση.

Ο σαντερς το σοβαρο προβλημα που ειχε ηταν με ναρκωτικα,ειχε χασει και πολλα παιχνιδια λογω αποτυχημενων drug tests
Τωρα αν αυτο τον οδηγησε στην καταθλιψη η η καταθλιψη σε αυτο δεν ξερω

Μετά από αποτυχημένες προσπάθειες να ακολουθήσει το άκαμπτο -σε προσαρμογές γι' αυτόν- πρόγραμμα των Rockets, ο White με τους δικηγόρους του προσπάθησε να διεκδικήσει την εισαγωγή ενός "mental health protocol" ως ενσωματωμένο όρο στο επαγγελματικό του συμβόλαιο.

"If I was an NBA player now without the protocols and safety measures,I would be risking my health, risking my life. What comes along with mental health if left untreated? Alcohol abuse, marijuana abuse, suicidal behavior, homicidal behavior, those are things I'm not willing to risk to play basketball, to have money, to have fame. That's it."

LONG PAST OVERDUE: MENTAL HEALTH & THE NBA

By Royce White

Dear,
NBA
NBPA
ALL AFFILIATED ENTITIES

I.THE PROLOGUE

There is no conceivable efficacy in avoiding this topic any longer. Mental health is THEE social issue of our time. It is the crux of who we are. It is the continuum that we use to measure the way we think, feel and interact. It is so much more than the classifications of the DSM. Mental health includes everyone on planet. Our willingness or unwillingness to acknowledge that continuum does not and will never exclude us from it. The field of mental health is certainly not without its shortcomings. It is however oriented around the MIND, which is the base of our reality. Individual complexity and the complexity of society are growing exponentially in tandem. As a consequence, there’s an increase in the underlying angst that is fundamental to being human. Stress, anxiety, depression and trauma are wall-to-wall. Spiritually, as we become further detached from God we are scrambling to supplement our divine meaning. We continue to fill that void with resent and many other things upon the realization that our replacements are inadequate. Modern science has helped us to better articulate our psychological experience and status. Reports of mental health conditions are at an all time high. Frighteningly this uptick in reporting still leaves them majorly underreported and underserved. Mental health conditions are now more common than cancer, heart disease and diabetes COMBINED. However, it’s estimated that a staggering 65 percent of people with mental health conditions still go undiagnosed. As is consistent with any human problem, procrastination almost always augments the extremity and desperation of the eventual flashpoint. From the more sinister conditions like cancer, heart disease and diabetes, down to bone fractures, we see that delayed identification and intervention hinders the effectiveness of treatment. HEALTH has in general always been a good medium to observe this phenomena.

