Michael Johnson - Proof not all footballers are as lucky as they seem

Having plenty I time on my hands I managed to read more into the man'a downfall, and it truly is quite a sad story. Once the future goldenboy of English football, now very overweight and jobless. The picture has been used to make fun of him, in complete ignorance of the severe depression that got him into that state. Yes he was injury prone and that did much to damage his early career, but nothing was as damaging as his mental condition.

As a follower of Stan Collymore on twitter, an activist against and long time sufferer of depression, I've seen the sort of vile rubbish that gets thrown at footballers when they start saying they are depressed. 'Its a made up disease', 'how can you be depressed when you earn so much money', 'they should try getting a real job and then they'll know depression'. From my clinical perspective I'm very interested in all aspects of mental health including depression, and I'm hoping to get funding to go into research to discover more about it. Mental health issues are widespread around me both in my own family and my close friends, so it's a subject I know well and understand how serious it can be.

But saying that, I also reason with how it's difficult to understand how a footballer on top of the world can become so down on life. Being good enough at football to be paid to play it everyday is my dream job, and I'm assuming many of yours too. Many daydreams have had me discovering an unknown footballing talent, leading Cardiff to champions league glory then also leading England to World Cup glory in the same year. Collecting Ballon D'or after Ballon D'or and making Messi chew his fingernails completely off watching me slowly overcoming his total. But a dream job doesn't nessecerily make you happy. If depression is indeed a disorder it doesn't matter how good your life is, it can still ruin it very quickly. Footballers are very lucky to be able to do what they do everyday, but they are also human just like us when it comes down to it*.

Sorry for being so sombre, but I had to let it out somewhere

Goes to show money ain't everything, I imagine also boredom is a factor too, I mean u have wveverything so What else can u do?! (If that makes sense) I for one wouldn't even think About takin the piss or questioning someones state of mind with depression its a horrible decease,

Depression is tricky and very sad to see. Although my question is, as depression a is a confirmed medical condition, is it brought on by some bodily chemical reaction, or by circumstance's and environmental triggers? Its also interesting to note that it seems like one is more likely to suffer from depression if it runs in the family. Quite strange.

Working at a university at the moment in pastoral care (soon to move on), I can see for sure that more and more young people are suffering from a mental health issue than ever before. (I'm sure a little bit of digging and the stats would back that up). Without getting too political, the breakdown of the family unit, and the whole Freudian thing of a lack of a good father figure leads to many of the mental health problems, seems to be partly to blame.

Good post Red. I don't know anything really about what has happened to Johnson over the years but i am someone who suffers from depression myself and have done for most of my adult life. I can remember the same kind of attitudes being shown after the death of Kurt Cobain. "Ungrateful" "How can you be depressed when you are as successful as he was?" "With that lifestyle and money you shouldn't be depressed".

Anyone who has been there or seen it close enough to them to understand will realise that depression respects and ignores no one. That the money and success and fame will count for nothing if depression takes hold.

Although some people do show a lack of understanding i think things have improved dramatically over the years both in terms of how employers and the public view the problem. More and more people seem to now correctly view it as the illness it is in the same way they would a physical ailment. The likes of Collymore previously and maybe Johnson now being open about it only helps other peoples understanding of the problem and helps to remove the stigma.

I wish Michael Johnson all the best for the future.

In answer to your question Rhys it is mostly a bit of both when it comes to whether the problem is chemical or environmental. Environmental factors like poverty, physical illnesses, bereavement and emotional losses can all act as triggers for depression as can many other factors.

The onset of depression then often leads to the chemical changes in the brain which the antidepressants seek to improve. The problem is that some people seem very prone to depression and even more so if there is a history in the family. In these cases the environmental triggers lead to depression more often than for the rest of society, the level they reach is likely to be lower and their ability to climb back out of it consequently that much harder.

Medication is often such a trial and error treatment though with no real knowledge of which, if any of the antidepressants will work for any particular individual. The thing most people find hardest to understand about depression is how sometimes 'it just is'. In other words a good day or week or month can be followed by an intense depression with no noticable triggers at all.

That's what I'm interested in Toast Boy. It seems that while environmental factors kick start it, it's down to the individual just how prone they are to falling into the pit. I know sufferers that have it so severely that the shop runnin out of bread can put them back into depression for days. I also know people that have lost several family members in a very short space of time but have never once shown any weakness.

Makes me think it MUST be a chemical thing. The brain is either producing something in sufferers and not in 'healthy' people, or is not creating enough of a different chemical when encountering stress. Problem is its very difficult, if not currently impossible, to get inside a living persons brain and see what's going on chemically.

Personality is another factor Red though not one the doctors seem that keen to pursue outside of diagnosing someone with a Personality Disorder instead. It just seems natural that people who are not confident, shy, introspective and sensitive will react worse to life's tribulations than people who are more outgoing and assured or people who are more naturally selfish.

That is not to say that i haven't met people suffering from depression who, outwardly at least, seem very confident and outgoing. People often get very good at masking their feelings as there is almost a way people are expected to be around others regardless of how they are actually feeling.