Titans WR Murdock dies

#2
#2
Sad.

Seems depression is more widespread in pro athletes than the rest of the population. I wonder if it's concussion related or just the exposure that the stories get.
 
#3
#3
Thrasher865 said:
Sad.

Seems depression is more widespread in pro athletes than the rest of the population. I wonder if it's concussion related or just the exposure that the stories get.
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Milo was talking suicide numbers are much higher in the NFL than they are in the general population. I've wondered if it is concussion related, or high-profile rollercoaster-career related.
 
#4
#4
Thrasher865 said:
Sad.

Seems depression is more widespread in pro athletes than the rest of the population. I wonder if it's concussion related or just the exposure that the stories get.
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Exposure is one thing, I'm sure concussions play a role and another is having a strict schedule and routine for 30 or so years of your life and then bam, you don't have that organization anymore.
 
#6
#6
Read that Murdock and Kenny McKinley were both on South Carolina's 2006 team. Sorry if it was mentioned in this article, I didn't read it. Prayers for the Gamecock and Titan family and friends.
 
#7
#7
R.I.P. OJ. Very sad man.




Hasselbeck tweeted the pic today
 

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#8
#8
Sorry to hear this. Prayers to his family.

Depression is closely related to stress. NFL players and professional athletes in general are under a lot of stress, both physical and mental. Add this to the fact that there is a stigma in sports against seeking help for depression and it is not surprising that there is a higher than average suicide rate among professional athletes.
 
#9
#9
OldandStillaVol said:
Sorry to hear this. Prayers to his family.

Depression is closely related to stress. NFL players and professional athletes in general are under a lot of stress, both physical and mental. Add this to the fact that there is a stigma in sports against seeking help for depression and it is not surprising that there is a higher than average suicide rate among professional athletes.
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It's also caused by a chemical imbalance (could be read as malfunction) in the brain's normal biochemical processing/functioning. Unfortunately it - as well as things like Alzheimer's - are more and more being shown to also be a result of head trauma (severe, repeated, etc).

Stress is/can be a component...but it's starting to look less to be the common factor as more of these cases arise




Very sad for his family and friends though. Condolences
 
#10
#10
I agree with this. Head trauma of any kind can probably trigger chemical imbalances of the brain.

Anyway, I feel bad for the player and his family. Wish he could have gotten medical help earlier.
 
#12
#12
OldandStillaVol said:
Sorry to hear this. Prayers to his family.

Depression is closely related to stress. NFL players and professional athletes in general are under a lot of stress, both physical and mental. Add this to the fact that there is a stigma in sports against seeking help for depression and it is not surprising that there is a higher than average suicide rate among professional athletes.
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That doesn't appear to be accurate.

Junior Seau's suicide: Are concussions responsible?
 
#13
#13
bamacheats said:
That doesn't appear to be accurate.

Junior Seau's suicide: Are concussions responsible?
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Nice:

What does this have to do with Junior Seau? The CDC study was designed to look for fatal cases of cardiovascular disease among the athletes. (It found one-third fewer than expected.) But the researchers also compiled numbers for more than a dozen other categories of disease and injury, including suicide. Former players were 42 percent less likely to die of cancer, 86 percent less likely to die of tuberculosis, and 73 percent less likely to die from digestive problems. And among the athletes who regularly played professional football between 1959 and 1988, a total of nine perished as a result of "intentional self-harm," compared with an expected number of about 22. The sample size was small, but the effect is large: Ex-NFLers were 59 percent less likely to commit suicide.
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#14
#14
What the CDC study appears to show is that ex NFL football players from over 30 years ago are in better health than matched subjects of the same age. Notice that for cancer, the death rate for ex NFL players is also much lower - but does anyone believes that playing football 30 years ago prevents cancer?

What is needed in my opinion, is a study matching football players against subjects who are just as healthy as they are (perhaps other professional athletes who do not routinely suffer head trauma).
 
#15
#15
OldandStillaVol said:
What the CDC study appears to show is that ex NFL football players from over 30 years ago are in better health than matched subjects of the same age. Notice that for cancer, the death rate for ex NFL players is also much lower - but does anyone believes that playing football 30 years ago prevents cancer?

What is needed in my opinion, is a study matching football players against subjects who are just as healthy as they are (perhaps other professional athletes who do not routinely suffer head trauma).
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Who said that's what the data means? All it means to me is that they have generally better health so maybe football isn't that dangerous. It's not saying that football cures cancer.
 
#16
#16
Maybe it had more to do with a more controlled diet and getting lots of physical exercise. I could see that correlating to lower rate of cancer and other diseases.
 
#17
#17
Thrasher865 said:
Maybe it had more to do with a more controlled diet and getting lots of physical exercise. I could see that correlating to lower rate of cancer and other diseases.
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Thats my point. What the CDC study shows is that ex NFL players have better health than the general population. But in my opinion, that is NOT the question that people have regarding head trauma / suicide. My question is for people who are way above average in background health characteristics (exercise, diet, high income) is the suicide attempt rate higher for NFL players?
 
#18
#18
n_huffhines said:
Who said that's what the data means? All it means to me is that they have generally better health so maybe football isn't that dangerous. It's not saying that football cures cancer.
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Of course it doesn't. If you were an NFL player, you recognize that you are in much better health than most everyone your age. But what might worry you is if repeated head trauma might make you more at risk for depression. I don't think the CDC study addresses that.

I stand corrected when I previously stated that NFL players have a higher suicide attempt rate. That apparently is unknown. But depression is a comorbidity with lots of other chronic illnesses like pain, ptsd. If concussions are associated with these chronic illnesses, it would not be surprising that NFL players would also have higher depression rates.
 
#19
#19
Thrasher865 said:
Maybe it had more to do with a more controlled diet and getting lots of physical exercise. I could see that correlating to lower rate of cancer and other diseases.
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A third variable; I could see that being a possible issue here (rather than a straight "A effects B" correlation)
 
#20
#20
If anyone reading this thread is feeling depressed and has suicidal thoughts, please seek help from a doctor, counselor, or just a friend.
 
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