We Must Talk About Mental Health
Something good must come from Simone Biles’s ordeal
United States Gymnastics recently announced that Simone Biles will return to competition at the Tokyo Olympics. Biles, a phenomenal talent, had pulled out of three individual events — the floor, the vault, and the uneven bars. Biles will return to compete in the balance beam.
While I’m happy to see Biles compete, I’m concerned about whether she’s ready to perform. Biles may be ready physically, but what about mentally? Biles and her team had earlier reported that she suffered from the “twisties” which is slang for vertigo. The “twisties’ is when a gymnast loses sense of where to land while up in the air. Biles, who performs incredible feats of acrobatics, did not feel confident to compete because of the “twisties.” However, her mental well-being was suffering as well.
Biles is used to having her family, boyfriend, and friends in the stands cheering her on. But the audience was banned from seeing athletes compete due to the pandemic. She’s thousands of miles away from home, at a major sporting event, and in a country where COVID-19 is running rampant. In addition, Biles is a superstar, so the pressure to bring home the gold is tremendous. It’s no wonder she pulled out of the competition.
Of course, once Biles pulled out of the events, social media went nuts. While many applauded Biles for the decision to focus on her health, others criticized her for not being a team player. Many conservative pundits, podcasters, and radio hosts spoke of Biles as if she had stormed the Capitol on January 6th. They called her “unamerican” and “weak.”
Mental Health in the United States is still treated as if its taboo. While people talk openly about their physical ailments, mental issues are barely discussed. If they are discussed, the responses can range from supportive to cruel, mostly cruel. That cruelty is wrong and keeps sufferers in a dark place. When it comes to the mind, people don’t understand that it needs to be taken care of just as much as the body — maybe even more so.
Many of the monstrous mass shootings that have occurred in 2021 alone were caused by individuals suffering from mental illness. There have been shootings all across the country from New Jersey to California, often perpetrated by young men. The terror of their crimes hides the fact that these young men had lost their mental strength. If mental health issues are barely discussed openly by women, just imagine the conversation among men. There isn’t one. You don’t hear a peep from men. The stigma to be “manly” and “strong” still impacts the way men live their lives in this country.
Mental Health needs to be a priority in this country. So many people are going through the ordeal of mental illness in silence. This is a grievance plight. Local and state governments must do more to ease the struggle. People need help with the war that is going on in their minds. Just think of all of the crimes that could be prevented if potential criminals had mental health support. More funding is needed to ensure the survival of both the body and the mind.
Simone Biles’s Olympic story is a lesson for us all. Mental Health is important. Everyone can suffer from mental illness at some point in their lives. You may know someone who is suffering as your read this essay. What are you doing to support that person? How are you helping the person feel less vulnerable to discuss their mental illness? We all can do something to help and be champions of Mental Health like Simone Biles.
