Jonathan Trott's stress illness

[m@tt]

If, as D/L is suggesting, anyone with even a well managed stress related condition cannot play for England then instantly there would be fewer people admitting to it. And that would be worse. No one who wanted to play for England would admit to that if it risked their career. It would become a stigma again.

Going by Dobell's article, Trott has suffered for at least 6 years. Despite that, he had played international cricket and averaged around 50 in both Tests and ODIs with 13 centuries and abpouht 6,500 runs. Seems well managed to me. He may be able to add to that, but we don't know because it's an individual case and we don't even know exacvtly what he is suffering from.

[sussexpob]

I'd have no idea of just where the delineation between "issues" and "illness", if it exists, is. Just as where is the line between a knock and an injury? Is it down to one's ability to function in a "normal" fashion?

Hard and long to explain, but indulge me.

Its the ability to function at any level, GJ. What you tend to find is that stress has very short term effects, and we all go through it all the time and come out the other end... be it anger at something said, frustration over something that goes wrong, helplessness over something we cant control... yet its temporary, and we dont notice the effects at all. We calm down, we eat, we sleep fine, we wake up...

Yet sometimes we face stress at prolonged levels.... a more serious problem, or a lack of escape from low level stress that becomes constant. So instead of going home and living normally, we go home and dont sleep because your dreading going back to work, or dont eat properly because your working too hard, and then dont exercise because your tired because you arent eating right and slept 4 hours.... and so on... and so on.... Now imagine situation (b) goes on for a week..... you have an issue that needs management and help...

Skip forward a year... you still arent sleeping right, eating right, you have lost motivation, you stop looking after yourself, your immune system lowers... you become physically ill more, loss weight, smoke more, drink more, etc etc.... the symptoms of stress take over and form their own subdivisions of physical and mental ailments and mould into increasingly problems of their own with are very tangible. Youve managed it previously by gritting and bearing with it but now you lose control.... you become depressed

All these things then begin to make you feel anxious. And that anxiousness manifests its horribly in a constant worry... by this point your body is so used to the pressures of negativity it has programmed you to think negatively. You see only worry and tension, and constantly fear the worst. As you are feeling the worst the tension builds up physically because your body now misinterprets the signals of anguish from the mind, and thinks that the body is under attack.... you have a panic attack, your muscles tense up, you cant breath properly, you feel depersonalized, you have pain in the arm and feel dizzy... you ring an ambulance and get to hospital assuming you are having a heart attack, but alas you are find, you just had a panic attack.

But your not fine. You feel ashamed, there is something wrong with your mind that no one understands... you feel like you are going mad. You dont know why... you are scared it may happen again, you become stressed and anxious, it becomes a cycle, you have another attack.... you begin to become scared of the anxiety, scared of being scared, you dont understand why.... you have panic disorder.

The fact that there is something wrong with you is embarrassing and humiliating. You dont want people to see you this way, in a state you cant control, in an environment that you cant control.... you eventually stop going to social events in case the panic flares up and people see you like that. Welcome to the social phobia stage

You lose friends, you lose social time, you lose confidence in yourself now to the point that you also see the anxiety in all situations you cant control... you can no longer go on a bus, go to the shops, for fear of losing control in an environment where your surrounds are alien..... you have agoraphobia. You also dont like to be places where you cant escape if you feel panic, so you've become claustrophobic too.

By this stage the symptoms have morphed to horrible levels. Your mind has rebelled to the point that you now dissociate with everything, and suffer from diepersonaliseation and derealisation everywhere you go to the point you can no longer trust your eyes and ears. For a large amount of people this is about the time that alcohol and drugs use start to become very appealing...

You start to manage it by sticking to methods, sticking to area of comfort, to places you dont think can trigger a reaction and isolate at least an understanding of what causes it. You mind begins to create method to madness, but unfortunately while itssimply trying to create a defensive mechanism to help you, it is only further creating future anxiety in every situation.... welcome to the obsessive compulsive phase..

And so on... and so on... and so on......

Stress illness is never stress..... it becomes other things, things that arent controlled or easily forgotten. Things are usually manageable up until the point of say your first panic attack, which is why I said earlier Trott was probably ok to bat up until a point that was obviously reached recently.

