Past #1: Majak Daw [Part II] - 54 NM games/43 NM goals - delisted end '20 - SSP selection for MFC '21 - retired mid-'22

[Zondor]

Sad Indeed. In many ways. That it came to this. My thoughts are with the Big Fella.

 

[dus]

Doesn’t seem real.

 

[miss_kate18]

Been a while since I posted but it’s been a sad day and I think many North people are reaching out to others today.

From personal experience, the most difficult day of your life isn’t the day you decide to make an attempt on your own life. It’s the day you wake up in hospital to find out that your attempt was unsuccessful and now you’re living not only with mental health issues but with the physical consequences of what you’ve done. Many of us are living with injuries or illness or scarring or other reminders of the worst period of our lives. Unlike Majak, we were able to recover in private and without massive public interest and speculation about our health.

For anyone whose mental health struggle was triggered by the news today, as mine was - you are not alone. The shit days will pass and you’ll have days where it all seems worth it and you’re on top of your illness. Today is not one of them for me but I know better days will come eventually, just like they will for the rest of us.

For Majak and anyone else going through what he is right now - some days it will seem like you’re fighting a losing battle. While most of us never defeat our mental illness, we can fight like hell to keep it at bay and not allow it to stop us from making progress in life. Get medication if you need it, get a good psychologist, speak up as soon as you feel yourself slipping, resist the temptation of self harm or other self destructive behaviours and send a big **** you to this illness that thinks it can defeat you. One day you’ll wake up and realise it’s been a year since your last attempt. Then five. Then ten. Stay strong, Maj.

 

[deadlydropbear]

Bloke has been such an icon since playing for the team. Absolute flashes of brilliance alongside the sheer bewilderment at times. Cannot believe that just at the time that he seems to have settled as a player, that we were seeing the skill of this young bloke on a regular basis, that now we have probably seen him play his last game. Gone in an instance. Gutted for him and just hope that he can get his head sorted out in the right direction. Hope he can get his body right, even if he not able to play ever again. Shocked as a fan.

 

[Snake_Baker]

It's clear that the public persona of Majak and the private persona were in very different places, and whilst I don't pretend to be any sort of authority on psychological crisis matters, I would suspect that Maj will withdraw from public life as he moves forward. He must have been living a very surreal existence when you weigh up where he came from across the other side of the planet to his rise to prominence and celebrity on this side of the world, and I can imagine how this would lead to him becoming a very confused young bloke.

FWIW, I hope no one seeks to make him a poster boy for anything from now on, and that he can recede back in to some type of "normality" in peace and gain the grounding that he clearly needs in order to move on with his life.

 

[NoWozzas]

It's clear that the public persona of Majak and the private persona were in very different places, and whilst I don't pretend to be any sort of authority on psychological crisis matters, I would suspect that Maj will withdraw from public life as he moves forward. He must have been living a very surreal existence when you weigh up where he came from across the other side of the planet to his rise to prominence and celebrity on this side of the world, and I can imagine how this would lead to him becoming a very confused young bloke.

FWIW, I hope no one seeks to make him a poster boy for anything from now on, and that he can recede back in to some type of "normality" in peace and gain the grounding that he clearly needs in order to move on with his life.

Couldn’t agree with this more.

He came from one surreal life to another. I hope he finds solace in the normalcy he deserves after all of this. He doesn’t need to be an ambassador of anything, except for his own happiness and wellbeing.

 

[tales129]

Anyone have the content from chip Le grand’s australian article?

There’s a news.com.au story referencing it about the use of stilnox and melatonin

 

[giantroo]

Anyone have the content from chip Le grand’s australian article?

There’s a news.com.au story referencing it about the use of stilnox and melatonin

Hidden pain of AFL trailblazer
DECEMBER 18, 2018


If you were to engineer the perfect footballer he would look like Majak Daw: chest and arms sculpted from onyx; legs that can leap over lesser men; a physique more commonly found in the cartoon superheroes invented by Marvel than the AFL players who compete in its namesake stadium.

Yet deep inside Daw there is a dangerous fault line. Late on Monday night, it nearly swallowed him whole.

Earlier in the day, while his North Melbourne teammates slogged through the ritual of pre-Christmas training, Daw was off the track, recovering from foot surgery. He was also running towards a dark place.

That evening a self-destructive sequence of events unfolded. He fought with his girlfriend. He took a dose of Stilnox, a sleeping medication notorious for its mind-altering side effects. He mixed this with Melatonin, another sedative. Then he reached for his car keys.

