(Photo: Michael Chow/Arizona Republic)
As Robbi Ryan's mental health improved over her final two years at Arizona State, she wanted a way to share her journey, both for herself and to help others.
How to do so, and the timing, were the unknowns.
Then Ryan's basketball career ended prematurely due to the coronavirus pandemic, which during the ensuing self-isolation quarantine has brought more attention on mental health. With May being National Mental Health Awareness Month, observed in the U.S. since 1949, Ryan decided to go public with her story.
She used material from her journal to craft a story about how anxiety and depression "outscored the toughest players in the nation to win the top spot as my biggest opponent.