As a SOCIETY, we must find and commit to ways of supporting those who are struggling and simultaneously help them thrive. We must do this with immediacy. That effort starts with GENUINE care, Being more honest about our true nature and our ability to choose past that nature, and Redefining our goals to create better standards. Hopefully that will begin to transform a culture of rabid distrust into one that’s more transparent.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with me, it’s necessary that I give you context and debunk the myths before we proceed. Here is a snapshot of my journey. In 2012 I was drafted by the Houston Rockets. I came into the NBA with COMPLETE DISCLOSURE of my pre-existing diagnosis of Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). Despite the editorial intro that has so commonly been the synopsis of my story, my inability to manage anxiety WAS NOT the cause of my "career derailment.” My choice to live transparently, collaboratively and safely was. As my first season in the NBA approached, Houston and I began to discuss how to foster a supportive environment. My motivation was to connect some dots on the psychological psuedo-science I was presented with in my pre-draft process. During the discussions with Houston, my management team and I were shocked to discover there were NO FORMAL MENTAL HEALTH POLICIES. In response, I attempted to formalize a written agreement that would modify existing policies to encompass mental health. The proposal we suggested included ALL TEAM PERSONNEL, not just PLAYERS. That proposal was tacitly denied. It was during this time that birth was given to a narrative behind the scenes that I was simply ”AWOL” and non-compliant. This was mostly the work of Daryl Morey and maybe others that I am not aware of. That narrative was untrue and drove me to Twitter and other media outlets to exonerate myself. Interview after interview, I made it clear that our concerns were regarding mental health AWARENESS, ACKNOWLEDGEMENT and PROTOCOL. In the media, that was morphed into innuendo that mental illness was anomalous and hard to constitute. In many ways this disregarded the legitimacy of the entire mental health field. My opinion that mental illness was a pandemic was mocked and called “radical.” Within two weeks I was seeing some of the negative effects the ensuing conversation was going to have on the collective. A topic that was already dangerously taboo was now at the mercy of the fast and loose news format. In the internal talks, those speaking on behalf of the NBA communicated that the main fear and rejection of our proposed mental health policy was that it would create an unconstrained opportunity for players to FAKE MENTAL ILLNESSES. I disagreed with that ALLEGATION on a foundational level. If you’re willing to be thrown into a demographic that is universally neglected and stigmatized by FAKING mental illness, you probably DO HAVE A MENTAL ILLNESS. And that’s ridiculous on a 2nd level: Trained Doctors are the best available recourse to oversee mental health planning / treatment and also to detect any malingering. It’s just flat out dangerous to grant autonomy of mental health decision making to coaches, general managers, or owners who are often completely unknowing of any mental health science. Despite my disagreements with the “faking” premise, we continued our dialogue that had by then become highly contentious. At the time it seemed like Houston and the NBA were upset that I had taken to twitter -- but there was likely more frustration that their own doctors wouldn’t play coy in the sandbox. All the doctors were in agreement, and I could see how incensed that was making the higher ups. I and many others involved took exception to the claim that my busing to games would considered as a “salary cap infringement” by the NBA. How dishonest. -- That was a disgusting display of bureaucratic double-dealing. -- Even more worrisome, we feared the possibility that the Houston Rockets were using the “league” as a pretext for their own discontentments. The Houston Rockets only eventually agreed to provide a bus after I said I’d seek litigation if accommodating my pre-existing medical condition wasn't in play under salary cap policy, (While there was also no existing mental health policy for that same condition). My family physicians, the medical personnel of the Houston Rockets, and those of the NBA all saw this lack of mental health awareness as immeasurably problematic. They also agreed that while the problem was serious, it was somewhat fixable. They were optimistic that with a little bit of thought and teamwork, policy could be created and that it would be extremely beneficial to all of the players and support staff of the entire league. Many in the media have relayed a story that Daryl Morey forwarded, about Houston’s attempts to “BEND OVER BACKWARDS” for me. NOT true. If you’re involved in a medical discussion and you don’t surrender your ineptitudes to your own medical experts - you are not bending over backwards for anyone – nor even dealing in good faith. Although the Houston Rockets were consistently combative to medical input, they did eventually concede something: A verbal promise that later in the 2013 off-season they would indeed help us formalize a mental health policy. Unironically, when that off-season came, I was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers and the policy was never mentioned again.

My claim that policy didn’t exist has now been verified over the last 5 years by a variety of people from within the NBA. This includes players, coaches, GM’s, former team doctors and psychologists. National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) director Michelle Roberts recently described the attention to the mental health topic as "NAIVE".

For some reason much of the coverage of my story has continued to belittle that very reality. I was labeled by the media as “The kid from Iowa State who couldn’t play because he couldn’t FLY.” I was written off by SOME within the league as a “head-case” out of an anger at my daring to challenge the status quo -- (or just my general inclination to critically think). I would hope by now most of you know how untrue the flying narrative was and STILL is. But ask yourselves how this story was so thoroughly disseminated in the first place. If this actually happens to be your very first time reading about me, I’ll clarify this once again... I ABSOLUTELY do not like to fly. I’m NOT RESERVED about that. I’ve always maintained that I AM STILL ABLE TO FLY when necessary and most often without incident. The only TRAVEL accommodation request I’ve ever made was to be afforded the option to bus to games IF NEEDED and WHEN POSSIBLE. (In addition to policy, that accommodation was also agreed upon and recommended by ALL the medical professionals involved - including the NBA’s and Houston’s). Throughout my career I have played in numerous games that required me to fly. I’ve even played in games WHILE HAVING A PANIC ATTACK. I have never had to leave a game due to anxiety -- (Not to say that isn’t a possibility, or to cast any judgements on those who do). Kevin Love’s story verified that panic that disrupts play does not have to inhibit you from all-star level performance over the course of a season. Insightfully, he too described the mental health demographic as “everyone”.