There is no way a guy could be suffering from a stress related illness and pick his bat up.... if he did, he is literally the bravest person I have ever known.

[pompeymeowth]

Pob, that is just about the best explanation I've read all day. The only thing I would add is that these episodes can reoccur, sometimes they don't, sometimes they do, over a short period or many years, even decades in between.

[GarlicJam]

Good post, Sussex. Interesting. And worrying.

[Alviro Patterson]

Makes you wonder if Mitchell Johnson has suffered from a similar illness, his game went completely off the boil and was subject to abuse from the Barmy Army in the last Ashes series down under.

He certainly did have psychological after-effects from the treatment he received from the fans during the tour. A couple of weeks back he discussed seeking professional help to deal with it.

Something that speaks a lot for his current state of mind - that he was willing to discuss it in the media.

I'd have no idea of just where the delineation between "issues" and "illness", if it exists, is. Just as where is the line between a knock and an injury? Is it down to one's ability to function in a "normal" fashion?

I suppose with a knock you can continue to play, but not to maximum effect. Might be able to manage one more game or two but eventually the knock turns into an injury if left untreated. The winning mentality can also mask the underlying symptoms and all it takes is a slump in form for the symptoms to re-emerge.

From a physical injury point of view, it's like continuing to play with an initial groin strain but it eventually turns into a high level tear that needs surgery.

[giftofthegabb]

I feel for Trott. I have suffered from anxiety In the past and it is one of the most horrifying experiences when it begins to take hold of you. As Sussex has suggested, it would be impossible for Trott to have continued to bat with a stress related illness that begins so small and manifests into something much more difficult to control & it appears from the outside that it has been manageable up to this point, but for whatever cause or trigger, Trott is no longer in the right frame of mind to continue playing for the time being. He needs to spend some time with his loved ones and just try to forget about Cricket for a while. Sometimes the thing that you love most can be what manifests your ability to function and it is important for Trott to just take some time out and develop some coping strategies. Easier said than done believe me. Come back strong Trotty.

[rich1uk]

just want to clarify a couple of things here about what I have said

at no point have I suggested his career is over

at no point have I suggested it is not possible for someone with a mental illness to have a productive career in cricket

what I said, and I stand by, is that if trott's situation had become so bad and reached the point he felt he had to leave the tour because of it then I find it hard to accept he should have been playing in the first test of an ashes series just last week, and doing so not only could have been harmful to him and cant have been in the best interests of the team either

[D/L]

If, as D/L is suggesting, anyone with even a well managed stress related condition cannot play for England then instantly there would be fewer people admitting to it. And that would be worse. No one who wanted to play for England would admit to that if it risked their career. It would become a stigma again.

In reality, probably few people actually have it, so that really wouldn’t be much of a problem.

Going by Dobell's article, Trott has suffered for at least 6 years. Despite that, he had played international cricket and averaged around 50 in both Tests and ODIs with 13 centuries and abpouht 6,500 runs. Seems well managed to me. He may be able to add to that, but we don't know because it's an individual case and we don't even know exacvtly what he is suffering from.

Runs scored cannot be a reliable indicator of a player’s mental state and certainly no evidence of sound management.

[sussexpob]

In reality, probably few people actually have it, so that really wouldn’t be much of a problem.

Second largest cause of death for people under 30 worldwide. Suicides relating to depression account for about 1 million deaths in 55 million per year worldwide.

Depression counts for 4.3% of all world illness..... mental illness related to stress and depression account for 13% of all disease....

Those figures do not include the lowest poverty brackets where there is no data, and where people live in much worse conditions.

One in every 50 people in England suffer from an anxiety order. If memory serves right one in every 5 or 6 people suffer from atypical depression at some point in their lives.

All mental illness episodes are linked to sharp increases in premature deaths from other illness, especially cardovascular illness, so those that have suffered die sooner.

Its not as rare as you would think. And because of social stigma, especially in some worldwide cultures, the numbers are expected to be lower as people do not come out and seek help.... even if they do, the WHO estimates that in first world countries only 36-50% of people have access to help, and in some countries a mental illness practioner covers an area of 200,000 people.

[sussexpob]

Harmison has also came out today saying he suffered with depression.

