Haven’t been posting much about these visits with @warnerbrosentertainment & @thewayback movie starring @benaffleck, thinking I’d wait till they’re over, to do a full recap.
However, the event last night w/ @haydenrhurst, @hhfoundation81, @moniquegooden2 & @ravens fans was extremely special, & I wanted to share a few takeaways from the post-event discussion.
In the movie, coming out on March 6th, you’ll see that Ben’s character faces many challenges in life (not dissimilar to the rest of us). But, the movie is careful not to put any labels on his character. We don’t hear about PTSD, Depression or even the term addiction, as a self medicating tool.
With that as a background, Hayden has been very open in the last two wks about his own story, & I’m so proud of this dude, doing this as an active player, selflessly, to help others.
Recently, he shared about a suicide attempt amongst a TON of other info, about his past, his life generally, & things that led up to some of those scary times. Well look at how TMZ reported Hayden’s share: “NFL’s Hayden Hurst: I Cut My Wrists in College.”
After asking him the question about how the media may be moving us backwards w their portrayal of these stories (despite there being more awareness than ever right now), it was Hayden who pointed this coverage out to the crowd. In fact, to find the “more appropriate” article I posted next to it: “Struggled with Mental Health, Hopes To Change Some Lives” I had to do a lot of searching, bc most of the articles were all about putting up the most salacious headlines, to draw eyeballs.
If that’s all MH is equated to, in the titles we read, no wonder we have so many who tune the message out. The response is: “no not me.”
Monique, @docgooden’s ex wife was phenomenal in her first event w us (& fitting she’s a Ravens fan ;)). But there is a character that plays Ben’s ex in the movie, & the depiction was all too real for Monique. Helping a partner through some of those challenges & self medicating, while still needing to say goodbye bc of what’s best for both partners & the healing that must happen from past traumas.
More to come w @nfl’er John Booty tonight in DC.