BOSTON -- Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran didn¡¯t reveal his 2022 suicide attempt to Netflix cameras to unburden himself. Instead, Duran made it clear his primary motive is to help others.
¡°The whole purpose of me sharing it is just to get it out there and let people know that they're not alone,¡± Duran said on Tuesday. ¡°Even if I can just help one person, it's meaningful. I'm just trying to let people know that there's always help and to make sure that they're reaching out.¡±
An eight-part docuseries, ¡°The Clubhouse: A Year with the Red Sox,¡± was released by Netflix on Tuesday.
Media members who received pre-screeners were able to release info about Duran¡¯s revelations in Episode 4 on Monday.
It appears as if Duran¡¯s openness about his mental health struggles made an immediate impact.
Samaritans, Inc., a Boston-based suicide prevention and mental health services center that includes a telephone hotline and peer-to-peer texting service for people up to 24 years old, said they received three times the amount of communications as normal on Monday night.
¡°It means a lot,¡± Duran said, when apprised of that. ¡°That was the whole purpose of me sharing. It's not easy to talk about, but I just really thought deep down that if I could help at least one person, that it was gonna be meaningful. And to hear that is awesome. I hope I can help inspire people to talk about it more.¡±
¡°We're very proud of him,¡± said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. ¡°He¡¯s saving lives, that¡¯s what he¡¯s doing. For a guy that wears his emotions on his sleeves, I think we should applaud him.¡±
While Duran spoke in the middle of the clubhouse, teammates stood closely in the vicinity as a sign of support.
¡°They've been amazing,¡± said Duran. ¡°I mean, they've always been amazing to me. And even hearing this kind of stuff, they haven't changed the way they've talked to me or anything like that. I didn't want it to be this thing where they treated me differently. They're still talking smack to me and I'm talking smack back to them. And I still have that love language. So it's been awesome.¡±
During his darkest moments in 2022, Duran was struggling mightily to live up to his own expectations, not to mention those of the organization and the fanbase.
After a strong 2023 season, Duran emerged into an All-Star in ¡®24. But even as he enjoys professional success, Duran knows paying attention to his mental health is of utmost importance.
¡°I'm doing well,¡± said Duran. ¡°I'm in a good spot now, and I have a really good support group around me, and teammates, coaches, friends and family. I'm just thankful to have those people behind me.¡±
Reaching out to people is still something that isn¡¯t all that comfortable for Duran, but he¡¯s working at it.
Journaling his feelings has also been a helpful tool for Duran.
¡°I've definitely reached out a lot more than I used to, and that's a big thing for me,¡± said Duran. ¡°And even when I tell myself, ¡®I'm not going to bother someone with this,¡¯ l go back to like stuff that I journaled before that told me like, ¡®Hey, if you ever get into this headspace again, make sure you reach out.¡¯ So I just kind of remind myself that it's important to reach out and just knowing that other people are doing that, because I talk about it, it's really heartwarming. And I hope that I can help spread the love that people need to support each other.¡±
When he initially agreed to be one of the players extensively interviewed in the Netflix docuseries, Duran didn¡¯t necessarily plan on sharing details of his suicide attempt.
¡°No, not at all. But the situation just kind of happened, just kind of unfolded, and I was kind of sitting there kind of quiet, didn't really think that it was a good moment to talk about it,¡± Duran said. ¡°But then I just kind of thought this could possibly help people out there that don't really want to talk about it. So I just kind of took that leap of faith and hoped that it was going to do more good than bad.¡±
Duran is in the process of starting his own foundation that will help people get the support they need for mental health.
¡°For me, I just want people to feel like they have somebody to talk to and that we can get them the help they need,¡± Duran said. ¡°I know I want to kind of focus on everybody, but also the younger generation, because I know growing up I had no idea what was going on. So I feel like if we can help them at a younger age, it just prepares them for their adulthood.¡±