Roisin Willis opens up about struggle with insomnia and depression

Yes. To a degree I believe that older generations nagging on Gen Zers for being "soft" is insensitive and ignorant. But we cannot deny the reality that things like social media are literally changing the psyche of younger people--we have a much greater need for validation, attention, perfection, what gets "likes" on instagram. We base our entire beings on these things, so if we don't feel we are getting our needs met, we automatically think we are worthless. Tragic, yes, but I agree--us Gen Zers are incredibly soft!

I say this with a great deal of respect for Roisin--seems like she's real fighter, and more of one that I'll ever be. I thought I had depression for a year or two between high school and college. I was not aware of the things I just explained and could not figure out what was wrong with me. I never went to get medical or psychological treatment (not exactly the "tough" thing to do for a boy), but I wonder if I had I would have been labelled as having depression and given a bottle of medication. Perhaps Roisin has some real needs beyond mine, but I do believe us Gen Zers are over-diagnosed with such conditions.

I was able to overcome a lot of that stuff by taking some time to realize the root of my desires (validation, attention), and working on hedging that down. My faith also played a large role in building back my self worth in a much more healthy way. I hope the best for her!

Thanks for your perspective.

you are a moron

why advertise your ignorance?

That's true and untrue.

Firstly normal men doesn't care about socials at all. Maybe some of them have accounts but no one normal is interested. There is interest maybe in e.g. Ronaldo but, really, who normal cares about Ronaldo? (589 milions absolute morons on Insta). No one cares about, let's say, Charles Hicks, how he looks like, what he ate and what he is doing.

Thus we only have girls / women and here is the problem with plainly speaking international beauty contest.

Of course then we have some ass***es who just want to write something everywhere. So with each Hodgkinson record announcement on WA socials they will write ~"Mu is better", "Wait for Mu" and the like. For Bol they will write ~"SML 50.68" and the like.

Normal, well educated girls have ~1,000-5,000 followers and just post for friends.

I think people often forget that college athletes are in college. I could only imagine the mental pressure that athletes on the top levels put themselves under, especially at a place like Stanford where an expectation of at least a semblance of balance is expected.

For Roisin to come in and excel as she did was a double edged sword. An expectation of success combined with a realization of abilities is a good and a bad thing, and yet, college as it manifests itself, can cause a large mental battle.

I believe a post like this is not for people like us to discuss the motivations behind, however, I would wager it's a positive thing that a semi/world-class athlete is using their platform to show that they, too, struggle with a lot of the problems college students nationwide can struggle with.

I don't understand why people feel the need to judge others for experiencing struggles and sharing them. We don't need to know motivations, but for many, it's both a means of coping and transparency. Makes it easier than having to explain what's going on a thousand times over.

Much like the intro they give to NFL players regarding their money and image etc... I feel these big school athletes should have an orientation for at least a full day from good mentors detailing the importance of staying as far from social media as humanly possible, the low importance of college sports in the grand scheme of their life span, conducting interviews, taking acre of themselves.....

The NCAA does not care about athletes enough to implement something like this.

Having mental struggles has not become a "badge of courage."

For too long, talking about mental health and struggles was considered "taboo." For many it still is. Depression and other mental health afflictions are medical conditions and not something that are made up.

I probably would not choose to share struggles with mental health via social media but if Willis doing so positively affects only one person that may be having similar issues, it will have been worth it for her to do so. Also, we don't really know what her motivation for sharing was. For some it is helpful to get all of that out in the open. It helps them deal with their struggles. Everything isn't always about trying to garner sympathy.

I personally knew two collegians that committed suicide. One was only 20 years old and the other was 21. They were family friends. One was a college athlete at a tier 1 D1 school. The other attended a college that only accepts 5% of applicants. Both were high achievers and very driven. Both also suffered from depression but were not fully open about it. The hid a lot. Most that knew them just viewed them as happy-go-lucky and always in a good mood. It was a facade. If they were more open about their struggles perhaps they would both be here today.

When someone's mental health is struggling, they should not be judged for doing what they believe can help them cope. I am, of course, referring to constructive and positive behaviors. Too many choose destructive behaviors and are not open about their struggles. Those people do not generally fare well. Willis probably feels as if this will help her cope and it is, quite frankly, sickening to read comments that insinuate she is seeking "likes" or trying to earn some sort of a "badge of courage."