They found his abandoned vehicle at the top of Melbourne's Bolte Bridge, an eight-lane, concrete expanse that overlooks Marvel Stadium, where North Melbourne plays its home games.

They found Daw in the murky waters of the Yarra River, 25m below. Miraculously, the impact of the water broke his hips and pelvis but did not end his life.

Fellow motorists raised the alarm at about 11pm. Police and paramedics arrived at the scene fast enough to pull the famous AFL footballer to safety.

He was yesterday in a stable condition in the Royal Melbourne Hospital, being prepared for surgery.

It is not the first time Daw has self-harmed. Throughout the most recent football season, a season where he shifted into defence and established himself as a regular member of the Kangaroos senior team, he waged a private battle with mental illness.

Club doctors and key people at Arden Street tried to help him.

Today they will be asking themselves, along with his family, whether there is anything more they could have done.

"Our primary concern is his mental and physical health and wellbeing, and also the wellbeing of his family, friends, teammates, coaches and staff at the club,the club president Ben Buckley said.

The club is providing full and ongoing support for Majak and his family and also the players and the wider club community."

Daw's near-fatal fall, which is being treated as a suspected suicide attempt, has shocked the South Sudanese and African communities for whom he is a powerful symbol of perseverance, strength and integration.

His remarkable journey to the AFL, from war-ravaged Sudan to three years spent as a refugee in Egypt to eventual settlement with his mum, dad and eight brothers and sisters in Melbourne's west, is a totemic story for a community that has felt besieged by an intense media and political focus on violent crimes committed by young South Sudanese offenders.

Daw is the first Sudanese Australian to play in the AFL. Others, such as Sydney's Aliir Aliir, have followed. South Sudanese community leader Richard Deng spoke yesterday to William Daw, Majak's father.

It is shocking, in the community, to hear what happened to Majak Daw last night, Mr Deng told The Australian.

"As a community, as Victorians, we stand with his family, we stand with Majak. Our thoughts and prayers are with Majak."

John Kuot, a prominent advocate for South Sudanese Australians, described Daw's fall as a community tragedy.

Majak is a role model for every young person in our community who is an aspiring sports person, he said.

It is a sad day for African Australians but particularly for the South Sudanese community as we pray for our brother.

Mr Kuot said South Sudanese people were confronting the same mental health issues as the broader community, with a desperate need for better services, education and awareness: It is not a cultural taboo, but it is a collective challenge.

The apparent suicide attempt by Daw will cause the AFL to question its own approach. Jake Edwards, a retired Carlton player who tried to kill himself after his AFL career ended, said the AFL and its clubs were reluctant to speak openly about suicide scared this is going to be pushed under the carpet. We will go into Christmas, footy is quiet for three weeks and nothing gets done about it. Beyond Majak, there is a bigger conversation that has to be had here.

We are just lucky right now that we are not having a different conversation about a young man who has clearly had some challenges on and off the field who has committed suicide. We are going to get to that point. I could name 10 AFL players who have contacted me over the past two years who are going through the same issues and suicide is very much a part of their lives, week in and week out.

After surviving his own mental health crisis, Edwards established Beyond the Locker Room, a not-for-profit organisation that helps athletes confront drug abuse, domestic violence, mental illness and suicide. In his talks, Edwards speaks frankly about his suicide attempt.

An AFL club last week cancelled his scheduled visit.

They didn't want thoughts about suicide going through their players minds, Edwards said.

I felt it was a complete, red tape cop-out to avoid any potential welfare risk down the track.

The AFL Players Association argues professional footballers experience the same level of mental health problems as men of their age in the broader community. Wayne Schwass, a retired AFL player who struggled with depression throughout his career, said this missed the point.

Where I think the problem starts and finishes is they are not sure what to do,he said. We just don't know how to talk about this issue. We are not having an open, honest and sometimes uncomfortable conversation.

Schwass says this includes taking about suicide: I put myself in three life-threatening situations in my career. When I collected my premiership medal on the dais in 1996 I was suicidal. So it is pretty serious.

If this story has raised concerns for you or someone you know, you can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14, BeyondBlue on 1300 22 46 36 or MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978

 

[Del191229]

It's clear that the public persona of Majak and the private persona were in very different places, and whilst I don't pretend to be any sort of authority on psychological crisis matters, I would suspect that Maj will withdraw from public life as he moves forward. He must have been living a very surreal existence when you weigh up where he came from across the other side of the planet to his rise to prominence and celebrity on this side of the world, and I can imagine how this would lead to him becoming a very confused young bloke.

