‘courageous’ Mary Fowler Praised For Revealing Mental Health Struggles

Matildas coach Joe Montemurro has praised Mary Fowler for speaking up astir her intelligence wellness challenges, aft nan Manchester City guardant revealed nan grade of her slump erstwhile she first moved to Europe.

The 22-year-old attacker is presently recovering from a superior knee wounded and is expected backmost connected nan section successful January up of nan Asian Cup, but released a memoir this week detailing nan grade of her acquisition pinch slump and self-harm.

Fowler wrote she began having suicidal thoughts erstwhile she moved to France to play for Montpellier astatine property 17. After instances of aforesaid harm arsenic a teenager, she said she came adjacent to going further 1 nighttime astatine property 20, successful a play she was playing successful England. “In that moment, I didn’t travel through,” she wrote. “But I did beryllium location for astir of nan nighttime pleading for anyone up supra who would perceive to please conscionable return me.”

Montemurro said being capable to flooded and talk these challenges showed courage. “It’s a small spot of a motion of nan pressures that master athletes and master sports group are nether these days,” he said.

“The much we talk astir it, nan much it’s retired successful nan open, nan much that we’re honorable astir it I deliberation is amazing, and this is simply a cleanable illustration of personification that’s been really courageous and been capable to travel retired pinch her issues, woody pinch it and cognize that location are group down her, backing her and want to do what’s champion for her.”

Fowler is recovering from a superior knee injury. Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA

Fowler wrote successful her book that she struggled pinch financial pressures and nan expectations that came pinch her expanding floor plan that were exacerbated erstwhile she arrived successful France without having French connection skills and family support. Her consequence was to aforesaid harm.

“The information was to divert my affectional pain. Looking backmost connected it now, it’s bizarre that I thought physically harming myself would consciousness amended than dealing pinch my emotions, but I was young and didn’t cognize really to header pinch nan business successful beforehand of me,” she wrote.

“I was having a spot of an personality crisis, trying to woody pinch nan anticipation to execute and struggling to navigate a difficult activity environment.”

Montemurro said arsenic Matildas coach he has been trying to enactment much intimately connected to nan squad and he visited nan players astatine their clubs successful Europe past month, “just spot wherever they’re at, and you get immoderate realities connected situations,” nan erstwhile Arsenal, Juventus and Lyon coach said.

“The biggest point that we tin do arsenic FA [Football Australia] and nan group supporting these players is to conscionable beryllium location if they request to talk to them, if they request something, if they request moreover to understand wherever a bully spot to unrecorded successful a metropolis is, we’re location to thief them.”

Fowler will stay successful nan UK for nan Matildas’ coming matches against New Zealand, successful Gosford connected 28 November and Adelaide connected 2 December, though Montemurro said she would return to play successful January.

• In Australia, nan situation support work Lifeline is 13 11 14. In nan UK and Ireland, Samaritans tin beryllium contacted connected freephone 116 123, aliases email jo@samaritans.org aliases jo@samaritans.ie. In nan US, you tin telephone aliases matter nan 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline astatine 988 aliases chat astatine 988lifeline.org. Other world helplines tin beryllium recovered astatine befrienders.org