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409 reviews for:
What Made Maddy Run: The Secret Struggles and Tragic Death of an All-American Teen
Kate Fagan
4.2 AVERAGE
409 reviews for:
What Made Maddy Run: The Secret Struggles and Tragic Death of an All-American Teen
Kate Fagan
4.2 AVERAGE
I will not be rating this book as I feel that would be an injustice to what Maddy's story entails. This book was recommended to me from a friend during my undergraduate career because she knew I was an athlete and studied psychology. She did not know how close this topic was to me personally. I was fortunate enough to win this in a goodreads giveaway, but I would gladly spend my own money to understand Maddy and how depression in athletes can occur. This is a story that I believe everyone can connect to and one that I think is important to listen and help anyone who you may think is depressed. I was Maddy at one point and throughout reading her story there were so many times I wished that I knew her, if only to be someone else to talk to. My condolences with her family and everyone who has a Maddy of their own.
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Kate Fagan’s What Made Maddy Run is a heartbreaking, yet essential read.
I remember dreaming of college and what I thought it would be like. I remember the transition being challenging in some ways- this only child had to learn to effectively share with other people and give up privacy- but it seems to be harder now than it was then. And it can be even more difficult for athletes or other elites, who were standouts in their high school world but just one of many in the college network. Additionally, this generation has always been digital. Their whole lives are instagrammed or facebooked or snap-chatted in ways that show only the best. Filtered to show them in the best light. They text with their parents constantly, and are receiving immediate feedback on everything in the form of likes. Somewhere in the mix of it all, the transition to college is that much harder.
When a student also suffers from mental illness, the challenges of transition are only exacerbated. What makes What Made Maddy Run so heartbreaking is that no one was in denial that Maddy was in trouble. Her parents were deeply concerned. Parents of her friends noticed things. Maddy was seeing and finding a new therapist. She had a plan in place to get her through the semester at Penn when she could then look at other options for schools. She seemed to be hanging on….until.
Fagan recounts Maddy’s story with sensitivity and unexpected insight. She shares text conversations between herself and others with insight into depression. She’s compassionate and respectful of both Maddy and her family. Maddy’s story is heartbreaking because it is so relatable. And sadly, not so uncommon. Many college and university coaching staffs and health facilities are not equipped to effectively deal with mental illness. By telling Maddy’s story, Fagan helps bring awareness to this issue.
And Fagan reminds us that what we see on the surface isn’t always what’s going on with someone. A good reminder for us to be a little kinder to each other.
Although this one doesn’t have a happy ending, I consider it essential reading.
I remember dreaming of college and what I thought it would be like. I remember the transition being challenging in some ways- this only child had to learn to effectively share with other people and give up privacy- but it seems to be harder now than it was then. And it can be even more difficult for athletes or other elites, who were standouts in their high school world but just one of many in the college network. Additionally, this generation has always been digital. Their whole lives are instagrammed or facebooked or snap-chatted in ways that show only the best. Filtered to show them in the best light. They text with their parents constantly, and are receiving immediate feedback on everything in the form of likes. Somewhere in the mix of it all, the transition to college is that much harder.
When a student also suffers from mental illness, the challenges of transition are only exacerbated. What makes What Made Maddy Run so heartbreaking is that no one was in denial that Maddy was in trouble. Her parents were deeply concerned. Parents of her friends noticed things. Maddy was seeing and finding a new therapist. She had a plan in place to get her through the semester at Penn when she could then look at other options for schools. She seemed to be hanging on….until.
Fagan recounts Maddy’s story with sensitivity and unexpected insight. She shares text conversations between herself and others with insight into depression. She’s compassionate and respectful of both Maddy and her family. Maddy’s story is heartbreaking because it is so relatable. And sadly, not so uncommon. Many college and university coaching staffs and health facilities are not equipped to effectively deal with mental illness. By telling Maddy’s story, Fagan helps bring awareness to this issue.
And Fagan reminds us that what we see on the surface isn’t always what’s going on with someone. A good reminder for us to be a little kinder to each other.
Although this one doesn’t have a happy ending, I consider it essential reading.
This is the most important book I have read in a long time. It is not easy, but it matters. If you have a college student - especially a student-athlete, this is an essential read.
Kindle
Devastating as a former collegiate athlete and parent. Should be recommended reading for all parents of athletes.
Devastating as a former collegiate athlete and parent. Should be recommended reading for all parents of athletes.
Needs to be required reading for those who work with athletes
A sad story that I guess brings awareness but doesn't give a lot of answers/solutions/insights. It isn't easy to do in a situation like this. There was a lot of missing information, piecing things together after the fact. It mostly makes the reader feel helpless.
This one. It kept me up. It kept me thinking. Even when I wasn’t reading about Maddy, I was thinking about her. As an educator, a mother - with one soon heading off to college- this fueled my thinking around mental illness, expectations, raising kiddos, social media...
I found myself angry at the world and ultimately heartbroken. Just heartbroken for Maddy, her family, her friends... an informative and emotional quick read.
I found myself angry at the world and ultimately heartbroken. Just heartbroken for Maddy, her family, her friends... an informative and emotional quick read.