Jerry Heidenreich Took His Own Life Yesterday in Dallas

I met Jerry when I was in Dallas writing an article on Kenneth Cooper for Men's Journal magazine. Jerry was the masters coach right there at the Cooper Center for Aerobic Fitness campus, and he very kindly let me swim a couple practices with his team. I didn't get to know him beyond the merest acquaintanceship level, but you could tell from his swimmers he was much liked and highly respected. For reasons I can't fathom, spring is a season where suicide is particularly common. A high school kid in my hometown recently ended his life; it seems to me a lot of my friends are having an uptick in depression this time of year. As great as masters swimming is for mood elevation in general, sometimes brain chemistry can get pretty far out of whack, and you may need more than physical activity alone to get out of the woods. There have been great strides in the recent decades in seeing depression and other emotional disorders as medical illness (not character weaknesses) that can be successfully treated. I pray that anybody out there who is struggling with what may seem to be insurmountable problems go to your doctor and get some help. You can find out a lot more about depression and anxiety disorders at the National Institute of Mental Healths excellent web site: www.nimh.nih.gov If Jerry's death can help one person get the help they need, it would be a great legacy.

I met Jerry when I was in Dallas writing an article on Kenneth Cooper for Men's Journal magazine. Jerry was the masters coach right there at the Cooper Center for Aerobic Fitness campus, and he very kindly let me swim a couple practices with his team. I didn't get to know him beyond the merest acquaintanceship level, but you could tell from his swimmers he was much liked and highly respected. For reasons I can't fathom, spring is a season where suicide is particularly common. A high school kid in my hometown recently ended his life; it seems to me a lot of my friends are having an uptick in depression this time of year. As great as masters swimming is for mood elevation in general, sometimes brain chemistry can get pretty far out of whack, and you may need more than physical activity alone to get out of the woods. There have been great strides in the recent decades in seeing depression and other emotional disorders as medical illness (not character weaknesses) that can be successfully treated. I pray that anybody out there who is struggling with what may seem to be insurmountable problems go to your doctor and get some help. You can find out a lot more about depression and anxiety disorders at the National Institute of Mental Healths excellent web site: www.nimh.nih.gov If Jerry's death can help one person get the help they need, it would be a great legacy.