遗忘星球

James Adem

For as deeply as teams dive into the makeup of prospective players， little attention is paid to potential mental health issues.

尽管球队在塑造潜力球员方面下了很大功夫，但他们却很少关注精神健康的潜在问题。

According to the National Alliance of Mental Illness， 20 percent of the nations population deals with some form of mental illness——nearly half of which have an onset average of 14 years old. The most commonly diagnosed type of mental illness， anxiety disorders， affect an estimated 42 million people.

据精神疾病全美联盟统计，全美有近20%的人口有着某种程度的精神疾病——其中近半数平均患病时间长达14年。最常见的一类精神疾病，也就是焦虑症，影响的人口约为4200万人。

Former NBA first-round pick Royce White is one of them.

前NBA首轮新秀罗伊斯·怀特就是其中一员。

In 2013 ， White reiterated his commitment to being his own advocate as it concerned receiving support from the NBA and the Houston Rockets， the team that drafted him. Out of the gate， both the Rockets general manager and head coach were aware of Whites anxiety disorder. As the first player to be properly and publicly classified， White， his representatives， and the Rockets negotiated several accommodations over the course of his contract. Sadly， with Whites condition preventing him from logging much in the way of court time， and with no precedent to follow， the relationship came to an abrupt end.

2013年，谈及从NBA及火箭获得支持的问题时，怀特重申了他独自为战的观点。门外，火箭总经理和主教练都知道怀特有焦虑症，作为第一个被合理公开定位的球员，怀特、他的经纪人及火箭在签约过程中协商了一些特殊安排。可悲的是，怀特的状态使得他无法上场太多时间，加上无先例可循，这份关系最终戛然而止。

All these years later， the NBA still lacks concrete policies for handling mental health and illnesses. The reason being， perhaps， that it simply doesnt fully understand it as a disease. Without acknowledging it as such， the criticism goes， how can you expect players to feel comfortable talking about it？

多年过后，NBA在处理精神健康和疾病方面仍然缺乏具体政策。个中原因，大概仅仅是人们并不能真正把精神疾病看作疾病。既然不承认，那问题就成了，你又怎么可能让球员坦然地讨论呢？

The annual rookie symposium， held every year after the June draft， doesnt hold any sessions centering exclusively around mental health education. However， based on pure statistics alone， of the 60 players who are drafted each year， at least 12 of them already have or will have a mental health issue at some point in their lives. Considering how many Americans are never diagnosed， that number could well be higher.

在每年6月选秀结束后所进行的新秀培训项目中，没有任何有关精神健康方面的培训。然而，如果单看统计数据，每年被选中的60名新秀中，至少有12人在人生某个阶段已经或者将会面临精神健康问题。考虑到有太多美国人从没有被诊断过，这个数字有可能会更高。

In this emotional netherworld of pro sports， being dismissive， detached， and ego-driven is encouraged， so much so that these qualities quickly become second nature. The result is a psychological makeup that， when put in uncomfortable or compromising situations， can yield a hitherto unseen side. Just this past week， former NBA player Delonte West， long since washed out of the league， was found hallucinating outside a Jack in the Box in Houston， Texas.

在职业体育这个不含情感的冰冷世界，蔑视他人、高冷以及自大的性格是受人推崇的，甚至备受推崇到了可以成为球员第二天性的地步。这就会导致，在心理做出伪装后，又被放入一个不舒服或者不好的环境中时，一种过去从未见过的状态发生了。就在上周，离开联盟已经很长时间的前NBA球员德隆蒂·韦斯特被人发现在德州休斯敦一家Jack in the Box快餐店外迷迷糊糊地游荡。

On the one hand， its easy to dismiss Wests travails as an isolated instance of big money and bad appetites. If anything， though， West is merely the latest casualty of a business still not fully invested in the total health of its players.

一方面，我们很容易把韦斯特的艰难现状归结为挣了大钱、品味又差导致的孤立事件。但也有可能，韦斯特不过是一个不真正关注球员身心健康产业的最新牺牲品。

The game is unforgiving. Regardless of the league or talent level， athletes are， at the end of the day， high-end commodities. The fear of losing out on a job， and the millions in potential earnings that come with it， can dissuade players from disclosing mental health issues.

比赛是无情的。这和联盟，以及天赋水平无关，运动员最终都属于高端产品。害怕丢掉工作以及未来百万美元的收入，这会阻止球员公开自己的精神健康问题。

And while there is no clear-cut standard for evaluating mental health in any of the major professional leagues， its prevalent enough in the general population that sports leagues can no longer afford to ignore it.