By the 2015 season I had become ostracized for my advocacy. This was evident and even verbally admitted. Team after team spoke of me as being a player with all-star level ability that was a risk of becoming a distraction. Looking back on it, the simple fact that advancing mental health was seen as a distraction kind of reaffirms just how urgent reform was and still is. Later in 2015 I wrote to you, the NBA, and AGAIN asked that we work in collaboration to properly address the attitude and operation toward mental health within the NBA community. I felt strongly that together we could achieve transformative progress through experiences like my own and many others, players and non. ONCE AGAIN, there were a number of mental health professionals from around the worldwho expressed a readiness to help bridge the gap between folk-lore and science. Much to my disappointment, there was little response to that letter. Despite that dismissal, 3 years later the first written acknowledgment of mental health entered the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). A part of me was proud of that movement. However, I’ve never been big on moral victories. The other part of me felt like I and many others (humanity at large), were slapped in the face by this gesture. The new language in the CBA basically states, “we will tackle mental health in the future.” Is it not both arrogant and condescending to POST DATE a policy that you’re 20 years late on? Today we are faced with even more distortion. The incentive toward superficiality has exacerbated. Economic prosperity, brand visibility and the fan engagement of the NBA is at an all-time high. WE ARE ALL immersed in a steady windfall of unique technological advancement and social connectivity. I continue to fear that the impetus toward true comprehensive health is stifled.

In the face of a CONTINUED mental health discussion within sports and our greater society, I am deeply compelled to write to you again. Only this time we need to have a very different conversation.

II. INCEPTION

This season the world saw three very good NBA players (Kevin Love, Demar Derozan & Kelly Oubre) make global headlines. These men BRAVELY disclosed their own mental health struggles with the public. However, they were not the first and MORE IMPORTANTLY they won’t be the last. Recent studies have shown that athletes may be even more predisposed to mental health struggles than other citizens. That research is what prompted the NCAA to advance their mental health attitudes a couple years ago. Over time many players have shared their mental health struggles. A better perspective though is to say that when players share ANY STRUGGLE, they are sharing a struggle with some type of mental health component. Sometimes players have battled internal demons for their entire career. As admirable as such testimony is, years of improperly bearing these heavy burdens can result in serious general health complications such as addiction, diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease in addition to the psychological detriment. It is a very common trajectory for individuals to deal with mental health REACTIVELY. The most notable case of a completely PROACTIVE approach in the NBA may certainly be my own. Sadly when I challenged policy and advocated for my own health, people within my own support system feared the peripheral effects of my public castigation. They worried many players wouldn’t discuss their plights going forward due to the condemnation that was crystallizing around my story. Although I didn’t want to believe it, they were somewhat right. Over the past 5-6 years I’ve been contacted by hundreds of players that have expressed many of their various mental health afflictions. Unfortunately many of them have also expressed an apprehension to share those afflictions with their team or the public.

Now as I reflect, I am seared by the thought of all the younger non-professional athletes who may have also been discouraged to share there battles because of my situation. I receive weekly disclosures from people who aren’t athletes at all or even sports fans for that matter. They too BRAVELY talk about their mental health with me, a complete stranger. I feel indescribably appreciative of that. Given what I know about inner turmoil and stigma, I understand that individuals sharing their hardship is A PRIVILEGE and even more an OPPORTUNITY. I enjoy the chance to help those I can, but I often still wonder just how many peoples fear to share was shaped by our dispute. A great deal of athletes aren’t discussing mental health out of an awareness that it’ll have a negative impact on their athletic standing and consequently their overall social standing. That knowledge is validated by years of being judged under a microscope and watching fellow athletes torn down by gossip. Information that is made public about ANY OF US does ultimately effect our standing within a community. Although it maybe shouldn't, it at least doesn’t have to happen through a vacuum of superstition.

As seen in the recent case of my compatriot Demar Derozan, he used “sacrificial lamb” to describe his admission of battling depression. I don’t believe that “sacrificial lamb” was just a turn of phrase...

He was establishing that he viewed his disclosure as a threat. THAT SHOULD’VE BEEN COVERED AS A RED FLAG IN ITS OWN RIGHT. He intuited that BEING HONEST ABOUT HIS REALITY IS GROUNDS TO MAKE HIM AN OSTRACIZED, CAST ASIDE, SACRIFICIAL LAMB. Headlines should have read “THE NBA HAS NOT MADE IT OKAY TO DISCUSS MENTAL HEALTH BUT DEMAR DROZAN DOES HELP US ALL ANYWAY.” Instead, the same media that fears having their press credentials taken, protected a false god once again. This is still playing out as we near the end of the current season. In a desire for an antithetical hero, the media now pits the NBA as culturally progressive juxtaposed against the NFL; This is a false catharsis driven by incompetence and half truths. -- We are societally frustrated with incompetence and half truths itself! -- The most accurate measurement is the NBA and NFL are very similar. Somebody still owes Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf a public apology.

(Side-note: I find it downright appalling how much sports media has become so mercenary. Access to NBA pressers, that are mostly mundane and repetitive, have become the compromising leverage against journalistic integrity. Journalism has to mean more to us -- it is maybe the most important mechanism of an evolving civilization.)

