Affirmation Day

Four years ago, Mitchell Lloyd lost one of his closest teammates to suicide. 

Lloyd is now a junior men’s lacrosse student-athlete at Maryland. But he previously played lacrosse for Philadelphia Freedom Club alongside his friend in high school. Lloyd says he seemed like one of the happiest kids on the team. Unbeknownst to Lloyd and many others, he was battling mental health issues.  

Following the tragedy, everyone on the lacrosse team banded to sport his number on their helmets and wear T-shirts to games to honor his spirit and love of lacrosse. Lloyd is constantly reminded of the friend and teammate he lost in 2020, especially during September — recognized as Suicide Awareness Month.  

Suicide awareness efforts have progressed since the tragedy. Lloyd appreciates the worldwide ongoing efforts to reduce the stigma of student-athletes and mental health. However, he strived for a more consistent and extended approach to combat the leading cause of death, according to the CDC.  

“As a student-athlete, I’ve witnessed firsthand the stigma that comes with mental health,” Lloyd said. “Players are afraid to talk about it, don’t understand how to treat it and most importantly, are afraid to confront it. Mental health has been prevalent in my life for as long as I can remember.” 

Lloyd approached the University of Maryland Athletics’ Maryland Made team about instituting something to support Suicide Awareness Month. The Maryland Made team then connected with Dr. Kristi Hall, the university’s Director of Sports Psychology, and Pre-Health Terps (PHT), a student-athlete-led organization on campus that supports other student-athletes interested in careers in healthcare. 

The collective came up with the idea of hosting “Affirmation Day.” The student-driven ode to Suicide Awareness Month takes place on Sept. 24. Alongside PHT, Maryland Made collected affirmations written on red, yellow and white Post-it notes from staff and student-athletes. 

The Post-its were collected and placed into picture frames to hang in different areas that student-athletes frequently visit in Gossett Hall. The affirmations are centered around things student-athletes would want to hear if they were struggling and what a friend would likely say to their loved one if they knew they were struggling. 

“I think it’s important to continue to affirm our student-athletes because even the simple things like a positive comment or words of affirmation to yourself can change the trajectory of someone's day,” said Emma Pegg, PHT’s President. “We all know the struggles and hardships that come with being a student-athlete. It’s important to keep reminding ourselves and our teammates that we are human and need to give ourselves some grace and remember the positives around us.”

As student-athletes walk through Gossett Hall on Sept. 24, they will see positive statements from their peers scattered around the premises. The affirmations can help people deal with negative feelings, thoughts and situations through positive thinking. According to a National Institutes of Health (NIH) study, self-affirmation and positive thinking can activate brain systems associated with self-related processing, changing how one feels about things while reducing stress. 

Dr. Hall agrees with the assessment and often uses affirmations when meeting with student-athletes. She says they can positively impact student-athlete’s and staff's perspectives of themselves and the situations they’re going through in many ways. 

“Affirmations are related to positive self-talk,” she explained. “Your thoughts are related to emotional and behavioral changes. The more student-athletes visualize and repeat their affirmations, the more they will be able to achieve and maintain their goals and successes.”

While “Affirmation Day” is 24 hours dedicated to supporting Suicide Awareness Month, Maryland Athletics is committed to providing year-round support for student-athletes struggling with mental health issues. 

Maryland Football is one of the many programs taking the initiative to support mental health awareness. Its game against Villanova on Sept. 21 was recognized as its annual Mental Health Awareness game. The players wore decals on the back of their helmets in the game and green ribbons on their suits as they walked down Terp Alley before kickoff. 

Head Football Coach Michael Locksley takes pride in sparking conversation around mental health awareness. During the offseason, he and his staff received Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training. The Terps’ coaching staff was the first in Maryland to become fully certified after the passing of Maryland Senate Bill 165 on May 16. The landmark bill signed by Gov. Wes Moore mandated that "All Maryland public schools and public institutions are required to provide mental health training to coaches."

Locksley also hosted a mental health symposium. The open event attracted attendees from his Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, the Maryland football staff, and others, including Dr. Hall, University of Maryland Athletic Mental Health Counselor Chris Williams, Lead Campus Pastor of Zion Greenbelt Larry Paige and Certified Breath Coach and Flow Facilitator Soul Cole.

Locksley hopes to change the stigma surrounding student-athletes and mental health. The annual Mental Health Awareness Game is one way he hopes to accomplish that. 

“[Mental health awareness] is something really big to me and our program,” Locksley said. “[I’m proud of] the awareness that we continue to show and the resources they continue to pour into the mental health piece, which is becoming more prominent with the football brand here.”