尽管主流职业联盟都不存在评估精神健康的明确标准，但大众都认为，体育联盟不能再无视这个问题。

During his time in the NBAs Development League， Royce White stated that several NBA players， both current and long-since retired， relayed their experiences to him. And yet， hes the only one who became something resembling a top-fold story.

在展联盟，罗伊斯·怀特表示，有一些NBA现役和退役很久的球员向他分享了他们的经历。但他的故事却是唯一被广泛报道的。

In his private letter addressed to Commissioner Adam Silver and NBA leadership， White said something vital in his criticism of the leagues lack of interest in mental health.

在写给总裁亚当·萧华和NBA管理层的私信中，怀特表示，联盟对精神健康缺少关注是他最不满的。

"Shockingly， the consensus throughout the NBA that was communicated to me was no one would listen unless I played well. Unless I made myself of value to the league and the owners. I was told that saying something true is no longer enough to bring change or solution."

“让我震惊的是，NBA向我传达的共识是，除非我打出好的表现，否则没人在意我说了什么。除非我能为联盟或老板创造价值。我被告知，仅仅说出真相，已经不足以带来改变或解决方案了。”

Despite notable efforts to preach inclusion and acceptance， professional sports value a positive narrative that can be monetized on some level. Michael Sam wasnt moving the needle. Jason Collins wasnt moving the needle. If mental health is ever going to be an issue that forces change in policy and treatment， leagues will need the face of the issue to be one they can market. That might sound cynical and exploitative， but the proof remains very much in the PR pudding.

尽管人们付出了很多努力，要求更加包容、接纳不同人群，但职业体育重视的仍然是某种程度上能够转换成金钱的积极故事。如果精神健康问题将迫使联盟在政策和待遇方面做出改变，他们就需要一个能进行营销的人成为这一问题的“脸面”。听上去这种说法有点愤世嫉俗，或者让人感到被利用，但公共宣传方面，我们能找到很多证据。

Even though hed found a productive niche during his stint with the Cavaliers， Wests career took a hit after it was alleged hed had relations with LeBron James mother， Gloria James. In the years that followed， West had multiple erratic run-ins with the law. All the while， despite a 2008 diagnosis for bipolar disorder， West refused to take medication for his mental illness. Whats worse， there was never any official report indicating whether or not the league or the National Basketball Players Association reached out to help West seek professional help.

尽管在骑士效力期间有着不错表现，但韦斯特的职业生涯在传出他与勒布朗·詹姆斯母亲格洛丽亚·詹姆斯发生关系后遭受重创。接下来几年，韦斯特多次触犯法律。尽管在2008年被诊断出患有躁狂抑郁症，但他仍拒绝针对精神疾病的治疗。更糟糕的是，没有任何一份正式报告显示，联盟或者球员工会联系过韦斯特，为他提供专业帮助。

Strangely enough， Cleveland.coms Chris Haynes reported it was LeBron himself who reached out to West before bolting for South Beach.

奇怪的是，Cleveland.com的克里斯·海耶斯报道，前往迈阿密前，联系韦斯特的反而是勒布朗。

"He later walked me down the stairs and said， D， I dont know where youre going or what youre about to do." West was quoted as saying， "But Ill be right here when you get back.

“他后来跟我走下楼，说，‘D，我不知道你要去哪，也不知道你要做什么。”韦斯特说道，“但当你回来时，我会在这里支持你。”

The NBA players union is slated to tackle its next collective bargaining agreement negotiation in 2017. On the table will be a number of salient issues， with basketball-related income （BRI） being chief among them. But with new leadership at the helm——in the form of the experienced， dynamic Michele Roberts——and statistics regarding mental illness continuing to crystalize， its high time the NBA lead the charge in taking an active role in treating afflicted players.

NBA球员工会将在2017年进行新一轮的劳资协议谈判。台面上摆着一些需要解决的重要问题，篮球相关收益（BRI）是其中最主要的问题之一。不过随着工会更换了新的领导层——即经验丰富、充满活力的米歇尔·罗伯茨——与精神疾病相关的统计数据变得越来越透明，现在正是NBA引领变革、在面对相关球员时采取更积极作用的好时候。

So how， exactly， should sports leagues approach such an imperative？ First and foremost， all players unions should make it mandatory for draftees to be examined psychologically as a part of their physical. Players often fail drug tests because theyre using substances （marijuana， for instance） to dull the effects of the larger underlying issue——including， in many cases， anxiety or depression. Leagues seldom hesitate to be as punitive as possible when confronting such transgression， yet seldom is the narrative about providing the best， most comprehensive treatment.

