Throughout my entire life, mental health issues have been present. Growing up in an unstable household was never a big deal to me. Through the feelings I encountered, I just wanted to be a good person and ensure I never made anyone else feel how I had felt. My mental health issues only started to show as I entered adulthood and explored life for myself. My high school years were some of the hardest. I tried my hardest to wear a smile on my face and be the girl everyone wanted to be. I was expected to be happy at home, school, soccer training, and work. Everyone else had their coping mechanism. My mum drank herself to sleep nightly, my stepdad would drink until he could no longer speak, and my older brother was high at any waking moment. Meanwhile, I tried to protect my two younger brothers from the reality of our household. We would play outside or get ice cream during the loudest of arguments. After several years of living in a fight-or-flight sense of mind, it impacted my mental health. In my sophomore year of high school, I suffered from self-harm. I felt I had to hide what was happening inside my head. This was my only coping mechanism. To this day, I fail to explain why. The only moment I got everything to stop was in moments of my poor coping mechanisms. I needed help. I just wanted to keep my brothers safe and ensure everyone else was okay. Deep down, I did not know how to cope with myself. After some time, my mother saw my self-harm. She was ashamed, to say the least, and her reaction did not help how I felt about myself. At eighteen years old, I moved away and went to play soccer in college at Lees-McRae. This school is 12 hours away from home, I was far away from the struggle of my home life. It was a blessing but a struggle. My first year of college was a dream. I finally had a chance, could be myself and play soccer all the time. I was in my happy place. However, it was not long before my demons came to haunt me. In the early months of my sophomore year of college, I had a mental breakdown and ended up in a mental institute. This was an all-time low, but there was light in this situation. I could finally get the help I needed. Soon after, I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and PTSD. I started going to therapy and working through my trauma. At that moment, I thought being hospitalised was the worst thing to happen to me. I was wrong, it gave me the resources to get help. I wanted help, I wanted to be better. Today, I am about to begin my senior year of college. I am stronger than ever, and mental health has shaped me into who I am today. I would not change anything from my past, and am proud of my identity. I am still working through traumas and trying to be the best person I can be. I am going to graduate from college and go on to get a graduate degree. Now, I am one of the lucky ones. Not everyone gets help before it is too late. I got help, and I want my success to show others that you can also be successful with mental health illnesses. My achievements in life are honouring those who have lost their lives to mental illnesses.

I am a first-generation college student from England. My mother moved to the United States when she married her husband. Ultimately, for me, this meant restarting my entire life. When I first started school in the United States all of the students would talk about going to college. For me, this had never been a thought in my mind. I never would have imagined going to school for another four years to pursue getting a degree. Well, maybe it was not just the further education that piqued my interest. Moving to a new country allowed me to play sports. I fell in love with the game of soccer. I decided that I was not ready to give it up. So, the next step was to play in college. I wanted to play and further my education more than anything I had wanted in life. At this point, I had finally started to enjoy living in a new place. Honestly, the thought of being a first-generation college student terrified me. I did not know what to expect, and I had no idea what I was doing. My parents were supportive but they had never been through the process so they did not know how to help much. I was just grateful that they were supportive of me through this journey. For assistance, I asked all of my friends that had graduated and went to college questions. They helped guide me through the process of researching different studies and contacting college coaches. I worked day in and day out emailing, calling, and leaving voicemails for coaches. I dove into different programs of study trying to discover what fit me best. Finally, I made it as a first-generation college student. I paved the way for myself. I am currently a rising senior at Lees-McRae College. I play on the Women's Soccer team and I am a double major in Exercise Science and Psychology. Later, I aspire to go on to earn my master's degree in sports psychology. I wanted to make a life for myself, I wanted to stand out. I felt as though most of my family was comfortable. I wanted to step outside of the box, push myself and see how far I can take myself in life. Attending college is the first step to being great for me. I want to make a difference in people's lives and have a positive impact on anyone I meet. I want people to remember me whether it simply be because of my positive aura or because they look to me for help in getting them to where they want to be in life. Ultimately, I hope that I have shown my little brothers that they can go wherever they desire to take themselves in life. I want them to see that they can be successful and dreams do come true. I want them to dream as big as they possibly can and then go chase it. The college has been a dream for me and I have enjoyed ever second of chasing it. I will never be content, I will keep chasing my dreams for as long as life lets me.

