On this episode of Blindsided, we welcome Helen Maroulis. She’s the first Olympic gold medalist ever for the U.S. in women’s wrestling. After reaching the pinnacle of her career at the 2016 Games in Rio, Helen suffered a concussion. The effects revealed themselves over time and, she says, changed her a lot — mentally and emotionally. But she was determined to heal. Helen talks about struggling with her mental health after her injury … about losing all of her confidence right after she won the gold … and about why she considers her biggest accomplishment to be her return to wrestling. Helen came back to the sport with a new perspective. She earned a second medal this past summer at the Tokyo Olympics. It was a bronze — and without question it’s the medal she’s most proud of. Here’s Helen Maroulis on Blindsided.
 
*This episode contains content and topics that may be difficult for some listeners. Listener discretion is advised. If you or someone you know is struggling, you are not alone. There are many support services that are here to help. Resources can be found at: The Concussion Legacy Foundation https://concussionfoundation.org/ and 857-244-0810 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Helen Maroulis

Plan your work and work your plan. For many athletes, words like these are scripture &mdash; permanent signposts lining the long road to success. The very act of pursuing a career in sports often gives a sense of control, a sense of safety. Just stick to the plan. Good things will follow.
That is, until life happens. The kind of life that happens while you&rsquo;re making other plans. Devastating setbacks. Dark thoughts. Debilitating breakdowns. Mental health conditions that force an athlete to ditch their well laid plans and ask, &ldquo;What&rsquo;s my next play?&rdquo;
Hosted by former National Hockey League goaltender Corey Hirsch and psychiatrist Dr. Diane McIntosh, Blindsided allows professional athletes to open up about mental health. The podcast lets listeners hear moments when mental health became the athlete&rsquo;s most important focus.
Blindsided then dives in deeper. It gets clinical. And it allows listeners to leave with a deeper understanding of mental health conditions that all people face. It then shows how athletes, in particular, face them down.
Welcome to Blindsided. Mental health. Sports. Life.

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With two taps to the head, former NBA star Darius Miles left his stamp on the game of basketball forever. As one of the few players to go straight to the league from high school, to hoops fans, D-Miles is a legend, whose contributions to the culture defined a generation. Toward the end of his NBA career, though, life off the court began to take a serious toll on Miles. He lost his grandfather, his grandmother and ultimately his mother in 2013. She was his No. 1 supporter, and her death really broke him down. The weight of his experiences growing up in poverty, surrounded by violence, caught up with him. Adding to his grief, he struggled with injuries on the court and unexpected financial hardship. Listen in to Darius’s story and hear how he built the castle back up. 
 
*This episode contains content and topics that may be difficult for some listeners. Listener discretion is advised. If you or someone you know is struggling, you are not alone. There are many support services that are here to help. Resources can be found at: Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) 240-485-1001
 
About Our Hosts:
Former NHL goaltender Corey Hirsch and psychiatrist Dr. Diane McIntosh team up on Blindsided to help professional athletes to open up about mental health. The podcast lets listeners hear about the moments when mental health became the athlete’s most important focus. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Darius Miles

In 2021, Nashville Predators prospect Luke Prokop came out as gay in a social media post, making him the first player under contract to an NHL team to do so. His announcement was received positively by family, friends, and teammates. But acceptance wasn’t a given. The year leading up to his announcement, Luke struggled under the immense pressure of his secret. In the end, he had a choice to make about his mental health, and he decided he had to be his true self, no matter the costs. On this episode, hear about how Luke now plays with a new freedom, knowing that he can be who he is — on and off the ice. 
 
This episode contains content and topics that may be difficult for some listeners. Listener discretion is advised.
 
About Our Hosts:
Former NHL goaltender Corey Hirsch and psychiatrist Dr. Diane McIntosh team up on Blindsided to help professional athletes to open up about mental health. The podcast lets listeners hear about the moments when mental health became the athlete’s most important focus. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Luke Prokop

When she was growing up, sports was the one place where Beth King felt in control. She played soccer at the collegiate level, but ultimately joined the military for her career. Deployed to Afghanistan, in 2011 she was riding in a helicopter that was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, leaving her with severe injuries to her spine and brain. A few months after the accident, Beth began to experience symptoms of PTSD and depression. Through the Wounded Warrior Project, Beth was able to turn her longtime passion for sports into a way to cope with her trauma. Tune in to her more of U.S. Army Veteran Beth King's journey.
 
This episode contains content and topics that may be difficult for some listeners. Listener discretion is advised.
 
Visit Wounded Warrior Project for more information about their adaptive sports programs and other ways they offer support to military members.
 
About Our Hosts:
Former NHL goaltender Corey Hirsch and psychiatrist Dr. Diane McIntosh team up on Blindsided to help professional athletes to open up about mental health. The podcast lets listeners hear about the moments when mental health became the athlete’s most important focus. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Beth King

Kaillie Humphries grew up in Calgary, Alberta, where the legacy of the 1988 Olympics brought her up close and personal to the sport of bobsledding. She dreamed of becoming an Olympian and would go on to win gold medals at the 2010 Vancouver and 2014 Sochi Games. She was living out her dream … or so it seemed. Things changed under a new coach, and the hostile environment took an extreme toll on her mental health. In August 2018, Kaillie filed a harassment complaint with Bobsleigh Canada against her head coach for verbal and mental abuse. An investigation ensued and ultimately forced Kaillie to leave Team Canada, but the courage she found to speak out about this abusive scenario has given her a new outlook on life and a new opportunity, with Team USA, to continue her bobsled career.
*This episode contains content and topics that may be difficult for some listeners. Please check the show notes for more information. Listener discretion is advised.*
 
About Our Hosts:
Former NHL goaltender Corey Hirsch and psychiatrist Dr. Diane McIntosh team up on Blindsided to help professional athletes to open up about mental health. The podcast lets listeners hear about the moments when mental health became the athlete’s most important focus. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kaillie Humphries

​​Before Georges Laraque was a sports commentator and a political leader, he was a notorious enforcer in the NHL. He played that role well, but the truth is that he hated fighting. His childhood had been marked by his father’s abuse and by racism he experienced on the ice as he rose through the ranks in junior hockey. There was no place to seek refuge. For a long time, the enforcer’s battles off the ice were like a weight on his chest. His depression and anxiety led him to seek professional help, and through therapy Georges was finally able to identify the sources of his troubles and to make peace with his past.
 
 
*This episode contains content and topics that may be difficult for some listeners. Listener discretion is advised. If you or someone you know is struggling, you are not alone. There are many support services that are here to help. Resources can be found at The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (1-800-273-8255 or text TALK to 741741).
 
 
About Our Hosts:
Former National Hockey League goaltender Corey Hirsch and psychiatrist Dr. Diane McIntosh team up on Blindsided to allow professional athletes to open up about mental health. The podcast lets listeners hear moments when mental health became the athlete’s most important focus. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Helen Maroulis

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