Mardy Fish, Struggles with Anxiety Disorder

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Mardy Simpson Fish is a professional Tennis player from United States. He lives in Los Angeles, California and was born on December 9, 1981 at Edina, Minnesota. He started playing professional tennis in the year 2000 and retired from the sports early in 2015 due to his illness. He played right-handed and his total prize money stood at about USD 7 Million. He played in singles and has a career win rate of 58% out of the played 301 matches. He has about 6 titles in his name and at his peak was at No 7 in the world. He was at his peak in the year 2011 and was a hard court specialist.

Some of Mardy Fish accomplishments

1. Grand Slam Singles results - Australian Open QF (2007), French Open 3R (2011), Wimbledon QF (2011), US Open QF (2008), Tour Finals RR (2011)
2. Olympic Games - Silver medal (2004)
3. Doubles - Career 136–105 (56%)
4. Team competitions Davis Cup F (2004), Hopman Cup - W (2008)

In the April 2011, Fish surpassed Andy Roddick to become the American No. 1 in the ATP rankings. He announced his retirement in the year 2015 after the US open. Fish married to Stacey Gardner, a California attorney.

Anxiety disorder and Mardy Fish

Mardy's suffering with anxiety disorder started in the year 2012, while he was going through the high point in his career. Things were looking good in the beginning, he won silver in Olympics, started to have a good and sustainable life. But life has turned its course with the advent of anxiety in his life. He changed his diet, lifestyle and outlook. He lost all the flab and found his right weight.

2011 was better, with best results at French Open and Wimbledon. He barged into world top 10 and came into the elite top 10 players in the world. After this the debacle and bout with Anxiety started. It had changed my expectations from personal, professional and all other aspects. I was not satisfied with the status I had. Want to improve more, but could not. It became highly stressful and then destructive for me.

Anxiety still haunting Mardy after Retirement

Well, yes, in Mardy's words. "I still deal with my anxiety on a daily basis." He is on regular medication and this helps him to stay focussed and do not get overpowered by Anxiety.

According to the Anxiety Disorders Association of America, there are about 3.3 million Americans over the age of 18 who suffer from this disorder every year. There could be many more who suffer from this silently and could not speak openly about it. The taboo is still present and especially in athletes.