I was introduced to lacrosse by one of my best friends. She was always a large influence in my life so when she started to play lacrosse, I decided to try it out too. I started to play basic level lacrosse at a local club and started to enjoy the game more and more as I played games.
While I was always interested in attack, somehow, I got a knack for defense. Even though I played defense on the field, that wasn’t enough. So, I chose to become a goalkeeper. Being able to see the game from a better perspective increased my interest in the game and helped me understand the strategies of lacrosse even better.
My interest in lacrosse helped me with all the transitions to high school and moving away from my childhood town. As an extroverted person the change from Dublin to Irvine strongly affected me as I knew no one in this new city and soon after I moved Covid-19 put all of us into isolation.
Through all this isolation, lacrosse kept me busy and social. The friendships I was able to make with my teammates and coaches created a safety net for all my ups and downs in high school so far. From practice to movie nights with the team, everything done with this team supplied me with self-confidence, a sense of comfort, and a variety of skills I can use in every aspect of life. Every win together and playing games to represent my high school and club teams motivated me to join numerous other clubs and movements. After all, the ideas of women empowerment and strength that stemmed from my years playing lacrosse influenced the ideas behind HW4BW, my women health based non-profit.
Sports helped with boosting my mental health by keeping me grounded and at peace. It affected how I think, feel, and act. Through my years of lacrosse, especially junior year, I was able to channel my stress and anger into this sport and gain tools to move through my life experiences. Physical exertion and health-maintenance through daily exercise kept my mood boosted through the endorphins running through my body, my physical troubles to a minimum, and daily energy up. Although I separated these three benefits to lacrosse, they are all connected as they are results of the release of endorphins, which are natural mood boosters.
In summary, lacrosse provided me with the social interactions, mental boosts and stability, and physical activities to get through the ups and downs of high school and life in general. Although lacrosse was the sport I fell in love with, all sports provide these benefits in their own manners. So don't wait a second longer to tackle your favorite sport or try a new one. Whether it is lacrosse, volleyball, football, soccer, hockey, gymnastics, or any others you can reap the many health benefits all while having fun playing it.
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