Drew Petersen, a professional ski mountaineer and trail runner who grew up in Silverthorne, is on a mission to talk about his mental health journey and encourage people who are suffering to seek help. (via thknwco)
When Drew Petersen arrived at the starting line of the Leadville Trail 100-mile footrace on Saturday, he was bound to feel a rush of emotions beyond the joy of fulfilling a long-held dream, not to mention the inevitable anxiety that comes with attemptingHe is lucky to be alive, and not just because he survived a potentially fatal accident high on Oregon’s Mount Hood in 2017.
“As I’ve come into realizing a much fuller and much more authentic version of who I am, I’ve also found what I believe to be my purpose on this Earth. That is to help other people and, in this moment in time, change the culture surrounding mental health in the outdoor community, in mountain towns and the ski community.”
His depression and suicidal thoughts continued into adulthood, and he coped in “unhealthy ways,” which primarily meant taking skiing to extremes and developing an “abusive relationship” with alcohol. He fell into a darker place than he had ever been, but it would be 15 months before he finally broke down and sought help. Only then would he learn he’d suffered a previously undiagnosed severe concussion in the accident, which had combined with his pre-existing mental health issues to make his life a nightmare.
He is on psychiatric medication. He practices mindfulness meditation and makes gratitude focus a daily practice. He says he has built better friendships and relationships based on “real emotional vulnerability and depth” and calls those things his “tool kit.” Skiing and running are part of that tool kit, but they’re not all he has. Not the way they used to be.
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