Professional Footballers’ Association chairman Carlisle, who retired from playing at the end of last season, has spoken of his own problems and revealed he tried to commit suicide when he was starting out in the game.
He is convinced the problem is widespread and has produced a television documentary on suicide and depression among footballers, he explained to the Mail on Sunday newspaper.
“I will categorically state there are hundreds of players suffering with this,” he said. “The numbers in society are one in four and footballers are members of that society.
“The thing about football is that the reluctance to come forward and speak means there are so many guys sitting under the radar.
“As PFA chairman, I’ve had 15-20 guys come to me and say: ‘Clarke, there’s something wrong with me and I don’t know what it is or where I should go’.
“All they know is they want to be out of football, out of the system. And those are just the ones who had my number and felt they could call. You cannot undersell this.”
Carlisle plans to launch a hotline for footballers to call if they feel they need help.
And he recalled an occasion when, as a young player at Queen’s Park Rangers, he went to a local park with a bottle of pills and attempted to end his life.
“I’d decided that ending my life was the best and most pain-free solution for everyone,” he said. “It wasn’t a cry for help. I downed the pills and was expecting some really dramatic ending, like a movie scene.
“When that didn’t happen, I thought I’d go back to my flat, have another can and go to sleep, job done. It’s frightening, really frightening, to think about my state of mind back then.”
Carlisle also attributes his problems with alcohol to his illness.
“My belief and experience is that the majority of substance abuse is born out of depression,” he said.
“I believe my alcoholism was to try to alter my state of mind, and that was because of my general level of unhappiness.
“Now my depression has been diagnosed, I take drugs every morning. It’s not a ‘happy pill’ that makes challenges go away, but it balances my brain so I can see clearly the challenges I face.”
wow wow wow. guy's on 100k a week want some support do they. tell you what go and buy the best help money can buy. even more work for 1 year and retire cuz you can.What did you say? some of you have blown/lost all your money,well err tuff shit your own fault idiot,another one you was drunk all summer cuz you missed a header, that's not depression you idiot, that's a fucking Nut job. If you feel this strong about it make them pay every footballer £500 week and give the rest to charity. what % of footballers would agree with that 0.0000000001% they have some of the best life's you can have the joy of having some people are just never happy. I have taken a recording of the program to starving kids in Africa, it's boosted moral for them cuz now they see how bad you guys have it. Clarke you are one stupid mental ungrateful CUNT!!
ReplyDeletewow wow wow. guy's on 100k a week want some support do they. tell you what go and buy the best help money can buy. even more work for 1 year and retire cuz you can.What did you say? some of you have blown/lost all your money,well err tuff shit your own fault idiot,another one you was drunk all summer cuz you missed a header, that's not depression you idiot, that's a fucking Nut job. If you feel this strong about it make them pay every footballer £500 week and give the rest to charity. what % of footballers would agree with that 0.0000000001% they have some of the best life's you can have the joy of having some people are just never happy. I have taken a recording of the program to starving kids in Africa, it's boosted moral for them cuz now they see how bad you guys have it. Clarke you are one stupid mental ungrateful CUNT!!
ReplyDelete