From a very young age, I knew I was gay and at that time it was quite honestly the most terrifying thought to exist. To say the least, I was embarrassed and ashamed. I could not help but think that there was something wrong with me. I so desperately wanted to be "normal". I wanted to be the daughter my mother had always dreamed of having. My mum would always talk about me marrying a man and having children of my own. These conversations would make my heart sink. I felt I was going to let her down. One day, my mother found a conversation between me and one of my friends. I had told this friend that I was gay. I expressed how terrified I was. This was not the way I wanted my mum to find out. She proceeded to tell me that being gay was going to ruin my life and that if anyone knew I had to tell them "it was just a phase". From that day onward she would not look at me or talk to me. She was ashamed, and I was heartbroken. It took years before my mum accepted that I was gay. She never wanted it to be true, but after five years she finally admitted that it was not a phase. It took her seeing how happy I was when I had my first girlfriend. From that moment she accepted me, she loved me for who I was. My years of fear and terror were over. I want to share my story. I am a success story even though I never thought I was going to be. It took seven years before my mum accepted me. There is hope out there not just for me but for everyone. Everyone in the LGBTQ+ deserves to be loved and cared for. The more everyone shares their stories the more awareness can be spread. Moving forward with my life, I want to work in the field of Sports Psychology. I want female athletes to get treated the way they deserve to while also advocating for the mental health of athletes. Being a gay female college athlete has been an eye-opening experience. I want to support and help people achieve their goals and help them through their hardships.

I am Hannah Davies, a first-generation college student from England. I am currently double majoring in Exercise Science and Psychology at Lees-McRae College in North Carolina. Along with my studies, I am a Division II Women's Soccer Athlete. I aspire to make a difference in the Women's Athletic world. I want to go on to get my master's degree in Sports psychology. Mental health in the athletic world is undermined entirely. Coaches expect their athletes to perform physically day in and day out. If an athlete is deemed physically injured, then it is appropriate for the athlete to step out. It is what the coaches do not see that hurts athletes the most. I believe there should be more priority on the mental health of athletes. There are statistics to show that a physical injury is more likely if an athlete is not in a good mental space. The mental well-being of an athlete should be just as superior as the physical well-being. Mental and Physical well-being go hand in hand together. If an athlete is mentally in a good space they are more likely to perform at their best physically. When an athlete performs well physically, then it will also have positive benefits on their mental well-being. However, the same is to be said if an athlete is not in a good mental space then it can impact their physical training. A bad training session can then lead to a decline in mental well-being. At this time, I have been a Student-Athlete in college for three years. I have seen the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. There is nothing better than being successful on the field and revolving my life around the beautiful game of soccer. What people did not warn me about was what happens when that is over. When my first college season ended I felt I was having an identity crisis, I also felt as though I did not have the tools to deal with the mental hardship I was facing. As a result of having experienced such a low. I want to make a difference in the world of athletes. We are more than just athletes we are human and there is so much to life. A lot of the time it is us who have a hard time seeing this, not the people on the outside. There are so many hidden battles, but they do not need to be hidden anymore. Let everyone speak up so we can help each other through whatever battle it may be that we are facing.

Sports have taught me skills that I will use for the rest of my life. I did not know the true definition of passion before I touched a soccer ball. The desire, burning passion, and grit to put the ball in the back of the net not only for myself but for my teammates. Soccer has taught me determination, mental toughness, selflessness, compassion, and grit. The sport has given me the foundation to be a successful adult when the time comes to enter the real world. Ever since I was a child I had a desire to have a ball at my feet. At first, my single mother could not afford for me to play any sports as she was more worried about us being cared for. After some time, we moved from England to the United States where the schools had sports teams at no extra cost. I finally had the chance to play on a soccer team. Despite never being on a team before I was determined to be the best I could be. I was never the best player out on that field, but one thing is for sure and that is I was the most determined and hardest working out there. I was willing to put everything on the line for the game. With high-pressure sports comes a mental toll. After some time, there was pressure to perform and not make mistakes. This made it harder to not make a mistake. The easy way out would be to quit and say that I could not do it. Soccer taught me not to quit, the game taught me that no game, person, or situation was ever going to make me quit. No matter how weak I was made to feel I am strong, I am mentally tough. There comes a time in team sports when you have to decide between yourself and everyone else. For me, it has always been simple. I am in this to win it not just for me but for my team. I want whatever is best for the team. If at that time it means I am on the bench, so be it. If the team is winning, so am I. My teammate's successes are also my successes. We make each other better. It is important to recognize that there is no "I" in the word "Team". In college, there are around 30 girls on the average womens soccer roster. With 30 different girls from all around the country/ world come some very different personalities. Everyone being different has blessed me with compassion. Every girl on our team feels different ways for different reasons. Sometimes I do not have to understand, and that is okay but I will always be there to listen, pick them back up, and make sure they are okay. Grit. Grit separates great players from good players. To have grit is to put your own body on the line for the sake of the team, it is showing strength in the toughest of moments, it is fighting back 10x harder than the opponent is fighting you. Soccer has given me grit on the field and off the field. The game teaches us to have thick skin. Sometimes you have to roll with the punches and that's okay as long as you get back up.

