Mental health and suicide prevention are important topics among my generation because many young people are dealing with trauma and do not feel safe talking about it. As a Black teenage boy, it has been hard to open up because the message from social media and people around me is to just tough it out. I think the more people talk about mental health, the more young people, especially people like me, will feel safe to talk and heal. My beliefs come from my own experiences. Growing up on the South Side of Chicago, I faced a lot of instability. I went to eight different schools and lived in six different houses with six different people. I did not care about my future because I did not think I would make eighteen. I was not thinking about my health; I was trying to survive. The night I was taken from my mom’s house by the police and sent to a foster home, I cried all night. I knew the people there could hear me, but no one came. I was ten and decided to just stop crying because it felt like no one cared. I did not cry again for five years. I often felt angry, overwhelmed, anxious, or sad, but I never talked about it. Basketball became my outlet. When I first walked into Washington Park as a twelve-year-old, I found structure, purpose, and positive role models. The older players and staff encouraged me to stay focused and avoid the dangers that surrounded many young people in my neighborhood. Basketball gave me something to work toward when everything else felt uncertain. As I began playing organized basketball, I faced a different challenge: anxiety. Before games, I would worry about making mistakes, letting down my teammates, or being pulled. I felt pressure to perform and prove that I belonged. Like many young people, I kept those feelings to myself because I thought I was supposed to handle them alone. That changed during my junior year when a teacher introduced Kevin Love's story about mental health. Hearing a professional athlete talk about his struggles helped me realize there was not anything wrong with me. That essay helped me start therapy for anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. In therapy, I am learning mindfulness techniques, healthier ways to manage anger, and how to ask for help. Those experiences changed my beliefs. I no longer see mental strength as pretending everything is okay. I know that real strength comes from being honest about what you are facing and taking steps to care for yourself. Therapy has helped me become a better basketball player and person. My experiences shaped my career goals. I plan to study exercise science and sport management because sports positively affect well-being. One day, I want to mentor young athletes and create programs that provide both athletic opportunities and emotional support. I want young people to know that it is okay to prioritize their mental health. Basketball helped save my future because it connected me to mentors, purpose, and therapy. Therapy is one of the reasons I will achieve my goal of attending college as a scholar-athlete. After college, I will use my education to provide those same opportunities to young people growing up with the same challenges as I did.