Kevin Love has had quite a tough season so far. Unexplained exits from games, teammates placing blame on him for team issues, and most recently a broken hand. Love came forward this morning in an essay published through the Players’ Tribune to answer some questions. Love revealed that it was in fact a panic attack that forced him out of the November 5th loss to the Hawks and into a hospital. While he did not speak of it in this essay, sources close to the situation have reported that it was another panic attack that forced him out of the Oklahoma City game as well. This was the game that led to the team meeting in which there was plenty of finger-pointing, with a lot of them aimed at Love. Love writes in the essay about the first episode, “It came out of nowhere. I’d never had one before. I didn’t even know if they were real. But it was real — as real a broken hand or a sprained ankle. Since that day, almost everything about the way I think about my mental health has changed.” Love has started to see a therapist a few times a month and has looked to other NBA players for advice and comfort. Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan recently acknowledged publicly that he struggles with depression, and Love cited this as a big part of his inspiration to come forward about his own struggles. Love also used the essay to encourage others to be strong with their own mental struggles. He wrote, “So if you’re reading this and you’re having a hard time, no matter how big or small it seems to you, I want to remind you that you’re not weird or different for sharing what you’re going through”. Mental health has become an important topic in today’s society and is finally starting to be understood more. It is not something to be ignored and it not something to be ashamed of. Everyone has their inner battles and everyone copes with them differently. The important part is to be accepting of both yourself and others. Having mental struggles does not take away from who you are as a person. If you need help, seek it. If you can help someone, then do it. We are all in this thing called life together and we all need someone to lean on now and then. I applaud Kevin Love for coming forward to discuss his personal struggles and using his platform to inspire others. I wish him all the best and will continue to root for him going forward.