FWIW, I hope no one seeks to make him a poster boy for anything from now on, and that he can recede back in to some type of "normality" in peace and gain the grounding that he clearly needs in order to move on with his life.

Well said mate. His experiences in his childhood have been scientifically proven to often form PTSD like symptoms, which itself often leads to self harm.

 

[Carey4life]

I'm absolutely devastated to hear today's news, as is everyone.

My thoughts go out to him, his family and the entire North Melbourne family.

It must be incredibly tough for the playing group to cope with as well. My heart goes out to our whole North Melbourne family!

 

[roos_fanatic08]

The Australian is reporting that he had a fight with his girlfriend then mixed a concoction of Stillnox and Melatonin before jumping in the car....

What exactly does reporting this junk achieve? Making out as if he is some sort of druggy. Many people the world over to medicatition in order to help them sleep.

 

[RobZombie]

Stunned. All reports were his life was going green lights all the way.

I've been thinking about this. Maybe it's a case of "everything that was supposed to make me happy is now happening - good year on field, stable partner, etc, - but I still don't feel happy. What's wrong with me?"

I've been fortunate not to have been impacted by mental illness much. Perhaps someone with closer experience of it can say if that's a thing?

 

[Thewlis Dish]

The Australian is reporting that he had a fight with his girlfriend then mixed a concoction of Stillnox and Melatonin before jumping in the car....

What exactly does reporting this junk achieve? Making out as if he is some sort of druggy. Many people the world over to medicatition in order to help them sleep.

And also reporting that he has self-harmed before, something the club has definitely not made public.

 

[TennisPlayerAndy]

And also reporting that he has self-harmed before, something the club has definitely not made public.

It only took them a day, but they've gone too far.

What a surprise.

 

[sbdan]

Not the first time he has self harmed? He must have been under extraordinary pressure this year. I forget how hard it must be for footy players to deal with the unrelenting expectations.

Rest up big man. I hope to see you see you smiling on the other side of this.

 

[Horizons_00]

It only took them a day, but they've gone too far.

What a surprise.

The media are a bunch of insensitive pricks

 

[Kangaroos4eva]

I've been thinking about this. Maybe it's a case of "everything that was supposed to make me happy is now happening - good year on field, stable partner, etc, - but I still don't feel happy. What's wrong with me?"

I've been fortunate not to have been impacted by mental illness much. Perhaps someone with closer experience of it can say if that's a thing?

It definitely is a thing in my experience. Whenever I have a good few weeks in a row, I feel an impending sense of doom approaching and that everything is going to blow up in my face. For me it is a self-fulfilling prophecy, it is different for others as that is the nature of mental health.

If you look at happiness stats, people in developing countries are generally more ‘happier’ than those that have more in developed countries. We’ve lost something in western society, whether it be empathy or a supportive community or that wealth and success cannot fill a particular void. Apologies for the politics remarks, but if we cannot talk about wider community support and empathy now, when can we?

 

[Flawed Genius]

And also reporting that he has self-harmed before, something the club has definitely not made public.

I guess my post yesterday suggesting this would be a wake up call for the industry was far too hopeful

 

[Firestarter]

The media are a bunch of insensitive pricks

They're nothing but misery diggers.

 

[DarwinRoo]

Is anyone surprised by the trash in the Australian newspaper?

And I’d suggest avoid reading comments on “Patriot” pages on Facebook.

 

[Val Keating]

I’m guessing that article would’ve been approved by people close to Majak. There’s no hiding from this. There’s been a lot of chatter about what happened so hopefully this stops a lot of the bullshit.

 

[Samsquanch]

It only took them a day, but they've gone too far.

What a surprise.

The news was awful and very painful - even a day later I'm feeling sick at the thought. Then, this muck raker chasing another Walkley... Well what a piece of work he is.

 

[Only Forwards]

I guess my post yesterday suggesting this would be a wake up call for the industry was far too hopeful

There's clicks to be had.

Clicks equal money.

I want my goddamn bonus f*** the people on the end of it.

 

[Val Keating]

Is anyone surprised by the trash in the Australian newspaper?

And I’d suggest avoid reading comments on “Patriot” pages on Facebook.

Are patriot pages where all the racists hang out?

 

[Amarula]

Adding my thoughts and prayers to those of others for Majak and his family.
It's impossible to overstate how much he's respected and admired within the African community in particular and the whole community in general. This respect and admiration is due not only to his achievements but also to the type of person he is. And they will remain no matter what.