The chronology of Demar Derozan’s career indicates that it may have taken him 9 years to feel secure enough to speak publicly about something as common as depression. That 9 years includes the last 5 years where I and other players have publicly raised mental health into the spotlight. For some of you, people staying silent like Derozan was the intended effect of my basketball exile... To serve as a reminder that anybody who pushes too far, truth bearing or not, will be forced back into line or out completely. (A silence that is not a stigma reserved for mental health.) When you have a poor understanding of the domain (mental health) that you’re dealing with it’s easy to disregard reasonable parameters. The group you purported to be outliers has quickly shifted into the standard. You’ve lost the reigns on a psychological monopoly. This has now played out, thrusting the NBA into a state of DAMAGE CONTROL. These most recent public sentiments regarding mental health are not an attempt to reconcile lack of policy or fundamentally improve the attitude; WELLNESS has been forced on the NBA, not accepted or embraced by it. It is therefore NOT a genuine effort and cannot be the foundation of the change needed.

“The NBA supports our fans, families, and communities by promoting healthy minds and bodies and increasing awareness around emotional well-being. We are all on the same team when it comes to looking out for each other and making a difference for someone who is struggling.”

That is the statement from the “Mind Health” web page. It’s a part of the NBA Cares newly launched mental health initiative. What comes next may not look familiar to you, but it should. It’s a paraphrase from the letter I addressed to you 3 years ago. It most likely was never distributed amongst our NBA community. Commissioner Silver probably didn’t feel it was important enough to share with everyone. He did make it known to me that he had received and read the letter. If you didn’t read it, here are a few excerpts from it:

“I believe men, women and children in this country and around the world should be able to seek support no matter their circumstances. They should believe that they are important no matter who or where they are, and especially no matter what they have. I will not join in sending a message that to self-advocate, to be transparent and to expect humanity is reserved only for those who are successful.”

“I wish to continue to discuss establishing the necessary mental health policies that we desperately need in our league. It is my hope and belief we can find a way to create a better circumstance, a better clarity for our players, our league, all of our families and loved ones, extended communities and young people to which we serve as role models. Maybe we can even serve as a beacon and example of necessary progress to all that the NBA brand reaches. Today is a time where genuine action is more necessary than ever.”

After “ two decades” of engagement with mental health issues (as former commissioner David Stern once put it), this “mind health” statement is just not embodied. That statement was probably written by a very good marketing person or one of the mental health advocates at the JED foundation. This advocate seems to understand the magnitude of mental health . The ethos of that statement expresses a scope of mental health that the league’s policies and attitudes do not. The NBA and commissioner Silver have only opportunistically seized on the public desperation to have mental health superficially and thus prematurely, recognized. (This is another false catharsis.)

III. STERNLY DISANCHORED

I want to take you back to NBA All-Star Weekend in 2013. During a presser in Houston,

David Stern was asked by a reporter if my situation represented the first time the league had dealt with mental health issues. Stern responded by dating the NBA’s awareness and intervention with mental health issues as “years” and even “decades” old. In retrospect these comments clarified that mental health had long been IDENTIFIED, CONSIDERED AND NOT CODIFIED. This illustrates that at the time of my initial conflict with the league, the perspective on mental health was severely under-developed from the top down. (In all fairness to Mr. Stern, the premise of the question was a non starter. My situation TECHNICALLY couldn’t have been the first point of contact with mental health issues for the NBA. There’s been mental health issues in the NBA since it’s INCEPTION. That belief is default and grounded in the fact that mental heath is an inherent part of being human, as is hardship.)

“Does anybody remember (Metta World Peace, the former Ron Artest) thanking his therapist at the Finals when the (2010 Lakers) won the championship?”

This was another part of Stern’s response to the question about the league’s history with mental health issues. The tone is very matter of fact. Ironically, the statement amplifies his lack of mental health aptitude. In an attempt to show his familiarity, he demonstrates that HIS understanding of the mental health landscape is a complete caricature. He immediately sensationalized mental health by crudely presenting Metta World Peace as a paragon. A player who had at that time recently made his own mental health struggles public. It was an example that carried with it the historical context of the rare brawl, “Malice at the Palace”. Violence is an extreme of mental health outcomes, it does not well represent the “functioning” portion of the mental health spectrum that my own anxiety disorder occupies. The functioning portion of the mental health spectrum is the overwhelming majority, and mostly non-violent I might add. (Just as Metta World Peace is mostly non-violent within the context of his ENTIRE career.) Even the most malevolently violent individuals in history spent many more days being non-violent than violent. This statement by Mr. Stern was weaponized or imprudent and didn’t pay the proper respect to the mental health of myself or Metta World Peace. I am now more confident inferring that was some of Mr. Stern's motive for ordering NBA league management to stay out of my situation with Houston: He feared his inability to weave through a public discourse without having to answer some questions that would've likely exposed his own NEGLIGENCE. Also in this statement, Stern implicitly asserts that Metta World Peace thanking his psychiatrist was in some way a symbol to the NBA’s longstanding history of consideration, progression and compassion for mental health. Unfortunately, by my count the NBA goes a whopping 0-2 in the Metta World Peace example.

