24/07/2024

"It’s ok to voice these things out loud" - James Wade honest about mental health struggles and hopes to inspire more people to open up

James Wade only managed to qualify for the 2024 World Matchplay at the very last minute, scraping into the final spot on offer for the yearly darting spectacle at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool. Once there though, 'The Machine' impressed, reaching the semi-finals before losing out to eventual winner, Luke Humphries.

Throughout the tournament, Wade was very open and honest about his struggles with mental health. Now the dust has settled somewhat, the multiple-time major winner has taken to his official social media accounts to again open up about struggles in the hope of helping someone else going through similar times in the process.

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"Over the last week during my media interviews at the Matchplay in Blackpool I spoke about my mental and physical illness. I spoke about these not only to help myself but more importantly to show others that it’s ok to voice these things out loud," the Englishman writes. "It was not always easy to reach out. The thought of being the person that asked for help, made me feel ashamed and now realised I stayed silent for too long, but in truth I just found it hard to ask for help. In all honesty I still do, but the awareness of those around me and the coping mechanisms help me understand and deal with my on-going mental health problems."

As Wade has suffered a slight slide down the PDC Order of Merit over the last year or so, 'The Machine' has been grateful to count on the support of a close knit network of family and friends. "Family and friendship are everything, “teamwork makes the dream work” as they say. You don’t need a mental health diagnosis to check in on a loved one or a friend. We as people make this hard, but regular check-ins are vital. It’s a simple question ‘How have you been recently?’" Wade concludes. " I ask one thing of all those that read this post, in the next week ask three people this simple question. And together we will make a difference."