Vancouver (NEWS 1130) – He should be at the top of the world. Instead, his world crumbled. In 1994 Corey Hirsch lived his childhood dream. He had just stopped Team Canada on a silver medal at the Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. Then he was allowed to sip as a member of the New York Rangers at the Stanley Cup. Obsessive OCD, however, filled his mind with suicidal thoughts.
“I always promised myself that I would tell my story and try to help others if I got better. Because when I wanted to improve, I found nothing. “
Hirsch took two decades, but share his story in a now famous article for The Players Tribune.
“You didn’t talk about it twenty years ago, it was swept under the carpet, you know? Now we have great drugs, we have therapies, we have great people who are ready to help. There is no reason why you cannot get help. “
Listen to John Ackermann’s full interview with Corey Hirsch:
Hirsch is the 2020 recipient of the Courage to Come Back Award in the mental health category. Nowadays, Canucks fans know him best as a color analyst on the team’s play-by-play programs on Sportsnet 650. However, Hirsch is very proud of his support for mental health.
“Every NHL thing, every win I’ve ever had, everything that’s subordinate to the work I’m doing now,” he says.
“Mental health affects us all. It doesn’t discriminate. We have to educate our youth so that this next generation can end the stigma. “
NEWS 1130 is a proud sponsor of Coast Mental Health’s Courage to Come Back Awards, one of the largest fundraisers of its kind in western Canada. COVID-19 has drastically affected Coast Mental Health funding, and many services have had to be shut down to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. This year, instead of a unique event, Coast Mental Health dedicates July Courage to the five exceptional recipients who have overcome difficulties to give something back to their community. Every Thursday in July, NEWS 1130 will profile a recipient online and online. For more information or to make a donation, please visit couragetocomeback.ca.
