WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES AUGUST 19, 2021 13
Becoming your own champion starts with
a reality check of your mental health
BY ANNIKA T. D’ANDREA
In a few short weeks, Queens will
resume its annual tradition of welcoming
the world’s best tennis players
and the sports’ enthusiasts to Flushing
Meadows Corona Park. All eyes will
undoubtedly be on Naomi Osaka, who
over the last few months has received
both praise and criticism for her decision
to withdraw from the French
Open, citing mental health reasons.
Up until this pivotal moment,
Osaka had used her global platform
to address systemic racism and police
brutality. She was intentional on using
her platform to “say their names”
during the 2020 tennis season when
she wore protective face masks bearing
the names of victims like George
Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud
Arbery.
Osaka’s decision to set boundaries
in an eff ort to protect her mental wellbeing
has had wide-ranging positive
impact. Athletes like Kyrie Irving and
Michael Phelps came to her defense
for shedding much-needed light on
the mental health strains they endure
during competition as well as press
conferences with journalists. People
from all walks of life were also able
to relate to her, particularly those who
experienced mental health strains
exacerbated by the pandemic.
The cultural impact of Osaka’s
decision is very profound. As a Japanese
Haitian athlete, she’s helping destigmatize
discussions around mental
health in Black American, Caribbean
and countless cultures throughout
the world where acknowledging issues
like depression and anxiety, and
seeking help, are taboo.
While most people are familiar
with Wimbledon, the U.S. Open is
one of several dozen tournaments in
which tennis players compete. This
results in an incredible amount of
pressure on tennis players to excel
on the court, and still reserve enough
mental energy to speak with reporters
about their performance shortly
aft er each match — win or lose.
I grew up during a time when male
tennis players were given a pass for
unruly and unsportsmanlike behavior
on the court. Male athletes in every
sport are still allowed to have a bad
day and not suff er the level of scrutiny
that Osaka has faced for prioritizing
her mental health and empowering
others to do the same. We were once
again reminded of the mental health
toll athletes endure when Simone
Biles temporarily withdrew from the
OP-ED
Tokyo Olympics because she didn’t
realize just how stressful the competition
was becoming.
Athletes are not robots, and their
sole purpose is not just to “shut up
and dribble” — or hit a ball with their
racket. Osaka is human, and like many
of us, she is trying to fi gure out how
to overcome diffi cult situations. Resilience
is learning that even though we
face adversities, we are able to develop
strategies that will allow us to combat
those adversities, cope and become
stronger individuals.
A key aspect of building resilience
is normalizing mental health discussions.
This is the best way to help
individuals recognize that caring for
mental health is the same as receiving
care for a physical ailment.
So when the U.S. Open starts, I’ll
be rooting for Naomi Osaka, and
challenging others with as big a platform
as hers to be agents of change in
the fi ght to prioritize mental health.
Annika T. D’Andrea is the founder
and CEO of Tender Loving Family
Inc., a New York state-licensed home
health care organization, and TLC
Virtual Resiliency, a group-based, virtual,
custom wellness and resiliencybuilding
program.To learn more, visit
tlcvirtualresiliency.com.
SNAPS
A PEACH TREE GROWS
PHOTO BY LISA KEST-FEIN
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