A CLYDEBANK man who shared a football field with some of the biggest names in the Scottish game has opened up to the Post about his mental health struggles in a bid to encourage others in a similar situation to get the support they need.
Andrew Ferguson was playing for Alloa Athletic in January 2009, and was preparing for a big game against Aberdeen in the fourth round of the Scottish Cup when he discovered his mum had taken her own life.
Andrew, then aged just 23, was advised not to take part in that big cup tie – and was told by the club that he could take all the time off he needed to help him come to terms with the loss.
It was on his return to the club four weeks later that he began as what he described to the Post as “the worst time of his life”.
Told he would be going out on loan to Stenhousemuir, Andrew was advised that he “didn’t know where his head was at”, and that a loan would be the right move for him and the club.
“My manager should have put his arm around me and assured me we’ve got this together as player, manager and team,” Andrew said, “but sadly that is not how it went.
“I am trying to raise awareness that there needs to be more support in place. It’s only when big organisations get involved and invest in mental health that we will see a real difference.
“No-one should feel like suicide is the only way out.”
Andrew’s loan spell at Stenhousemuir only lasted eight weeks. He was released by Alloa at the end of that season, and would go on to experience his own mental health struggles for much of the decade-and-a-bit that followed.
Now he wants to help highlight the gap in support for footballers, and young men in general, who are struggling with their mental health.
Andrew started his own car valeting business and decided to sponsor a local youth football team to prevent history repeating itself with young budding footballers in the area.
He will be working with them in the coming months, helping with training.
Andrew also plans to get more involved with mental health charity Back Onside, which works with individuals and teams to tackle mental illness, offering support and encouraging recovery through focused sport activities – as well as campaigning for professional organisations and sport governing bodies to do more to support footballers’ mental health.
“I believe it is important to not just develop their football skills but to begin to encourage kids to talk about how they feel,” he said.
“I want to help introduce this at the early stage of their football careers and hopefully l help set the path for a more supported team in the future.”
Andrew spoke to the Post amid growing concern at the long-term impact of Covid on the mental health of people in the UK coping with uncertainty around income and jobs, the isolation of working from home, the loss of loved ones to the disease, the impact on their children, and not seeing friends or family for months on end.
A study by the Mental Health Foundation a year ago found that 60 per cent of parents with a child under the age of 18 were concerned about how the mental health of their children might be adversely affected by the pandemic.
Among the charities set up to offer support and advice to men in particular struggling with their own mental health is Men Matter Scotland.
Based in Drumchapel, the organisation was set up in the summer of 2019 to give men a place to talk about issues affecting their mental health in a safe, non-judgmental environment.
The charity’s volunteers include 25-year-old Daniel Atkins, who has also experienced mental health struggles in his own life and that of his family.
Daniel’s mum Jane, who also volunteers with Men Matter Scotland, told the Post: “It is hard when you see your son suffering and you can’t help him.
He will always be my wee boy, but he is a man. He has his own family and his own life.
“I think the message has to get out there that it doesn’t matter what age you are; men do struggle too.
“He stayed with me throughout the first lockdown, and without him I would be lost completely.
“He went back to his own place and struggled.
“As a mum, watching him and knowing I can’t put my arms round him was terrible.
“You can’t console them. Men are in desperate need of help and it is time someone got their finger out.
“This past year by volunteering here it has given me my son back and I couldn’t be more grateful.”
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