“Malice in the Palace” is a situation that boasts a very loose grasp on the concept of mental health. Metta World Peace was assessed a year long suspension, after being attacked by a fan, during a physical altercation with an opposing player at an opposing arena. When watching the footage of that commotion, it reveals Metta World Peace at one point laying flat on his back at the scores table. This is a position I’m sure many of us with anxiety know as a technique of reset and relaxation. It can also be used to curtail rage. I was 13 years old at the time of that brawl, three years prior to my own anxiety diagnosis. To Metta’s credit, it seemed as though he had attempted to engage his own PROTOCOLS for managing his condition(s) prior to the melee. I’d be curious to see how that effort from him was weighed in measuring his culpability when deciding his punishment, if at all. While we’re looking under that rock, let’s examine the penalties of the others players as well. Some of them may have mental health struggles that are kept private or undiscovered. The statistics of 2 out of 3 people with mental illness going undiagnosed strongly supports that possibility. In recognition of the “fight or flight” mechanism of the brain, why whip and lambast players that were in an arena where drunk fans were coming onto the court by the dozens? In replaying the footage, you can see Indiana players being harassed by fans hurling drinks, food, and other objects at them as they made their way back into the locker room. I thought the PUBLIC RESPONSE should’ve have been something like “We the NBA apologize to our patrons AND players for the sequence of events that unfolded. We have a selective relationship with the realities of inebriation.” With his actual statement Stern struck again with a staunch disposition of allegiance to the brand and an insultingly high expectation of the players. After the incident, while announcing the suspensions, he makes light of his "unanimous" decision to suspend Metta World Peace for "crossing an immutable line". Im puzzled, if theres any basis for an immutable line, how would it not conversely be in the direction of the 20,000 fans encroaching on 15 basketball players. Jokes aside, the same tenacious defender and enforcer that Metta World Peace had been praised as was in that moment used against him. What type of racket is that??

Metta’s return from basketball purgatory and his navigation through the stigma and whatever inner turmoil HE FACED reflects METTA’s individual capacity to persevere far more than the NBA’s empathy.

Circling back to the aforementioned 2013 interview during All-Star Weekend, David Stern overlooks DRUGS and ALCOHOL ABUSE as a much better example of mental health conditions and their prevalence within the league -- Much better than Metta World Peace. This is particularly strange given that ALCOHOL was such an obvious component of “Malice in the Palace” and the drug and alcohol “clean up” is considered one of the hallmarks of Stern’s tenure. It definitely has been maintained as a point of emphasis for the PLAYER consumption policies. The league has often shown they are mostly concerned with safe-guarding the brand, and not so much the consideration of clinical research and treatments to deal with addictions and their many underlying causes. The Larry Sanders story showed us this punitive interplay. Those types of analysis must be at least a part of how we evaluate the NBA’s history of “dealing” with mental health.

Since David Stern missed that opportunity and many others, I’ll establish homage for Mitchell Wiggins, Michael Ray Richardson, Roy Tarpley, Chris Herron, Vin Baker, Jayson Williams, Keon Clark, Eddie Griffin (RIP), Lamar Odom, Ty Lawson, Larry Sanders, O.J. Mayo and countless others. Although they all played their roles in consumption (with some degree of moral culpability, regardless of whether we as a society agree to what extent moral responsibility plays a part in substance use), they definitely had to co-exist within an irresponsible consumption culture. If there’s any truth to the cliché that you’re a product of your environment, we should be thankful that even more athletes have not succumbed to alcoholism. The NBA workplace is inundated with drunkenness for 82 or more nights per year.

It’s laughably dishonest when you apply “product of your environment” or “guilt by affiliation” only when sitting in judgment of players and their upbringing, personal relationships, or “entourages.”

