First Ball To Last Introduction: Excellent XXXXX
"It's easier to build strong children than to repair broken men." Frederick Douglass Recent societal trends in mental health are concerning. Thirty years ago, the risks to children were external; drinking, drugs, smoking, teenage pregnancy. Today, statistics in those areas have dropped dramatically. But a new scourge affects our youth today, with these issues being internal. The mental health conditions of depression, anxiety, mania, self-harming, suicide and suicidal ideation continue to rise at alarming rates, placing today's youth squarely in the midst of a mental health crisis. The tennis world has not been immune from these trends. In 2021, a public conversation began about mental health and the struggles of competition. Mardy Fish's Netflix documentary about his panic disorders, Naomi Osaka's personal struggles with anxiety and depression went very public, and Nick Kyrgios' constant on court meltdowns have the professional tennis world in a quandary.