那么体育联盟又应当如何应对这一急迫问题呢？首先，球员工会都应当强制所有新秀接受心理检查，使其成为身体检查的一部分。球员经常因为摄入一些物质而药检不合格（比如大麻），但这掩盖了隐藏的更大的问题——也就是很多情况下的焦虑症和抑郁症。违反药物规定时，联盟几乎很少犹豫就会做出相应惩罚，但他们却极少提供效果最高、最全面的治疗。

Players are grilled intensely about criminal activity and past indiscretions. But if teams are willing to dig that deeply into a players mental makeup， why not marshal the necessary resources to truly get to the underlying issues？ This would be a smart， proactive way to prevent players from falling through the cracks， and lessen the chances theyll run into problems later in their careers.

球员会因为犯罪行为，或过去的不检点行为而受严厉处罚。可如果球队愿意在球员精神问题上下这么大功夫，那么为什么不把适当的资源投入到真正能解决问题的方面呢？这是聪明且主动的方法，能够阻止球员堕落，减少他们未来在职业生涯中陷入麻烦的几率。

Second， rookie transitioning programs must incorporate an educational session dedicated to teaching beyond the basics. Specifically， there needs to be open dialogue——from day one——between players and their corresponding professional organization about how mental illnesses are accommodated by teams and the league. Leagues should also make it a priority to install a certified board of clinicians and therapists to be available throughout the duration of any players career. Teams do this for biomechanics and physiology， so why not the brain？

第二，新秀培训项目必须加入一个旨在教授他们基础知识以外的课程。具体来说，从第一天开始，球员和相应的球队就需要进行公开对话，讨论球队和联盟如何应对精神疾病问题。联盟也应当把建立一个由认证医师及治疗师组成的委员会作为首要任务，在任何球员职业生涯的任何时候都能为他们提供帮助。球队既然愿意在生物科学及生理学方面做出这么多努力，大脑为什么就是例外呢？

Perhaps most important， leagues should work to establish a employeecentric network that offers mentoring and support to any player who needs it. To understand how this could be effective， one can look no further than what Brandon Marshall is doing with his foundation， Project 375， established shortly after the All-Pro wideout received his own psychological diagnosis. The organizations primary mission is to raise awareness and remove the stigma that comes with a mental illness. Although his efforts are dedicated to the entire mental health community， Marshall has solidified his position as a leader that other players can go to in confidence.

也许最重要的是，联盟应当致力于构建一个以员工为中心的网络，为任何有需求的球员提供指导与支持。想了解这种方法如何起到效果，只需看看布兰登·马绍尔的基金会Project 375就可以了。这个基金是马绍尔，这个最佳外野手在得知自己心理疾病确诊后不久建立的，这个组织的主要任务，是提高人们的关注，消除精神疾病的污名。虽然他目前努力的方向是所有精神健康领域，但这已经足以让马绍尔成为其他运动员的领袖了。

The harsh reality is that sports has cultivated a false image of what mental illness looks like in professional athletes. Without adequate， actionable knowledge， the ripple effect——young players being less likely to seek out help， and therefore more likely to develop unhealthy coping habits； just like the rest of us——is bound to remain a dangerous one.

残酷的现实表明，体育在职业运动员心中培育出了有关精神疾病的错误认知。没有适当、可付诸实践的知识，年轻球员越来越不可能寻求帮助、就像我们一样更有可能养成不健康的应对习惯，这种连锁反应有着极大的出现可能。

We neednt wait for a front-cover superstar to proclaim his mental health diagnosis at a press conference for action to be taken. If anything， its insulting to those who suffer from mental illness to suggest their struggles require a "face" as if the faces of thousands were somehow not enough. Weve experienced enough cautionary tales， and know far too many friends and family whove experienced their own darkest days， for us to stand idly by any longer. What we need is a new， enlightened level of acceptance， encouraged by leagues and teams， to offer treatment not only for those in thick of the game， but those from whom the game already moved on.

我们不需要等到一个超级明星站出来、在新闻发布会上承认自己有精神健康问题才去采取行动。不管怎么说，对于那些被精神疾病折磨的人来说，他们需要一个“代表人物”才能证明自己的挣扎，这是一种带有侮辱性的做法，就好像已经有成千上万受此困扰的人仍显不足一样。我们已经见证足够多的牺牲者了，我们知道，有太多的朋友和家人经历过他们人生中最黑暗的时光，我们不能再空等下去了。我们需要的是在联盟及球队鼓励下全新、无偏见的接纳，不仅为那些现役的球员提供帮助，也要为那些退役多时的球员提供治疗。