Laurie Hernandez Instagram – I almost didn’t post for #WorldMentalHealthDay because I wanted to say the “right” thing (lol. I am still a recovering perfectionist). I wasn’t sure if I should talk about old gymnastics stuff, or present day things: performance anxiety, the anxiousness over my own body, the fear of making a mistake, the urge to cry either every three seconds or every three years, depression, ADHD, being overstimulated, the list goes on, as it does for many of us.
And yet, I also seem to keep coming back to little me, and how years after retiring from gymnastics, I get to do all the things I loved as a little girl. Telling stories. Playing games of any kind. Writing, writing, writing. Acting because it’s fun, and it feels good. Looking up, squinting, and pointing out the stars. Laughing. Calling my parents.
Little me gets to lead most of my days, and on the harder ones I remind her (and my adult self) that the world is so big, that there’s always someone out there who understands, and who sees you. What a beautiful thing, to be reminded that we are not alone. | Posted on 11/Oct/2025 05:20:46