In the interest of not sensationalizing the topic of mental health any more, we should acknowledge all the players who had and/or have issues with drugs or alcohol that remain hidden. Let’s also recognize ALL of the players with completely undiscovered mental health issues, drug and alcohol related or not. Many have suffered in complete silence. We see how these issues can metastasize into more serious problems (RIP RASUAL BUTLER). This is in some part due to the NBA’s voluntary non-engagement with the mental health field and a perpetuated stigma within its ecosystem. This is not an interplay exclusive to the players and management; it also exists within management. To give a personal example of this drug stigma, I myself have been referred to as a “weed-head” over recent years by some of you. Even though I’ve maintained a very disciplined non-engagement with ANY TYPE of drugs. Partly because my first panic attack, at 16, was induced by my first and last marijuana encounter and produced an aversion to it. More saliently because MY ENGAGEMENT with the mental health field has educated me on how predisposed you are to unhealthy coping mechanism like drugs, SPECIFICALLY marijuana, when you have an ANXIETY DISORDER. I’ve never failed a drug test, and I’m notoriously known as an avid non drug user in my social circles. It makes me glaringly see how an important issue like drug use can haphazardly cross into the domain of gossip. For somebody like myself with a disposition fierce enough to challenge the league on policy and morality and ethics, this isn’t so damaging personally. But for SOME this type of cattiness can be a significant producer of shame and deterrence.

It’s one thing to be afflicted with stress, anxiety, depression, trauma, etc. To wrestle with shame on top of those gorillas is usually exacerbating. Exterior environments should refrain from such contributions.

Paradoxically David Stern’s most recent advocacy of removing marijuana from the NBA’s banned substance list is quite peculiar, wouldn’t you say? I watched that media coverage play out with a very bad taste in my mouth. All I could think of was the enormous number of players past and present who have had their careers severely impacted by an archaic view on marijuana. Most of that happened on David Stern’s watch. To publicize this opinion only shortly after stepping down as the commissioner seems like a grandstand in an attempt to appear to be culturally progressive. There is a societal momentum toward the decriminalization of marijuana. However, per the topic, much of the movement toward decriminalizing marijuana comes in concession to its potential positive medical effects, its COMORBIDITY with MENTAL ILLNESS and its historical judicial ethno-racial prejudice. The marijuana decriminalization is LONG PAST OVERDUE. It is yet another example of systemically neglecting science that is very much settled.

TO BE VERY CLEAR. I’m not saying people or fans shouldn’t be able to drink alcohol. I’m not even saying people shouldn’t be able to drink alcohol at sporting events. People should be able to enjoy themselves how they choose, as long as they do it responsibly. I am saying that we should consider what we mean by a “family environment”, which sporting events are champions of. What do we think about grown men & women getting drunk in front of their own and other people’s children?, In an explicitly child-friendly space? Is that honoring what we know about child development or families? Is it unreasonable to establish a cutoff? -- On the other hand we internally punish marijuana users in the interest of the perceptions of that same public. The research suggests when you SCARE individuals to choose away from their vice of choice (marijuana) without addressing the underlying causes (mental health) you’re only pushing them toward a substitute like alcohol. I believe people need to be equipped to make informed decisions about their consumption. Note: This concern far transcends just the NBA, within the world of sports. Should our institutions that profit from vice assist in painting a more grounded picture?

I took the time to expound on a FEW of David Stern’s comments because of his thirty year position at the helm of the NBA. Some of these blatant contradictions should beckon us all to further examine his moral and ethical stewardship of the league and subsequently the health of its players. While still holding in high regard his role in the globalization of the game, these selected comments speak VOLUMES as to why mental health had been ignored during his time as commissioner. I say that while accepting that the commissioner position carries with it a level of uniqueness and is subject to dynamics that often only other commissioners understand. Ironically many of our leaders, globally, suffer from the same trust estranged culture that creates mental health stigma. In many professional roles, unadulterated truth is not an efficacious strategy for self-preservation. When in doubt tell the truth, or at least explain why you can’t.

IV. ARMAGEDDON

As citizens of America, we are all witness to the tremendous chaos of our times. The tragedies are stacking up all around us. Suicides are up to nearly 45,000 annually. White males accounting for 7 out of 10 of those (though they are only 30% of the general population). Our VETERANS have a horrendous rate of 22 suicides per day, (Side note: If we’re going to discuss patriotism, respecting the anthem and our troops, our efforts better be starting there, especially since both the NFL and our troops SHARE a common enemy: psychological health deterioration.)

Suicide is now the 2nd leading cause of death in young people. The transgender community has the most alarming suicide attempt statistics in America, reporting a rate of 41 percent. If that doesn’t adequately depict the sorrow we face, our doctors, who we trust to keep us healthy, have the highest suicide rate of ANY PROFESSION. That is NOT TO DISCREDIT the psychological stability of doctors, actually it’s to praise their emotional resilience. Their proximity to death is inordinate and scary for most of us to even abstractly reflect on. Hauntingly, that’s only highlighting the mental health fringe of suicide. When you see those stats in sequence, it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that ONE SUICIDE IS ALREADY ONE TOO MANY. It’s also easy to forget that while suicide and homicide are the worst possible outcomes, LIVING in perpetual turmoil is happening far more and BOTH NEED TO BE REELED IN.

