Abuse & Toxic Culture in Gymnastics w/ Melanie Hunt
Explicit content warning
11/04/22 • 53 min
On Ep 32 Michele McPherson takes over the hosting duties. You may recognize her from our first ever guest on Ep 1 and again on Ep 14 where she discussed the use of EMDR and Yoga. As a Social Worker, Yoga Instructor and program head of a Mental Performance Program-Michele is taking over the podcast to do a mini series on connecting with athletes, coaches, and health professionals to talk about the highs and lows of performing at the elite level in sports.
Her first interview is special as she has known the guest for some time-
“I did gymnastics for a brief period when I was younger and Melanie Hunt (formerly Rocca) is an immensely talented gymnast you couldn’t help but aspire to want to be like.
Melanie was born and raised in Sarnia and started gymnastics at age 4. She was the provincial all around champion at age 9. Represented Canada at first international competition at age 10. A Junior National team member at age 12. Melanie represented Canada at multiple international competitions, including the Pacific Alliance Championships. Melanie left the sport at age 19. In our conversation Melanie and I dive deep into her experiences of trauma at the hands of her coaches and how
that has impacted her during and after her time in the sport.”
The release of this episode coincides with the release of TSN’s documentary- Broken: Inside the Toxic Culture of Canadian Gymnastics which features our guest Melanie Hunt.
On this episode we discuss:
- Her athlete career
- Experience as a child gymnast versus adolescent gymnast
- Her identity as an athlete
- Experiences of emotional, psychological, physical, and sexual abuse from her coach
- Fight, flight, freeze, fawn as trauma responses
- Learning to give herself permission in her own life/experiences
- Advice to current gymnasts and athletes
- Life beyond the sport
- Current work with Gymnasts For Change to bring light to the abuse and injustices experienced in the sport of gymnastics
- TSN full-length documentary titled Broken: Inside the Toxic Culture of Canadian Gymnastics
Links:
Gymnasts for Change (Canada):
https://www.gymnasts4changecanada.com
Impact Statement by Melanie Hunt (Rocca):
https://www.gymnasts4changecanada.com/blog/impact-statement-by-melanie-hunt-rocca
Support Athletes' call for Independent Review of GymCan Leadership + Sport Culture
Link to former/present gymnast letter: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScK_cMTyOqaliViZo1yrNUyGeE7n5_o1M3Q-KvYwdM4hhH8kQ/viewformfbclid=IwAR1eNANTIbYOFFhzTp4Uk3_BJBaG07BOdAYV-7grTQ0tQhxxU3P4ZFbCOYg
Link to Ally Support:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/15Pa5pdt-bw8qAeTh8e5JNugHHU1ZW3oH-
OUUA19NJls/viewform?pli=1&edit_requested=true&fbclid=IwAR1pJjAuk5pGJdEnzsJS-
etQ1Hl0KAj_ANZP7C73MzfMpHFfHxXTUjIa1hw
TSN Full-length Documentary: Broken: Inside the Toxic Culture of Canadian Gymnastics
@TSNSports, co-production with @CTVW5 & @CraveCanada
Debuts November 5, 2022 on CraveCanada and November 12 on @CTVW5
Open Letter to Sport Minister:
https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/gymnastics/gymnasts-for-change-open-letter-1.6629786
On Ep 32 Michele McPherson takes over the hosting duties. You may recognize her from our first ever guest on Ep 1 and again on Ep 14 where she discussed the use of EMDR and Yoga. As a Social Worker, Yoga Instructor and program head of a Mental Performance Program-Michele is taking over the podcast to do a mini series on connecting with athletes, coaches, and health professionals to talk about the highs and lows of performing at the elite level in sports.
Her first interview is special as she has known the guest for some time-
“I did gymnastics for a brief period when I was younger and Melanie Hunt (formerly Rocca) is an immensely talented gymnast you couldn’t help but aspire to want to be like.
Melanie was born and raised in Sarnia and started gymnastics at age 4. She was the provincial all around champion at age 9. Represented Canada at first international competition at age 10. A Junior National team member at age 12. Melanie represented Canada at multiple international competitions, including the Pacific Alliance Championships. Melanie left the sport at age 19. In our conversation Melanie and I dive deep into her experiences of trauma at the hands of her coaches and how
that has impacted her during and after her time in the sport.”
The release of this episode coincides with the release of TSN’s documentary- Broken: Inside the Toxic Culture of Canadian Gymnastics which features our guest Melanie Hunt.