Mental Health is detrimental to every aspect of our lives. Mentally healthy people carry around a positive aura that is contagious. So many college students aspire to have this but are unsure how. The basic answer is taking care of the simple things in life. As a College-Student, we forget the little things. Most often we forget about sleep. How can we expect our bodies to function healthily if we aren't giving them enough sleep? Again, the simple answer is you cannot have those expectations. Mental health impacts how we perform inside of the classroom, socially, athletically, you name it every area of life. When I first arrived at Lees-McRae College in the Fall of 2020. I lost sight of my mental health. To say the least, I spiraled. I had to find my footing again. There is a misconception that the find yourself in college it needs to be a massive change. However, I did not find this to be the case. I found a simple self-care routine was sufficient. I wake up around the same time every day and have a routine. I brush my teeth, wash my face, brush my hair, and set myself up for a successful day. Something as simple as this gives me the confidence to start my day off strong. Another way I maintain my mental wellness is by staying consistent. As a college student, it is very easy to become inconsistent if you do not hold yourself accountable. I found that I am performing at my mental best when I am consistent. For example, I do my morning routine for self-care every morning. I find it very important to consistently get a good night's sleep as well. Without a sufficient amount of sleep, I feel mentally clouded and unable to perform. Mental health is important to be able to gain the basic stepping stools to life. We need tools to be able to handle poor mental health, but we also need tools to maintain a good mental health status. Sometimes the two can be difficult to distinguish because the term mental health has a negative connotation. Mental health suggests to many that something must be wrong. However, this is not the case every side of mental health is important and can be positive. Mental health should be talked about more, and mental struggles should be accepted. Help one another, we all have our struggles and no one should feel alone.

Protecting the environment is step one to saving our planet. There are countless acts to have a positive impact on the environment. I have chosen to apply as many acts as possible to my daily life. From the first thing I do in the morning to the last thing at night, I am constantly trying to protect the earth. I use a product called Bite toothpaste bits; they are entirely environmentally friendly, along with a bamboo toothbrush. I drive an electric car and also make an effort to walk whenever the opportunity arises. I pay my bills online to save trees. I do not use disposable products such as paper plates, cups, or plastic silverware. I carry a metal straw wherever I go to reduce the use of straws. I recycle anywhere and everywhere and try to explain to people what items can be recycled and which cannot be recycled. Everywhere I go, I strive to impact the environment to save the climate positively. It is crucial to change our lifestyles now so that our younger generations have a fair chance at life. We must implement environmentally friendly ways of life and educate people on the matter. We need to teach the young how they can positively impact the world so they do not have to suffer in the future. The environment is everything; if we do not make an effort now, it will be too late in the future.

College Athletics is challenging. Every team needs a solid leadership foundation to be successful. Throughout my college experience, I have grown tremendously as a leader. From freshman to junior, my growth has been astounding. I filled vital roles from the beginning, and those have only grown. The group had not experienced a player like me before. The previous year, the Lees-McRae Women's Soccer team had finished 11th place in the conference. As a result, the team needed a "glue girl." I define a glue girl as someone with the leadership qualities I will discuss. The glue girl holds the team together through tough patches and crucial times. During my first year, hard work, leadership skills, and determination led our team to fourth place in the forum. Leadership skills and ability to communicate helped our team make it to fourth place. Making an effort to instill confidence in my teammates and believe they were good players. As a rising junior, my acquired skills make me the leader I am today. On the field, I am a directional player. Teammates need to trust a leader. Within our team, we need to hold people accountable. Accountability has been a challenge in the past; however, I stepped up and filled this role. Holding others accountable can be challenging, seeing as confrontation can be uncomfortable. However, I have learned that conflict is worth it for our team to reach its potential. I bring accountability, encouragement, communication, passion, and integrity into a team environment. If I need something from a teammate, my approach is to encourage them and tell them precisely what it is I need from them. Teammates look up to the passion I have for the game. I am always the first player on the field and the last player to leave the area. I am passionate about the game and show passion for each player to be the best they can be. As a team, integrity unifies us. My teammates look up to me, feel comfortable coming to me, and view me as a group leader. I exemplify being a leader off the field through making the right choices, maintaining a good GPA, tutoring teammates, and being there in times of need. It can be tempting to make questionable choices in college, but I am a disciplined student-athlete. I desire to have fun while maintaining my GPA and athletic abilities. As a student who spends most of my time in the library, my teammates follow suit and maintain their GPAs. Our group finished with an average GPA of 3.6 this past semester. Tutoring teammates helps them manage their time, giving them personal time when needed instead of spending countless hours trying to figure out assignments. As a result, my group of girls feels comfortable coming to me when in time of need. They do not view me as a strict leader. They understand why I am tough on the field, but they know who I am off the field. I make an effort for each person to know who I am as an individual so they can feel comfortable coming to me. From a young age, I had to hold my family together. My father was a drug addict, and my mother was an alcoholic. As a result, I had two younger brothers to care for and a broken family I attempted to hold together. However, my childhood made me an efficient leader. It taught me to be a glue girl and step up in times of need under pressure. Every day I work to reach my highest potential as a leader.