Mental health remains a stigma, especially in professional sport. One of North America’s greatest footballers is hoping to help change that by speaking out and speaking out.
Javier “Chicharito” Hernández, the Mexican soccer legend who has played for the LA Galaxy since joining the club four years ago, is not afraid to address the subject.
“To be honest, this topic makes me uncomfortable. I’m still more comfortable on the pitch with my legs,” he admitted. “But I believe that to achieve your dreams, you don’t need to have a certain superpower, or a recipe or a secret formula. I believe everyone can achieve what you want because it’s all within. When it comes to the subject we call mental health, it’s in your heart and in your mind .
Hernández was speaking to a group of local high school student-athletes and LA Galaxy Academy players as part of a special Focus & Flow event in Carson. The conversation this afternoon had little to do with scoring on the field or living life as one of his home country’s most famous athletes.
Increased mental problems need to be addressed. Physical abilities aside, fear and silence so often enter the equation for a subject that has seemed taboo for too long.
“What took me to another level was a mindset – a positive mindset,” Hernández said. “It’s cliché to be happy and grateful, but no one teaches us how to deal with real difficulties. Life is not about preventing struggles. Life is about being strong enough so that when difficulties arise, you are strong enough to face them.
The longtime striker has played all over the world. Before moving to Dignity Health Sports Park, he had stops with Manchester United, Real Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen, West Ham United and Sevilla.
A native of Guadalajara, Mexico, Hernández is his country’s all-time leading scorer with 52 goals in 109 international matches and has participated in several international tournaments since 2009. With the five-time Major League Soccer champion LA Galaxy, he has scored 39 goals in 80 league/cup matches since the 2020 campaign.
A year before coming to Los Angeles, Hernández – currently sidelined due to a serious injury – made the decision to make some of his fights public. He explained that he followed a process of self-exploration in which he worked with a mentor to delve deeper into his life and reality.
He worked with psychologists and psychiatrists. He didn’t feel phased though. Fatherhood was a major change. He thinks his children confirmed it.
He also strongly believes that you can become a better version of yourself and, as simple as it sounds, he believes that success starts every day when you get out of bed.
“What pushes someone to move, to create, to share and to become a better version of themselves moves me,” he said. “Luckily, I exceeded all my wildest dreams. I dreamed about it, but the reality was that I felt empty, I was anxious. I felt sad at times. … I did not know why.
The raw and open dialogue is a rare look into the thoughts and mind of a world-class athlete, a world-class entertainer constantly in the public eye. Anxiety is a feeling of worry, nervousness or unease. To be empty is to be dissatisfied.
These are not typically the characteristics – at least publicly – associated with someone who signed their first professional contract at the age of 15 and became the face of a sport. He is the son of Javier Hernández Gutierrez, himself a notable player, and his grandfather was a national player since the 1950s.
“I realized that life is not about success, achievement, money and fame,” he said. “Life is what you become.”
Hernández is the top scorer. Some athletes in this position may be considered selfish. Known as Chicharito – meaning “pea” in Spanish – the 35-year-old offered a unique insight into his chosen profession.
“When is enough, enough?” He asked. “If you have 100 dollars, you want 200. It’s infinite. It’s like winning and scoring goals. One season you score 20 goals and the next season you want to score more. One season you are a champion and the next season you want to be champion again.
Hernández, who is team captain for the LA Galaxy, believes one word best describes his journey now: joy.
“The real beauty is finding joy in the process,” he said. “The joy of realizing that sometimes you struggle and that’s part of the process and the journey to get to the place where you know you’re going to get.”
Fall in love with the process. Forcing yourself to be uncomfortable. Be vulnerable. Hard work is hard work.
“I believe that if you talk about it, you have to put it into practice,” Hernández said. “You live what you preach. For me, that means more responsibility. Speaking on the topic helps me achieve this and commit to my words.
“It’s for me too. It helps me grow.
