Marshalling His Courage –
November 27, 2020 – Brandon Marshall caught 970 passes for 12,351 yards and 83 touchdowns, owns an NFL record with 21 receptions in one game and played in six Pro Bowls during a remarkable 13-year career in the NFL. His proudest accomplishment came when he sought help for mental illness. “I have to go back to when I first realized that football wasn’t my purpose but that was my platform and that was on the campus of McLean Hospital in 2011,” Marshall said on the AP Pro Football Podcast. “I was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, and I just had phenomenal experiences learning who I was and just breaking down some of my belief systems. It helped me actually just become better in so many other areas of my life and inspired me to build things that could help people be better. “So that’s the thing I’m most proud of is the start of that mental health journey on the nonprofit side. You know, it’s cool scoring touchdowns. It’s cool making it to the NFL. That was an amazing journey. But when you are in a position to potentially save a life, that’s a phenomenal experience.”
Marshall’s transition to life after football following the 2018 season has gone smoothly. He launched a podcast called “I Am Athlete” during the coronavirus pandemic with former NFL players Chad Johnson, Fred Taylor and Channing Crowder. He started “House of Athlete,” a Florida-based lifestyle wellness brand. He’s one of four hosts of Showtime’s “Inside the NFL” and recently was named co-host of “First Things First,” a weekday morning show on FS1. But none of it would be possible if Marshall hadn’t realized he needed help to deal with isolation and depression. “I didn’t have those skills (to cope) so I had to go to McLean Hospital and join dialectical behavior therapy groups, cognitive behavioral therapy, mentalization, self assessment,” Marshall said. “I started with the clinical evaluation and neurological evaluation to see what I was dealing with, to see if I was capable of change. And for me the journey has been really interesting, really impactful, transformative. “I just know that everybody deals with something. It affects all of us, because if it isn’t us, it’s our neighbor. It’s just important for us to be able to identify what people may be dealing with. For me, borderline personality disorder presented itself different than the people I was in the same group with. So I’m just thankful that I’m still here today to be able to tell my story and encourage others.”
