Shane Jennings opens up on his feelings of anxiety and stress over making the move out of professional rugby in the latest phase of IRUPA’s ‘Tackle your Feelings’ campaign on mental health awareness.
Connacht flanker, Jake Heenan speaks emotively about how he dealt with the frustration and uncertainty he experienced during a time when he lacked direction in his life and how it ultimately led him to anti-social behaviour. Their stories are detailed in videos that are hosted on the website www.tackleyourfeelings.com.
The campaign is run in partnership with Zurich Insurance and has previously seen provincial and international rugby stars including Leinster front-row, Jack McGrath; Irish women’s player, Hannah Tyrrell and former Munster scrum-half, Cathal Sheridan come forward to tell their own personal stories of the challenges they have faced off the pitch.
Sport is the easy way to reach out to people using characters and language they understand as being part of their life. Campaigns like this and those run through the Gaelic Players Association have real value in a critical area.
Research conducted by IRUPA as part of the campaign, demonstrates that 2 out of 5 (41%) people have experienced a job change while 1 in 4 (25%) confirmed that going through retirement negatively impacted on their mental wellbeing.
Jake Heenan’s story will resonate with young people throughout the country with the same research confirming that 18-24 year olds are significantly more likely to be aware of someone who has experienced loneliness / isolation (50%) or teenage offending (17%) than any other adult age group.
The campaign website, www.tackleyourfeelings.com, hosts a number of practical resources to help people develop their emotional self-awareness and proactively work on their mental and emotional wellbeing.
Shane Jennings – Ambassador Tackle Your Feelings from Irish Rugby Players on Vimeo.
“When I faced retirement from professional rugby I felt a lot of apprehension and uncertainty,” said Jennings.
“I had been very proactive about preparing for life after rugby throughout my career, completing an MBA and making use of the career and educational supports available through IRUPA.”
“Even so, I still didn’t really know what to expect and found all the emotions around that quite challenging to deal with. Once I opened up and spoke to my wife and my family about how I felt, I found that it was easier to navigate my way through the transition.”
Jake Heenan – Ambassador Tackle Your Feelings from Irish Rugby Players on Vimeo.
“IRUPA are delighted to be partnering with Zurich on the Tackle Your Feelings campaign and today, with the release of Shane Jenning’s and Jake Heenan’s videos, we hope to make further inroads into breaking down stigma around mental wellbeing,” said IRUPA CEO Omar Hassanein.
“Mental wellbeing is something we place a lot of emphasis on as a players’ organisation, striving to both educate our members in this area and offer support services to help them be more proactive about looking after their own wellbeing.”
“Shane and Jake’s stories offer a great insight into challenges that many people, not just rugby players, face at different stages of the lifespan.”
Elaine Hayes, who is driving Zurich’s Corporate Responsibility agenda in Ireland said
“By partnering with IRUPA on the nationwide Tackle Your Feelings campaign, Zurich is pleased to play its part in helping to encourage people to open up and talk about their mental wellbeing challenges, said Elaine Hayes, responsible for Zurich’s Corporate Responsibility Agenda in Ireland.”
“Tackle Your Feelings aims to highlight how small steps, such as talking to a friend or family member, can help people maintain and improve their own mental wellbeing”
