Mal confirms two more Bears signings as 12 locked in; star\u2019s lifeline<\/a><\/p>\nJames Graham has opened up on his mental health struggles.Source: FOX SPORTS<\/p>\n
Graham has been vocal on concussion throughout his post playing days, famously saying that he played rugby league knowing full well the effects of concussion after extensive personal research on the topic. <\/p>\n
\u201cI found something worth dying for,\u201d Graham said. <\/p>\n
However, Graham has softened his stance since that comment and admits the advancements in player safety in recent years is to the betterment of the game and the players. <\/p>\n
Graham admitted that since leaving the rehab facility he found himself slipping back into bad old habits and admits he struggles for balance in his life post football. <\/p>\n
\u201cUnnecessary drinking and abuse of alcohol,\u201d Graham said. <\/p>\n
‘Loudest hits we’ve heard from a fighter | 06:25<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople talk about balance in life, I don\u2019t have that balance, for me it\u2019s just go hard at everything. That\u2019s going hard at partying, wake up the next day hungover, dealing with the mental health, and then I go running.<\/p>\n
\u201cI run a lot, which I\u2019ve found is so beneficial for mental health. I do weight training as well but running in particular is helpful.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll finish a really hard run but then want to go hard again on the drinking or eating, or whatever it may be. It\u2019s not a balancing act, it\u2019s just all in.\u201d<\/p>\n
Clubs reject proposed rule changes | 00:42<\/p>\n
Graham revealed a heartbreaking conversation with one of his best friends that forced him to look closer at the issues he was facing and often sweeping under the carpet. <\/p>\n
\u201cMy best mate from school, we talk every day,\u201d Graham said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was away on the tour recently and having a decent drinking sesh, I go off my phone, and the next time we spoke he said something that hit me between the eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said, \u2018Lad, I actually genuinely worry you\u2019ve done something when I don\u2019t hear from you\u2019. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d never do that and I think that\u2019s important to know, and he knows that too. But I think to hear your friend say that (is eye opening).\u201d<\/p>\n
If you or anyone you know needs immediate support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or via lifeline.org.au.<\/a> In an emergency, call 000<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rugby League legend James Graham has opened up on his mental health issues and battle with alcohol abuse,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":410940,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[217434,217432,64,63,217436,40502,217437,215008,217438,34150,217435,763,76027,514,7542,121148,761,762,158,67663,24246,217439,217433,159,16205,85],"class_list":["post-410939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-alcohol-abuse","tag-alcohol-struggles","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-blow-ups","tag-boxing-debut","tag-call-leaves-casualty","tag-clubs-reject","tag-drinking-sesh","tag-duke-of-montrose","tag-forced-rehab-stint","tag-fox-league","tag-media-career","tag-mental-health","tag-mental-health-issues","tag-mental-health-struggles","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-people-talk","tag-player-safety","tag-rehab-stint","tag-rehabilitation-facility","tag-rugby-league","tag-rule-changes","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410939","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=410939"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/410939\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/410940"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=410939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=410939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=410939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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