But for now to continue highlighting suicide and homocide, the police-civilian relations paradigm is a great laboratory to observe ripples in a pond. A MINORITY of our police and civilians cannot seem to find a point of understanding or trust. They continue to echo frustration, fear, and, in the end, violence. What is not readily mentioned in these discourses surrounding cop-civilian relations is the suicide rate of 1 police officer every 81 hours. More police officers are lost annually to suicide than by motor-vehicles and gunfire combined. It is estimated that for every cop suicide, 1000 officers continue to work while suffering from PTSD. This reality has to be playing a role in the re-emerging problem of excessive force -- the question is how big is that role? In my opinion it’s very significant. The black community quite transparently harbors a deep and warranted fear of unjust treatment from police that’s entrenched in a similar treatment from the greater American system. We are forced to address crime in this country in some manner, the question is how? Besides those troubling surface observations, there are still many unresolved questions. One in particular that interests me is genetic transferability of trauma. It prompts the question of just how prevalent are the residual psychological effects of a unique 250+ year slavery? Is it possible that ON ALL SIDES, latent programs of racism and trauma are nestled in the subconscious and then manifested through environmental factors? Like in policing or maybe even OWNER/MANAGER/EMPLOYEE paradigms.

The abomination of young men going into schools and shooting their brothers and sisters is the most tragic reality we are witnessing in America. No matter where you fall on the gun debate, it can't be ignored that in the history of our country these specific horrors have never been seen in such frequency.

Mental health has become a regurgitated straw man for the debate on gun control. Although it is actually the best anchor for that debate, the context is obscured by political agenda. Better background checks to screen gun buyers for mental illness is a very reasonable idea. We do have pretty decent tools to identify mental health conditions, when patients can participate with consistency and honesty. The problem is the majority of individuals afflicted don’t access those tools and when they do, they’re infrequent and not fully honest. THAT is where STIGMA is a huge roadblock. Again to reiterate, our current mental health culture and system leaves 2 out of 3 people with UNDIAGNOSED mental health conditions. I fear that Pro gun Americans don’t quite understand that many of them could technically and rightly be diagnosed with mental illness under clinical guidelines. The same goes for millions of anti-gun Americans. Under normal circumstances AN INCREASE IN DIAGNOSIS AND ESSENTIAL ACCESS TO MENTAL HEALTH CARE WOULD BE AN INCREDIBLE SOCIAL IMPROVEMENT. While still true, in the polarity of today it would also put many at risk of losing their gun rights completely. It's easy to deduce that the qualification for gun ownership being based on mental health status, could become the new disincentive for individuals to evade much needed diagnosis. That would compound the existing stigma that is currently out of control and predominately only social in nature. The attempt to moderate gun safety with psychological fiat could severely undermine the most important conversation in the history of our species: mental health. And I don’t see anyone in society or the political landscape piecing this together. I AM NOT SAYING WE GET RID OF GUNS (although ultimately it may need to be seriously considered). I don’t see a trajectory of individual enlightenment that would render guns considerably safer anytime soon. There isn’t a mental health measuring system that can cover the mobility of our psyche and its capacity to be pathological or innocently reckless. We need to be EXTREMELY cautious when interjecting mental health into the gun debate without the utmost consideration and objectivity. Personally I would suggest we entertain putting down the guns for a moment to at least get a reasonable grasp on our psychological constraints. To better show just how this suggested gun reform is truly a “shot from the hip”, we can look to our aforementioned demographic of police officers. A DISTRAUGHT group of Americans (police) are given guns everyday, with the expectation that the usage will be methodical and compassionate. We are broken when that doesn’t happen.

Before going to play in Canada, I had seven guns pointed at me in a supposed "mistaken identity" situation. Now when I see police cars I prepare myself for death. I see them often, I can physically feel the fear swell up, followed by anger and periodic flashbacks. That isn’t how our law abiding citizens should feel as they go about their daily lives. I also have many friends and family members who are officers and in my anger and distrust, I still HAVE TO FIND compassion for the harm they face everyday in their WORKPLACE.

Those were just three of the “hot spot” issues that currently magnify the societal dangers of continued mental health lip service. Three more subtle epidemics that are completely embedded in our society and may be more pernicious are caffeine, dehydration, and sleep disturbance. If that doesn’t encapsulate the hyper dynamic nature of the mental health crisis, only you eclipsing your own despair threshold will.

