Today we would like to honor our third Warrior in our series!
My name is
McKenna Conklin and I'm a junior at ESU. I'm majoring in Health and Physical Education and I play lacrosse. Coming into school as a freshman in 2020 was an extremely challenging experience. I was moving away from home for the first time, and assuming my place on a nationally ranked lacrosse team, all while navigating the COVID-19 pandemic which kept everyone home for a year. When I committed to ESU to play lacrosse, I was so excited and motivated. Then in 2020 when the pandemic hit, life slowed down. I was able to relax for once after pushing myself to be the best academically and athletically for the last 10 years. I then came to school in a very bad headspace.
When I arrived as a freshman, I was very rusty. This mixed with being on one of the best teams in the country did nothing to improve upon my current mental state. I was quickly developing severe performance anxiety, and due to our team quarantining me to be able to play, I was extremely isolated, which led to major feelings of depression. I was able to hide these feelings for over a year, and silently struggled through my freshman and sophomore year. It was extremely difficult for me to show up to practice everyday with a positive attitude when all I did was put myself down for the smallest mistakes.
Once I was a junior, everything became very overwhelming. Our team grows more and more successful, and for that I am so grateful and proud, but it also means immensely more pressure to perform. At this point I had severe performance anxiety and depression, and had hidden it and not sought any help or guidance. Luckily I was surrounded by an amazing support system that urged me to seek help. I began seeing the lacrosse team's therapist through CAPS, and began working on myself and opening up about my struggles.
I am so grateful for my support system and my coaches for being so diligent about making sure we have the resources we need readily available. I am now able to fully enjoy my academics and lacrosse without being riddled with anxiety over performing. I am also very excited to be one of my team's
The Hidden Opponent representatives, as the THO is an amazing organization representing a very important aspect of being a student athlete that is often overlooked.
To all the student athletes reading this, always remember that you are a person first, a student second, and an athlete third. You matter in all aspects of your life, and athletics should be your escape from everyday life, not something you dread. Remember to enjoy it!
The pictures provided are from our campus captain's action shots from the past year, some of her teammates after the PSAC Championship game last year and a picture with one of our furry fans of ESU!
Past Stories