Kipchokee, you're an ass. There's no better way to say it. Hopefully someone kicks your ass someday.

Bud Light, I can think of a lot of "adults" that get offended and triggered over the smallest things. "Young kids," as you describe them, are often more resilient and handle criticism better than many so-called adults. Getting easily angered, unhinged, and triggered, seems to be a lot more common these days.

Something is terribly amiss at US colleges, including the most selective schools in the world like Harvard and Stanford - places where the most self-confident and accomplished adolescents on the planet go to prepare for ruling the world. What is going on there?

Here's Bina Patel, Director of Counseling and Psychological Services at Stanford (quoted in 2019).Stanford News (news.stanford.edu, 8/29/19)
"Patel shared the results of one national survey in which 87 percent of students reported feeling overwhelmed by their responsibilities in the past year, and 85 percent said they felt exhausted. Seventy-one percent of students nationwide reported feeling very sad, and 66 percent reported overwhelming anxiety. Furthermore, 24 percent of students surveyed were diagnosed with or treated for anxiety, and 20 percent for depressiion."

In other Stanford news: (SFist 3/10/22)
"With four suicides in 13 months, and new details about goalie Katie Meyer’s circumstances that don’t make the school look good, Stanford promises to beef up mental health resources for students. When star Stanford goalkeeper Katie Meyer was found dead in her dorm room Tuesday of last week, there were immediately unverifiable reports flying around social media that her death was a suicide. Which seemed odd, as Meyer was a classic “everything to live for” 22-year-old. The above image shows the game where she won Stanford the 2019 national championship with two spectacular saves on penalty kicks; she almost certainly had a pro soccer career ahead of her, and possibly even Olympics appearances."

Katie Meyer was indeed a Stanford suicide.

While true, mental health struggles, depression, etc, can afflict anyone. All social classes, levels of achievement, IQ scores, degrees of athleticism, or whatever, can be affected.

Kudos to Willis for sharing her story. Reading about her anxiety and her lost love for running makes me think of Mu. Two years ago, Mu was wrapping up her freshman year just like Willis, and went on to win Olympic gold later that year. If Willis is (understandably) struggling with the transition to college and all the pressures and challenges that come with that for a high level student-athlete, can you imagine what it would have been like for Mu to suddenly have a global spotlight on her at the same age? No wonder she wants to escape it and have fun modeling.

It’s not only a problem at Harvard or Stanford but in general I would say most colleges are completely overwhelmed with mental health cases. I coached at a large mid major, where multiple athletes has major issues. A he university’s mental health department was completely over run with cases.

I do think it is magnified in super high achieving individuals. Those top schools are so competitive it takes such an insane resume to get in that it requires one to be unbalanced.

I don't think I agree with what you're saying.

For one, I'd argue people definitely do care about Charles Hicks' social media presence. He has almost twice the amount of Roisin. Both men and women have instagram and use it to portray their lives in certain ways. Some men may not care about it as much as women, and don't respond to the pressures it causes (attention, perfectionism, etc) because they aren't as socially driven. But some men definitely do get caught up in it, especially younger men.

But I'm not merely talking about "celebrities" when it comes to how social media is affecting young people. It affects our entire generation--basically anyone who has social media and uses it regularly. Young people feel driven to constantly check their status, see what other people doing in their "perfect" lives, and post things to show they, too, have a perfect life. If you don't get enough likes, then you are less valuable, etc.

How can you truly have 5,000 friends? Social media is an artificial world with fake relationships where we portray ourselves in an artificial light in a desperate grasp for approval. There should be no wonder how and why it's forcing children into depressive states.

* Almost twice the amount of instagram followers

Poor sleep hygiene can have a profoundly negative impact on an individual's life. Combine that with the viciousness that often occurs on social media there is a multiplying effect that can absolutely crush a vulnerable individual. I encourage those interested to read the research on sleep hygiene and performance because it plays a critical role in life and training/running performance. All my best wishes to this young lady and my hope is that her coaches enroll her in the resources at Stanford to help her.

Reminds me of Amy Weissenbach, though I do not know the specifics of her quitting running.