My name is Sunday John. I’m a Senior basketball player at the University of Dubuque pursuing a degree in Business Marketing and Management. I was born in the south side of Omaha, Nebraska, but spent most of my life growing up in Surprise, Arizona.
I didn’t have a normal lifestyle growing up. My family fought obstacles like overcoming homelessness and bouncing from house to house as my mom was searching for some light at the end of the tunnel. Growing up around these issues I couldn’t control has caused me to have unhealthy tendencies that needed to be fixed. Not having a normal childhood has caused me to be depressed as a young kid and made me question my reason for living. Feeling this way and not knowing how to help made things even worse for me.
I started to follow my brother’s footsteps in playing basketball to use it as a distraction, and to get out of my own thoughts. Being able to mentally “escape” when I’m playing basketball allows me the time to face what I’m going through, and to heal, which is very important to me and possibly for others around the world. Escaping mentally, allowed me to be willing to seek professional help and talk to therapists.
Mental health became extremely important to me after losing my father. The rise in Mental Health Awareness in collegiate sports is important because our voices need to be heard, and to know it’s okay to speak up about our mental health. When things seem overwhelming I like to tell myself, “You have the power to overcome anything”. Thank you!
