My name is Drew Hoffer and I’m on the women’s golf team at UD. My major is physical education and health. I am interested in becoming a physical education teacher at the high school level and teaching students about lifelong fitness and healthy habits. Until college, I was a multi-sport athlete playing golf and competitive gymnastics. I am a big supporter of anything mental health related. Being a dual sport athlete, all my life has been challenging in many ways. The physical toll that it takes on your body can only be managed by focusing on commitment to your physical health. Even then, there is no guarantee that you will avoid injury. Unfortunately, in my senior year of high school, I struggled with an injury that took me out of gymnastics for months and eventually led to my gymnastics career coming to an end. I was devastated, but the preparation leading up to my injury allowed me to work through the rehabilitation needed to continue with golf. However, I had a very hard time adjusting to the mental and emotional toll that the injury caused. I didn’t feel like myself for a long time! It took me being willing to make myself vulnerable and talking to friends who had gone through similar things to find ways to cope with things as I worked through my rehab. I began to put my free time into golfing and coaching a group of 8-year-old competitive gymnasts. By helping others fall in love with competitive gymnastics and achieve all their goals, I was able to heal myself and move on to other challenges! Finding people that you can talk to and that can be a support system for you is important—we don’t have to know everything and do everything by ourselves. Additionally, this support can help you channel your energy and efforts into healing and all the great opportunities that are still out there for you. Finally, paying it forward is a great way for healing and to assist with your mental health. Mental health has been a big part of my life, and I hope people struggling can find the health they deserve and become themselves once again!
