Utah State College soccer coach Blake Anderson talks with a referee throughout a recreation in Logan on Friday, Oct 1, 2021. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret Information
On Monday, Utah State Aggies head soccer coach Blake Anderson publicly revealed for the primary time that his son Cason, who died in February, died by suicide on the age of 21.
At the side of September being Suicide Prevention Consciousness Month, the Utah State soccer program made a video almost seven minutes lengthy by which Anderson shared his household’s story and stated this week’s recreation towards UNLV might be devoted to psychological well being consciousness.
Anderson stated he grew up as an athlete in a time when “As a person, you didn’t present that you simply have been hurting. ... Sadly, I most likely spent most of my life as a father and as a coach most likely educating my children the identical manner.
“I don’t suppose my household actually knew what psychological well being actually was, by no means actually talked about it loads. It wasn’t a subject of dialog. It was simply one thing that you simply handled.”
#MentalHealthMatters@chbanderson 's Story 💚 pic.twitter.com/CpIJHMyF1S
— USU Soccer (@USUFootball) September 19, 2022
Anderson stated that began to vary when his first spouse Wendy was recognized with most cancers about six years in the past. Wendy Anderson finally died in August 2019, “and grief set in in a manner in our household that we’d by no means seen earlier than,” Blake Anderson stated within the video Monday.
Blake Anderson’s father died about six months after his spouse, after which his solely brother was recognized with stage 4 colon most cancers a couple of 12 months after that.
He stated within the video that by the household’s religion in Jesus Christ, going to grief counseling and leaning on family members, issues appeared to be going OK, till he obtained the cellphone name that Cason had taken his personal life whereas residing in Texas working with Anderson’s brother.
“Our lives endlessly modified that morning,” Anderson stated. “A chunk of me and a bit of our household’s gone and it'll by no means come again. Questions are all we’re left with. Why didn’t I see it? How might I've helped extra? What might I've executed?”
Anderson stated his son by no means let on that he was struggling, and stated, “In case you are hurting, in case you are coping with darkish ideas, in case you are depressed, in case you are coping with grief so heavy that you simply don’t know what to do with it, please attain out.
“There are folks round you that wish to provide help to. There are people who God has put in your life that wish to carry your burden. They'd a lot slightly carry your burden than carry your coffin. Psychological well being issues. I encourage you, for those who or somebody you understand is hurting, step up, communicate out and do the whole lot you possibly can to assist them discover the assets they want. Staying silent is just too expensive.”
Anderson concluded by saying, “I pray that these which are listening, for those who’re hurting, that you simply gained’t wait.”