TCU women’s basketball star Hailey Van Lith revealed over the weekend that she had previously battled suicidal thoughts, as she opened up about her mental health struggles in a harrowing discussion.
Van Lith, who rose to fame at Louisville during her first three college seasons, has 1.2million followers on Instagram and has become one of the more popular faces in women’s college basketball during the NIL era.
But in speaking to reporters after TCU’s 85-70 win over Louisville on Sunday in the second round of March Madness, she described how she had been at the ‘depths of wanting to die’ earlier in her college career.
‘The way that I got exposed to the media and social media at such a young age, I really struggled with mental health things,’ she said.
‘When I was younger and in college, I was suicidal, I was heavily medicated and I felt trapped. And you would never know because I was having a ton of success on the court, but internally, and in life in general, I was ready to be done.
‘And so that’s what I mean when I speak on suffering and pain. It’s like I didn’t even want to live. So to come from that to this is incredible.’
Hailey Van Lith revealed to reporters over the weekend that she had previously been suicidal
Van Lith, seen last month, has starred this season for TCU in her last year of college hoops
Van Lith added that she had been ‘praying all year,’ and that she believed God wanted to share her story with others.
‘He’s just taken me literally from the depths of wanting to die to this moment of loving life,’ she said. ‘And even if basketball went away today, I truly would want to be here and love these people.’
After a difficult one-year stop at LSU, Van Lith is thriving with TCU in her fifth and final college season.
She averaged 17.7 points and 5.5 assists (a career-high) in 36 games before the NCAA tournament, and was even named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.
That form carried over to last weekend as she notched 16 points and a game-high 10 assists against Louisville.
Van Lith and her team will now turn their focus to beating Notre Dame in the Sweet 16 on Saturday.
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) in the USA, or Samaritans on 116 123 for confidential help in the UK.
