About

Growing up, I was always a happy child. I had amazing parents, a younger sister, and a loving family, and for a long time, life felt safe and steady.

That began to change in 7th grade when my parents got divorced. I was twelve years old, and my sister was only five, still too young to fully understand what was happening. Around that same time, I also was experiencing the loss of all of my grandparents over a span of about 4 years. For the first time, I was faced with true trauma, confusion, and emotions I didn’t yet have the words or tools to process.

Soon after, I went through COVID during my 8th grade years, started high school, and then saw the results of something no student ever expects to face: a school shooting. The impact reached far beyond the event itself. I saw the depth of the sadness within my school, the way our community came together, and how we were suddenly viewed by the outside world.

What stood out most, however, was what emerged from the tragedy.

The family. The unity. The strength.

“Spartan Strong,” they called it, and from that moment on, Spartan Strong became our school’s motto.

Through this experience my sophomore, I began to truly understand how different every child’s upbringing and mental health journey can be specifically when faced with trauma. I had attended a very diverse middle and high school and had always known those differences existed, but witnessing trauma impact my own community, especially a segment of my community that I identify with, made it real in a way nothing else could. That realization is what led to the creation of Minds Matter.

Minds Matter started as a space on wix.com to share honest, relatable reflections about mental health and has since grown into this website. As my interests evolved, especially in sports, so did the mission behind it. As an athlete from a young child to college, I experienced mental blocks, injuries, and personal battles of my own. I know many athletes face similar struggles, particularly in the high-pressure environment of sports today, yet mental health in athletics is often overlooked or stigmatized.

Through this platform, my hope is to continue growing, learning, and sharing my experiences in a way that encourages openness and connection. If this space helps even one person feel seen, understood, or confident enough to speak up, then Minds Matter is doing exactly what it was created to do.