I said I was homesick and that was actually used as a stick to beat me with. It was not just homesickness, although that did not help. It is a chemical imbalance in the brain and it is something I battled with for years. It tended to be inflamed when I was away from home because I did miss people, I was lonely and I did not have my support network around me. When Marcus Trescothick went public with his depression, I was glad somebody had made that step, but I still did not think I could because, by that stage, I felt if I said I was depressed I was one bad game away from being finished as an international cricketer.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/cricke ... mison.html

Sad but true really. Couldnt come out because he knew his career would be over.

[GarlicJam]

The fact that we have had three England players leave tours(?) due to mental health issues, and none from any other nation (that I am aware of) indicates that possibly the acceptance and understanding of mental health problems is more advanced in Britain than in other countries.

Does it also suggest that there are more issues within the English professional game to contribute to a player developing problems? Or even outside of the game - in the media.

[pompeymeowth]

In reality, probably few people actually have it, so that really wouldn’t be much of a problem.

Second largest cause of death for people under 30 worldwide. Suicides relating to depression account for about 1 million deaths in 55 million per year worldwide.

Depression counts for 4.3% of all world illness..... mental illness related to stress and depression account for 13% of all disease....

Those figures do not include the lowest poverty brackets where there is no data, and where people live in much worse conditions.

One in every 50 people in England suffer from an anxiety order. If memory serves right one in every 5 or 6 people suffer from atypical depression at some point in their lives.

All mental illness episodes are linked to sharp increases in premature deaths from other illness, especially cardovascular illness, so those that have suffered die sooner.

Its not as rare as you would think. And because of social stigma, especially in some worldwide cultures, the numbers are expected to be lower as people do not come out and seek help.... even if they do, the WHO estimates that in first world countries only 36-50% of people have access to help, and in some countries a mental illness practioner covers an area of 200,000 people.

Very sad reading Pob. Maybe the figures could even be higher, when you take into consideration those that have kept a mask on it. It must be very difficult to assess in some cases.

Other disorders, such as psychopathic (PPD), or narcissistic (NPD) personalities, where the patient displays easily recognisable, outward symptons, are easy to assess, but much harder to treat, in some cases impossibly so.

It's a veritable minefield.

[D/L]

In reality, probably few people actually have it, so that really wouldn’t be much of a problem.

Second largest cause of death for people under 30 worldwide. Suicides relating to depression account for about 1 million deaths in 55 million per year worldwide.

Depression counts for 4.3% of all world illness..... mental illness related to stress and depression account for 13% of all disease....

Those figures do not include the lowest poverty brackets where there is no data, and where people live in much worse conditions.

One in every 50 people in England suffer from an anxiety order. If memory serves right one in every 5 or 6 people suffer from atypical depression at some point in their lives.

All mental illness episodes are linked to sharp increases in premature deaths from other illness, especially cardovascular illness, so those that have suffered die sooner.

Its not as rare as you would think. And because of social stigma, especially in some worldwide cultures, the numbers are expected to be lower as people do not come out and seek help.... even if they do, the WHO estimates that in first world countries only 36-50% of people have access to help, and in some countries a mental illness practioner covers an area of 200,000 people.

All very interesting, if not particularly relevant, as the instances of it amongst successful cricketers, who should have very good reasons for self-esteem, the lack of which often triggers mental health problems, is probably very low.

[sussexpob]

All very interesting, if not particularly relevant, as the instances of it amongst successful cricketers, who should have very good reasons for self-esteem, the lack of which often triggers mental health problems, is probably very low.

Very rare.... in fact 5 of the names below possibly would have played in the same team...

Marcus Trescothick
Andy Flintoff
Matthew Hoggard
Steve Harmison
Tim Ambrose
Michael Yardy
Steve Davies
Tom Maynard was said to be at a very mental low when he died

Could make a half decent team of players still currently playing or just retired.

[sussexpob]

I am also not one to pay much service to the fact that no crickters or other sportsmen suffer from it either. I think Trescothick changed the culture by being so open about it and addressing the issue. Many people would have seen the blasting he took in the media about him and thought "Nah, no way".

I mean its strange that sportsmen are never seem to be gay.... never get depressed .... never struggle with much. Its purely macho BS, not an indication that it doesnt exist.