While the majority of achieving and maintaining wellness is an individual endeavor, we must acknowledge the role of socializing structures as potential conduits or obstructions to that ambition.

V. THE AUTOPSY

This was an excerpt from the charter of our leagues mandatory, Rookie Transition Program that I attended shortly after being drafted. It was placed at the end of the first letter I wrote to you.

There is a special emphasis on Character, Ethics and Leadership, the Importance of Positive Images as well as Personal and Social Responsibility."

You may wonder why I have pushed so insistently for the NBA to engage the mental health topic over the last 5 years. First order of course is the basic health of the players, all of the employees and also the owners. Though outside of that the NBA influences millions, if not billions of individuals directly. That influence is not only in their love of sports, but their integration with modern culture. As a lifelong athlete, I have willingly subscribed to the notion that I am by default a role model. At a young age I recognized my unequaled ability to lead. I take that quality very seriously. At times I have let God down by neglecting and misusing that gift. I am and will pay for those transgressions. Now I ASK YOU, if athletes are role models by default, is the same not true for the leagues that broker their talent; the networks that distribute that talent; and ALL OTHERS THAT ARE EQUALLY COMPLICIT? Is the NBA itself not a role model?, ESPN (Walt Disney)?, ABC?, TNT?, State Farm?, Verizon?, Nike?, Spalding?, Budweiser? How about more peripheral sponsors? Coca-Cola, Gatorade, Kia, Chevron, Jack Daniels, KAISER PERMANENTE, etc.? Is mental health avoidance by an amalgamated institution of this size not a microcosm of the avoidance by us all? Is this leadership? Is this the way to shape our world?

I’ve spent a great deal of time explaining some of the depth and nuance of the mental health landscape. I can’t say enough about the need for us to confront this issue with open minds and hearts. Our very existence is counting on properly expediting our enlightenment. Although mental health is undoubtedly the bedrock of this letter, the MOHO is hidden deeper in a sediment that has continued to be expressed by numerous people in our industry. “You’re too smart for your own good”. I pray that in my older age, intellectual insecurity and fear of change will never cause me to discourage the anomaly of existential journeymen -- visionary crusaders. That message came from older white men. I won’t overlook the vivid historical context of premeditated attempts to suppress black intellect in America. To suggest that it was foolish to focus my attention on THEE SOCIAL ISSUE OF OUR TIME sounds strikingly like “shut up and dribble”. That comment is not intended in any way to race bait. I will hopefully split the difference by sharing that there are a number of my fellow “white” brothers and sisters whom have been significant supporters in my standing for morality and ethics. I do feel like race has played a significant role in my situation. However, I mention it with inference that mental health includes, but ALSO greatly supersedes race. The fear of intelligence and change is not exclusive to the American paradigm of “black and white”. That human proclivity has archetypal emergence.

We’ve erected a unique world. PHILOSOPHICAL CURRENCY is our best option to realign us to a path of virtue. Those amongst us that commit to that can’t justifiably be labeled “lost and confused”. We ARE “noble” and we are the observers of the meta-temporal. Adrian Wojnarowski once claimed with an air of surety that “Without the NBA, (my) desire to bring awareness – to be a champion for change – will come to an unapologetic and abrupt end.” This type of thought process fails to see that the human condition (struggle) connects us many orders below the surface of sports stories or their writers. Both of which could be of great service or harm to the mental health conversation. Regardless, those of us with “noble intentions” maintain a level of gravity within that nobility. We will always lead, we are not in NEED of propagation. Humanity has a chance to turn an evolutionary corner through the psychological domain. We should let the mental health topic galvanize our deepest desires to right our world and realize some of America’s founding aspirations.

“The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” – Psalm 118:22

Be Well

Royce Alexander White

P.S. I welcome any of you who wish to continue these conversations and collaborate on truly advancing this issue. I’m hopeful that for a number of you most of this letter’s contents come as quite a surprise. At least from the accounts that involve various operational matters. It’s very easy for information to be miscommunicated. The media has definitely played a major role in that, which is why I’ll continue to show up and right any of those wrongs. Clarity is the short and long term goal of wellness conversations. Also, I’m completely capable and willing to play (basketball) and I always have been. In the interest of getting a chance to settle any disputes about my game or my claim of “top 5” basketball pedigree, I retract my request to bus to any games. I do not retract that it was medically recommended or a reasonable request. However I no longer accept “martyrdom” as a result of necessary progress.

My game has more it wants to say than my pen does.