In today’s episode, Kat chats with Nadine Crocker, an award-winning Director, Writer, Actress, and Producer, known for her impactful storytelling. Born in Nashville and raised in Fresno, Nadine moved to Los Angeles at 16 to pursue her passion for creating art that changes lives. 

We discuss her deeply personal film, Continue, which is based on her own survival of a suicide attempt and will be released in theaters on September 6th, 2024, for World Suicide Prevention Month. The film has garnered multiple awards, including "Best Director" at various festivals, and is the cornerstone of her nonprofit, "Continue On," focused on mental health and suicide prevention.

Nadine opens up about her struggles with mental health, which began at a young age and culminated in a suicide attempt at 23, followed by years of self-harm before finding a path to healing. This experience became the foundation of Continue, where she relives her story through acting, directing, and producing—a profoundly emotional process, especially when faced with industry feedback that mental health is a topic "no one wants to talk about." During the episode, Nadine discusses her mental health journey, how she’s used her struggles to move forward with gratitude, the lack of understanding around mental health during her upbringing, how the film has changed her life, her discovery of a passion for directing, and the challenges she faced in creating this movie. Ultimately, she hopes to help push the mental health movement forward. This episode is an incredibly raw discussion on mental health and is a must-listen.

Content Warning: Suicide, Suicidal Ideation, Self Harm, Substance Abuse, Abuse, Disordered Eating

Welcome to the final episode of our miniseries on mental health support systems! In this special episode, Ashton Miller joins TMM. Ashton and Schuyler met as freshmen on the Duke Soccer Team, and have been best friends since. Ashton now influences soccer culture as a photographer, creative director, and co-founder of The Footy Temple. She studied psychology and grew up in a family of professional athletes who shaped her understanding of mental health and toughness from a young age. We explore how Ashton adapts her support based on Scuyler’s different mental health chapters and the importance of recognizing that not everyone can be the main support for others. This conversation offers valuable insights for supporting the people closest to you. We hope you enjoy our last episode of the miniseries!

This miniseries episode highlights how siblings can support each other’s mental health. Imani, Nia, and Trinity Dorsey all join Schuyler on the podcast to talk about how they show up for each other (@imdorsey @niamdorsey @trinmdorsey). The Dorsey sisters all are incredible soccer players and humans. In this episode, they share lots of valuable insights into how their parents founded their support system, how soccer intersects with their mental health, and the ways they aim to keep sport and sibling connection largely separate. At the same time, their mutual connection and respect through soccer is undeniable, and it’s clear how they inspire each other through action to prioritize their mental health. I (Schuyler) had so much fun feeling like a 4th Dorsey sister during this recording. I hope how they support each other inspires you to support a loved one in your life in a similar or different way that works for you!

In this episode, TJ Pura, a former captain of the Duke Men’s Tennis Team, joins our TMM Second Hand Stories miniseries. After a stint as a pro player, TJ found his passion in coaching, mentoring ATP player Tommy Paul and returning to Duke as the first assistant coach. Now living in Durham, NC with his fiancée, 2x Olympian Maddy Price, TJ discusses how he supports her journey as a professional track athlete and their mental habits. He shares how losing his father at a young age shaped his connection with Maddy and his growth from toughness to embracing vulnerability in his relationships. We also explore the importance of communication and self-care. TJ is a fantastic partner, coach, and teammate, and we're grateful to call him a friend of Morgan's Message!

In today’s episode, Schuyler speaks with Traci Pizzano, mother of three, including Dario Pizzano from Episode 85. Traci, a Multiple Sclerosis (MS) warrior, inspired Dario to create Mission Stadiums for MS, a nonprofit supporting MS research and families affected by the condition.

Throughout the episode, Schuyler and Traci discuss key moments in Dario’s mental health journey and how Traci supported him through similar struggles, including panic attacks. Dario’s mental health challenges following retirement from professional baseball helped him understand other peoples’ mental health states better, which increased communication about mental health within his family, who are some of his most important supporters. We also explore the difficulties parents face when a child's identity is tied to sports, and Traci reflects on how she had not expected the challenges Dario faced after retirement. This is a great episode for all parents who want to support their kids’ mental health, but there are gems here for everyone!

Sarah Kovan, MD, is a psychiatry resident at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, specializing in the treatment of individuals with complex behavioral health needs within publicly supported healthcare systems. She has been honored with the U.S. Public Health Service Excellence in Public Health Award and studied at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar. Additionally, Sarah was a collegiate athlete at Michigan State University, where she co-captained the Women's Soccer Team. During the episode, we cover lots of topics central to supporting others’ mental health from Sarah’s professional perspective, including the value of asking people what they need, how to approach someone who is resistant to care, and build community within sport. This episode is the foundation for the rest of the other episodes in the miniseries, thanks to Sarah’s expertise.

#139 - This week, Kat sits down with Rohan Piple on The Mental Matchup. Rohan grew up in Maryland and played varsity basketball at Southern Vermont College. He then went on to become a Behavioral Health Specialist with a Master's in Sports Industry Management from Georgetown University. During the episode, he discusses the performance wellness company, AŠVA, he created and why he decided to focus on this aspect of an athlete’s overall health. Rohan has so much knowledge and we are excited to share it with all of you!

This week, Vanessa Kara joins Kat on the podcast. Vanessa is from Burlington, New Jersey and went on to play college soccer at Drexel University then the University of Florida as a grad transfer. After college, she competed professionally in Finland and walks us through creating a career in the NWSL. She also touches on achieving her dream of playing for the Dominican Republic women's national soccer team! During her time as a student-athlete, Vanessa experienced 3 ACL tears and opens up about her recovery process and how she was able to bounce back after each injury. Vanessa recently retired from soccer and opens up about embracing working as an engineer. She also talks about specific mental health practices that helped get her through these difficult times and we can’t wait for you to hear Vanessa’s story!

