By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics
In sports, injuries tend to leave physical evidence. Swelling, bruising, fractures … all tangible signs of a problem that needs medical help.
But with depression and anxiety, the clues aren't as easy to read. They are the Hidden Opponent, which is what former Southern California volleyball player Victoria Garrick named the group she founded in 2019 to raise awareness mental health among athletes.
Nearly 500 colleges and high schools in the U.S. have a presence in The Hidden Opponent. One is William & Mary, where Amy Schwem (volleyball), Caitlin Wingertzahn (women's basketball), Rebekah Frisby-Smith (women's basketball) and Brooke Lamoureux (women's swimming) serve as "campus captains."
Saturday in Kaplan Arena, the Tribe's volleyball team will host Delaware in a Mental Health Awareness match at 2 p.m. Beforehand, Schwem will speak about The Hidden Opponent's mission of raising awareness and ending the stigma too often associated with needing help.
Schwem and her fellow captains hope it will be the start of something big.
"We're taking steps towards making it an actual club on campus," Schwem said. "The game on Saturday will kind of be our launch of that to gather student interest. Even if you're not somebody who has struggled per se, everyone know someone who has."
"Up until this point, it's been more of a lead by example thing with 'Hey, I'm not afraid to speak out on this. I'm not afraid to seek help when I need it.' We're really excited about Saturday to get this up and running. I think there's a huge potential for this to change lives, honestly."
Schwem and her three co-captains are working with Deidre Connelly, William & Mary's director of performance psychology.
"I'm thrilled to have Amy and the campus captains bring The Hidden Opponent to our community," Connelly said. "Student athletes face very real challenges today, and by advocating for awareness of mental health issues, THO will help promote conversations about erasing stigmas and increasing help-seeking behaviors."
According the American College of Sports Medicine, about 30% of female and 25% of male student athletes say they have experienced anxiety. Of all college athletes, only 10% with known issues seek help from a mental health professional.
More prominent athletes are speaking out. Swimmer Michael Phelps, a 23-time Olympic gold medalist, has been open about his mental health issues and is stressing that it's OK to ask for help. So are NBA players Kevin Love and DeMar DeRozan, tennis legend Serena Williams and NFL quarterback Dak Prescott.
Yet there remains work to be done. Gymnast Simone Biles and tennis champion Naomi Osaka received admiration but also backlash when they pulled out of completion because of mental health issues.
"Part of what has created this stigma is the culture in sports of being tough, pushing through and always looking to do more," Schwem said. "Asking for help became a sign of weakness. So it became part of the culture that if I'm struggling, I'm weak.
"It's real easy to see a doctor when you have an injury. We want it to be just as easy to see a psychologist or a therapist. One by one, the more people we can get to speak up, the better off we're going to be."
Schwem is candid about her own mental health issues. Fifteen months ago, on the day she left for her freshman year at William & Mary, Schwem was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease. As if leaving her home in Illinois for Virginia wasn't enough for an 18-year-old.
"We all have our personal things we deal with whether it be related to sports or not," she said. "And between my personal life and navigating my way through having an autoimmune disease, I've definitely struggled in the past.
"We're working on getting people comfortable talking about mental health, and having The Hidden Opponent is a great way to do that. This is a great avenue to get through to them and work towards breaking that stigma."
Schwem said W&M's athletic administration has been supportive.
"They're open to feedback, and that's really special," she said. "It's something I wish every college campus could have."
