Sophomore year, I sat in class trying to focus on my notes while my mind kept drifting, to comments from teammates that made me feel like I didn't belong and a leg that no longer worked the way it used to. That was the year I understood how much I was struggling. My biggest challenge during school has been my mental health, specifically anxiety and depression, and two parts of my life pushed me into that struggle. The first was on my lacrosse team, where I faced racial microaggressions that affected my mental wellness and sense of belonging. I heard comments like, “I didn’t know Black people could play lacrosse,” “why do you like watermelon,” and “I bet you like bananas.” I also had teammates ask if they could get a pass to say the ‘n*****’ word. I struggled with how to respond. Should I laugh like it didn't bother me, or should I confront the person and ask what they meant? At first I would just walk away knowing how it bothered me. But that did not stop the comments. I didn't want to create conflict, but I also knew I could not ignore something that affected my dignity and the values I had been taught. That pressure began to impact my mental health, increasing my anxiety. With the support of my therapist, I worked to create constructive ways to respond when statements were made about minorities. When I began speaking up for myself, the comments stopped. I discovered that by speaking up and letting them know it was not acceptable, they stopped making the comments, and I began to feel like I mattered. Just when I was feeling better with managing my anxiety and depression, I broke my leg. I was extremely depressed and felt my life was over without lacrosse. I did not know who I was any longer. I had a smile on my face but inside I was miserable and felt life had no meaning. But through intense therapy and working through this belief, I found out I was more than a lacrosse player. It wasn’t the broken leg that destroyed me, it was not feeling like I belonged anymore. What got me through was weekly therapy and finding other things in life that brought me joy. But my epiphany came when I talked to my orthopedic doctor Dr. Keblish. He told me that all athletes have setbacks and that as long as I am playing lacrosse I run the risk of injury. He also said that lacrosse is just something that you do, it is not who you are as a person. Now I look at lacrosse as a sport that I play and not who I am as a person. Dr. Keblish, who guided my recovery, helped me discover my passion for sports medicine. He showed me that taking care of our bodies is essential not just to play sports, but to live a well-rounded life. Because of that experience, I will be pursuing my Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology at Hampton University, with a focus on strength and conditioning. My goal is to work in a high school or college setting as a strength and conditioning coach, ensuring athletes perform at their highest level while reducing the risk of injury. Athletics has taught me discipline, resilience, and perseverance, and those same qualities drive my academic commitment. In my sophomore year I struggled with my mental health which affected my grades. I had to push through by remembering this was just a point in time. To improve my grades, I met with my math teacher every day to review my understanding of the materials. I also began going to the Academic Support Center for help. At the end of the year, I was able to bring my math grade up to a ‘B’ where it was initially a ‘C-’. I was also able to get support from my therapist for creating coping strategies for test taking, and I spent more time studying overall. I realized that even if I am mentally struggling I need to keep moving forward by focusing on my purpose. I have learned to ask for help when I need it but to also put in the work to finish what I started. Attending Hampton to get my degree in Kinesiology is the first step to becoming a strength and conditioning coach. I want to pay it forward by helping athletes know what I have discovered. We are more than our sport we are strong, resilient, and determined to be the best person we can be. Now when I describe myself, I am not just a lacrosse player, I am someone dedicated to helping athletes stay in their sport and find their identity beyond it. When prejudice and physical injury threaten your mental health, it is easy to give up. I had to find people who could support me, but I also needed the courage to focus on what was important to me and to push through to the end.