Duncan Bell - Retirement and Depression

A fascinating article and sobering read in the Telegraph as the big Bath prop discusses his impending retirement and battle with depression.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/club/9207431/Bath-prop-Duncan-Bell-my-secret-battle-against-the-beast-of-depression-away-from-the-rugby-field.html

Although the article is not about wages as such, with all the stuff being discussed about players moving for wages etc I found this quote interesting:

“My contract finishes and so does my money,” he says of his retirement.

“My divorce wiped out everything, so it will be a case of starting again. Not many players of my age would retire with nothing, but that’s pretty much what’s happening.

Very brave of him to come out like this I trust he finds the rugby fraternity more supportive than his worries suggest . Duncan was a good stalwart back in his Pontypridd days before all this seems to have hit him.

Many former professional sportsmen suffer with depression when their playing days are over one can imagine a feeling that one's best days are behind one taking hold although in his case it seems that personal factors have triggered the disease because that is what it is . As suggested it's not all mega-Euro deals .Good luck to him.

As a sufferer of depression myself, I can only empathise. It is a very, very wierd place to be in.

Lewis Carroll couldn't have made it up whilst penning the Alice novels.

fair play, it takes a lot of guts to come out and talk about something like this publicly, I take my hat off to him.

Depression is one of the most horrible things out there, but having a good support base changes everything. I hope now when he tells his team mates he'll see how much support he is going to get. The worst thing about depression is trying to tackle it alone, you need to ask for help, but asking is one of the hardest things to do.

The more players come out and talk about it the more accepted and understood it will become. My best mate's wife has very bad depression and it was only after reading Trescothick's book that I understood that it was not a case of thinking that she should just have a look in the mirror and sort herself out but actually a disease.

On the divorce note there are plenty of people out there who get divorced and get wiped out in their early 30s. I guess his issue is that he was earning a lot then and that was potentially his big time to save... Maybe that's why he set up Bell Financial Services as he learned a lot the hard way.

Anyway, a great servant to the club and its a shame that he is going as he is a real character. The banter between him and Flatman will be missed.

Well done to him for coming out with this, its never easy to admit to something like this, especially I would imagine in the world of pro sport. I hope others who are suffering realise that it isnt 'unmanly' to ask for help.

Belly is one of the most popular players at Bath so I hope he knows that he has a lot of support behind him. I really hope he gets a run out on saturday so he gets the last hurrah he deserves.

Man bitches be crazy, i feel sorry for the lad. Would have had a lot more caps if he had decided to play for Wales!

gowales:

I believe he wanted to play for Wales but he had a cap at A level so had to play for England.

I know he was very popular at Pontypridd and hope he gets lots of support from his friends and family. I think the best for him is to keep playing maybe at a lower level if he is fit and able to do so. Good luck and all the best.

I'm glad that people like Alfie and Bell have got the stones to come out and say that they had problems of whatever nature in their personal life.

Good luck to him.

I'm grateful he gave such a honest and frank interview. He mentions that if you haven't suffered from it then it's hard to feel any empathy - I would argue that it's impossible as depression is such a horrible illness.

I suffered from it badly last year and before I suffered from the 'black dog' I thought these people who had depression were either hypochondriacs or just crazy. In reality, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. The dark and extremely lonely places that I went to were pretty grim. I never thought I could walk down a packed high street and feel so lonely, but that's what depression does.

Now I'm through it and have come through the other side, so to speak, I have learned to appreciate life and what is in it. Furthermore, you learn to appreciate who your real friends really are and, in my experience, I've become a far more tolerant person - whether on the field, at home or with work colleagues.

Thanks Duncan, your story will no doubt give strength to others who suffer from mental health illnesses. And I wish you a happy retirement from rugby and every success in your new career.

SB wrote:I'm grateful he gave such a honest and frank interview. He mentions that if you haven't suffered from it then it's hard to feel any empathy - I would argue that it's impossible as depression is such a horrible illness.

I suffered from it badly last year and before I suffered from the 'black dog' I thought these people who had depression were either hypochondriacs or just crazy. In reality, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. The dark and extremely lonely places that I went to were pretty grim. I never thought I could walk down a packed high street and feel so lonely, but that's what depression does.

Now I'm through it and have come through the other side, so to speak, I have learned to appreciate life and what is in it. Furthermore, you learn to appreciate who your real friends really are and, in my experience, I've become a far more tolerant person - whether on the field, at home or with work colleagues.

Thanks Duncan, your story will no doubt give strength to others who suffer from mental health illnesses. And I wish you a happy retirement from rugby and every success in your new career.

+1. Agree with all of that SB. I've been through it myself too, and can't disagree with anything you've just written.

Suffered and continue to suffer to an extent from a particularly debilitating mental health condition myself, though not depression, kudos to Bell for this. Hope he can rebuild things.

I wouldn't wish Depression on anyone, had some very tough times myself with it in addition to other things... It's a pretty horrible thing to have to deal with. But it's also a lot more common than people think. It takes people like Duncan Bell and Alan Quinlan to speak up about it to change the public perception of the illness, so he should be proud of that article. His comments on anti-depressants are also very accurate.

It's very positive to see more well known men discussing depression (and any mental health issue really). I'm not being sexist there, but the suicide rate in this country (and Ireland as far as I know) is highest amongst young men. Getting more discussions on such matters can only be a good thing. Notch is correct in stating that depression is a lot more common than is generally perceived.

LondonTiger - thanks for sharing the article, I wouldnt normally read The Telegraph.