On this episode we discuss:
- Her athlete career
- Experience as a child gymnast versus adolescent gymnast
- Her identity as an athlete
- Experiences of emotional, psychological, physical, and sexual abuse from her coach
- Fight, flight, freeze, fawn as trauma responses
- Learning to give herself permission in her own life/experiences
- Advice to current gymnasts and athletes
- Life beyond the sport
- Current work with Gymnasts For Change to bring light to the abuse and injustices experienced in the sport of gymnastics
- TSN full-length documentary titled Broken: Inside the Toxic Culture of Canadian Gymnastics
Links:
Gymnasts for Change (Canada):
https://www.gymnasts4changecanada.com
Impact Statement by Melanie Hunt (Rocca):
https://www.gymnasts4changecanada.com/blog/impact-statement-by-melanie-hunt-rocca
Support Athletes' call for Independent Review of GymCan Leadership + Sport Culture
Link to former/present gymnast letter: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScK_cMTyOqaliViZo1yrNUyGeE7n5_o1M3Q-KvYwdM4hhH8kQ/viewformfbclid=IwAR1eNANTIbYOFFhzTp4Uk3_BJBaG07BOdAYV-7grTQ0tQhxxU3P4ZFbCOYg
Link to Ally Support:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/15Pa5pdt-bw8qAeTh8e5JNugHHU1ZW3oH-
OUUA19NJls/viewform?pli=1&edit_requested=true&fbclid=IwAR1pJjAuk5pGJdEnzsJS-
etQ1Hl0KAj_ANZP7C73MzfMpHFfHxXTUjIa1hw
TSN Full-length Documentary: Broken: Inside the Toxic Culture of Canadian Gymnastics
@TSNSports, co-production with @CTVW5 & @CraveCanada
Debuts November 5, 2022 on CraveCanada and November 12 on @CTVW5
Open Letter to Sport Minister:
https://www.cbc.ca/sports/olympics/summer/gymnastics/gymnasts-for-change-open-letter-1.6629786
Previous Episode
Mental Health & Performance in Sports w/ Amy Mausser
Social Work Me is back after a long hiatus with the first episode in a series on Mental Health & Performance in Sports.
Originally recorded in November 2021, Ep 31 features Amy Mausser who shares her experiences as an athletic therapist working with elite level junior hockey players. She is the former Sarnia Sting OHL Hockey Athletic Therapist and is a Certified Athletic Therapist, Certified Strength and Conditioning specialist, Registered Massage Therapist and former athlete. Amy is from Kitchener, Ontario and has a Masters in Science- Kinesiology and is now completing her Doctor of Education.
On this episode we discuss:
-athlete’s + mental health resources
-advice for practitioners working with teenage athletes
-mindfulness and meditation with athletes
-working with athletes struggling with injuries and playing time
-how negative/positive energy impacts teams
-impact of mental health on physical health
-working with athletes in their draft year
-teaching kids and athletes how to lose and fail
-the importance of teaching life skills
-mental skills training: goal setting, confidence, mindfulness
-the importance of communication between coaches and athletes
-tips for mental health practitioners working with athletes
To connect with Amy you can email her- [email protected]
If you like the show- let us know, subscribe, give us a rating and check us out on INSTAGRAM
Next Episode
The Athlete Identity w/ Jordan Todd
On Ep 33 guest host- Michele McPherson is back with another episode in a mini series on mental performance and athlete mental health. You may recognize Michele from our first ever episode and again on Ep 14 where she discussed the use of EMDR and Yoga. Michele is a Social Worker, Yoga Instructor and program head of a Mental Performance Program called Perform through Southwest Counselling Services in Sarnia, ON.
Michele sits down with Jordan Todd who is a former high level hockey player turned holistic health coach.
Jordan was born and raised in western Canada and hockey was his entire life for over 15 years. Making it to a high level, but ultimately finishing with a bad taste in his mouth after his hockey career had a sour ending to it. This was the catalyst for everything that came after, and the transition into coaching.
He has experience working with athletes and teams ranging from young kids, all the way to junior hockey teams and current professional players. Working on both the physical and mental aspects to reach true potential and maximize performance.
He’s passionate about helping people reach their fullest potential in everything they do, while also optimizing their health and happiness so they can actually enjoy the success they achieve.
His main work is through O23 Holistic Lifestyle Systems, helping fitness coaches go beyond just fitness and exercise to better serve their clients, while also working with a select few individual clients and athletes on a 1 on 1 basis.
On the episode we discuss:
· His experience of playing hockey as a “net negative” for his mental health
· Inner dialogue and inner critic voices
· Performance-standpoint for players; ability to work on mental health while seeing results as an athlete
· Accepting reality for what it is and focusing on controllable variables
· Foundation 4: Food, Sleep, Movement, Mindset
· Potential versus execution
· Life after sport
· His transition to coaching and work with 023 Holistic Systems
Links:
O23 Holistic Systems:
Instagram:
@jrdn.tdd
@o23_lifestyle_systems
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