Story byKTVX
SOUTH JORDAN, Utah (ABC4) — Former MLB players joined first responders and military members at The Ballpark in South Jordan on Saturday to discuss mental health re a sign of strength
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According to former Major League Baseball player and Taylorsville native John Buck, there are several similarities between America’s Favorite Pastime and mental wellness. That’s why for two years, his program, Level Up Performance, has aimed to promote resilience through sports
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“I use the game to table that: to show tips and tricks, pre-game, in-game and post-game, mental health skills to show these first responders to try a couple of these out on baseball, when it’s fun to get into the zone or flow state, and maybe you can try that as a tool with a hard daily job as a first responder,” Buck said
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During Saturday’s game, first responders practiced several skills that Buck said may be elementary to professional ball players but are important for others, too. One such strategy was framing— as a batter resets and rehearses before a pitch, so too can a first responder preview their day and frame it in a healthy way
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Buck said that he grew to realize the importance of becoming a steward of your own mental well-being after three trials: losing two family members to mental health struggles, experiencing consistent panic attacks and learning to transition from work to home life by leaning onto his support systems
“What crossroads do you want to take?” he asked. “Once you lean into it and you get help, that’s a lot of times the releaser, asking for help and realizing, holy cow, I’m not alone here. As soon as you ask for help, you realize three or four people around you are like ‘Man, I’m feeling the same way.”
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Fellow former MLB players at the event included Jeremy Affeldt, Rick Ankiel, Jason Grilli and Scott Spiezio. Following their Mental Wellness Roundtable, moderated by MLB Network’s Sean Casey, the public was invited to gather for an on-field screening of The Sandlot
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