#138 - This week, Bill Kvalheim, joins us on The Mental Matchup. Bill is a a former varsity football player at Kean University who has since become an educator and has also served as a college football coach. Bill is the founder of Tackle Depression, a non-profit organization providing knowledge, insight and resources for anyone battling mental illness. In the episode, he shares how his own struggles with mental health inspired him to create something to help others and highlights the importance of a strong support system. Overall, he wants to spread awareness to students, athletes, programs and school districts to let anyone know who is struggling that you are not alone!

#137 - This week, Sarah Spaeth joins The Mental Matchup. Sarah is from Bel Air, Maryland and went to the Catholic University of America where she played softball. Sarah notes that she listened to her first TMM podcast episode during the fall of 2023 and was immediately impacted by other’s sharing their story. Now in her very own episode, Sarah is opening up about her own experience moving from being a student-athlete to existing in the working world, the journey of getting to college and the importance of self-talk. We know that this episode will resonate with many and we are excited to have Sarah join us!

#136 - In this episode of The Mental Matchup, we sit down with Riley Walker, an At-Large Ambassador and mental health advocate. Struggling with anxiety and witnessing her sister's battle with depression, Riley made it a point to advocate for mental health and through seven years of dedication, including therapy and mindset shifts, she emerged stronger than ever. Now, she advocates for mental health, inspiring others through her speaking engagements and community initiatives. Thank you to Riley who shares her transformative journey from anxiety to becoming a powerful advocate for mental well-being!

#135 - During this episode, Bella Raymond, a rising sophomore on Nazareth University's field hockey team, shares her inspiring journey of resilience. Diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at 10 and hypothyroidism on her second day of college, Bella walks us through how she was able to continue her goal of playing a collegiate sport. She also discusses the impact of hypothyroidism on her physical and mental well-being, shedding light on its often-overlooked symptoms. Through her story, she advocates for athletes with autoimmune diseases and emphasizes the importance of self-care and support systems.

This week, Kat is joined by Brooke Lynch. Brooke plays college lacrosse at Scranton University and started playing at a young age. During the episode, she touches on her relationship with lacrosse and how it has changed over the years as well as her experience navigating COVID during her senior year of high school. Brooke is a great resource for talking about mental health, how sport can play an important role in your life, and sharing advice that has helped her get through difficult times!

In today's episode MJ Renaud sits down with Kat to discuss her experience with mental health as a student-athlete. MJ plays lacrosse for Canisius University, and is majoring in both Criminal Justice and Philosophy, and minoring in Forensic Psychology. MJ lives with OCD interlaced with social and generalized anxiety, along with bipolar depressive disorder and ADHD. She speaks about her tools she uses to help manage her mental health, utilizing her sport as an outlet and how important her support systems have been in her life.

CW: Suicide, Sexual Assault and Self-Harm

Kat is joined by Erica Curry, LMFT. A former student-athlete who suffered a career ending injury at a young age and shifted her focus to diving. This led to a collegiate career in diving at Wagner College. Her athletic experience is what drove her into her work with mental health. This coupled with watching a family member struggle with multiple suicide attempts strengthened her passion to support athletes and others struggling to build a life they want to live. In the episode, we chat about her journey and DBT, dialectical behavior therapy. When discussing DBT we focus on three different topics: distress tolerance and emotional regulation, mindfulness and interpersonal effectiveness.

This week, Bunny Nazari joins Kat on The Mental Matchup. Bunny is from Aldie, VA and currently in school at the College of Charleston. She played soccer in college for two years before deciding to take a step away for the remainder of college. Bunny opens up about this decision to stop playing collegiate athletics, her story of recovering from an injury and her goal of helping break the stigma that athletes must be “tough” in all aspects of life at all times. Bunny hopes to get her Masters in Sport Psychology after graduating this May and we can’t wait to see what she does in the future!

This week, Vanessa Scaringi joins The Mental Matchup. Vanessa is a licensed psychologist and mental health professional who currently co-owns a group therapy practice in Austin, TX called CALM Counseling. She was also a collegiate athlete in swimming and water polo. During the episode, Vanessa talks about how there is space for growth for talking about nutrition and eating disorders specially in student-athletes. She also touches on seeing higher levels of anxiety in the current student-athlete population, finding identity outside of your sport and the positive impacts of journaling.

In this week’s episode of The Mental Matchup, Josh Carlson joins the podcast. Josh is a former student-athlete and college coach at McKendree University for the water polo team. As an athlete, he opens up about experiencing anxiety and the pressures that he put on himself to do well. Josh touches on the importance of having transparency between coaches and athletes when it comes to mental health and the battles we are all fighting.

This week, Kat sits down with Sophia Dzwonkowski. Sophia is a junior at Middletown High School North in New Jersey and opens up about her story battling performance anxiety in sport as she became older. She also touches on experiencing burnout, perfectionism, and how her mental health shifted after quitting basketball.

On this episode of The Mental Matchup, Kat is joined by Emily Cumberland. Emily is a junior at Rollins College and a member of the Women’s Lacrosse team. Throughout the episode, Emily talks about her experience with a major knee injury and how impactful it can be to have a positive mindset. She also touches on the recruiting process and we know this episode will be helpful for anyone going through a difficult time as an athlete!