Andrew Luck was born in Washington DC, and grew up in Houston, in an upper middle class family. He played football as a child, and excelled in high school, getting a scholarship to go to Stanford. He was the first pick in the NFL draft, and in 7 seasons led the Colts to the playoffs 5 times.
During his career, Luck dealt with a lot of injuries, and also dealt with anxiety and depression. In 2019, Luck retired from the NFL, talking about how playing the game just wasn’t fun anymore. He talked about being depressed, being “sad and miserable” during his career, and needing to retire to focus on his mental health.
Luck’s decision to retire did a lot to destigmatize mental health. He showed that taking time to focus on your mental health is normal, and is very important even for high level athletes. Since then, Luck has done work to talk about mental health, and continues to be a role model for all those who struggle with mental health.
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