Kayla McBride can relate to Naomi Osaka.

The Minnesota Lynx guard detailed her fight with anxiety last summer via The Players’ Tribune, and continues to prioritize her mental health on a daily basis. Knowing Osaka’s struggle, McBride has a familiar empathy toward the world’s No. 2-ranked tennis star’s decision to withdraw from the French Open due to anxiety and depression earlier this week.

“In the case of Naomi Osaka, I think that choice for her is her deciding not only that is she more important — but the game is more important,” McBride told media on Tuesday afternoon. “She’s a human first; she’s a person first. She has a mom, a dad, a family. All those things matter before we even get on the court.”

She continued: “There’s all those eyes on her, constantly. So for her to make that decision to choose her, she should never get backlash for that because at the end of the day if she’s not performing to the highest expectation of she is — Naomi Osaka — then everybody’s gonna be asking ‘Why?’… She shouldn’t have to explain herself if she wants to put herself first.”

Last year, @minnesotalynx guard @kaymac_2123 opened up about her struggle with her own mental health. https://t.co/Js50HHlZWL pic.twitter.com/rcmRoWi61x

— The Players' Tribune (@PlayersTribune) May 30, 2021

Osaka’s decision has re-ignited the discussion of mental health and sports. More importantly, it’s drawn a closer eye on the toll the business of sports — the attention, the pressure, the interviews, social media, the marketing dollars etc. — takes on an athlete’s mental and emotional wellbeing.

Unable to ‘keep the dark stuff out‘ of her head following the 2019 WNBA season with the Las Vegas Aces, McBride made a similar decision last year when she opted not to play overseas. Not feeling herself, the now-28-year-old sacrificed a paycheck to focus on her mental health.

 “Obviously, I didn’t want to [opt out], that’s the way I make money…That’s how I provide for myself and provide for my family,” McBride elaborated. “But I knew I wasn’t going to be myself if I went to go do that.”

She went on: “Obviously, it’s not the French Open, it’s way different. But still, making that decision to step away from something you love — Right? Because we’ve been doing this since we were little. — it’s hard. But choosing yourself and choosing your mental health is probably the strongest thing she could do right now… Even if [Osaka] did great and she won [the French Open], how she would be feeling during it and the aftermath of that is sometimes harder to deal with than not performing at all. I’m super thankful for her and for her sharing her journey because as an athlete that deals with mental health issues, choosing yourself can sometimes be the hardest thing.”

May was Mental Health Awareness Month. Athletes are speaking out and sharing their stories of battling mental health issues more than ever. With each story amplified, McBride believes it becomes easier for the next athlete to share their experience and let others know they are not alone.

“More athletes have been coming out and talking about [mental health],” said McBride. “Just in the basketball realm: DeMar DeRozan; Kevin Love; Liz Cambage, a former teammate of mine, sharing their stories. It gives you the confidence to wanna be able to share yours. Last year, I shared mine. The reciprocation that you get from that and the gratification you get from that, because you’re basically taking control back… You feel like you’re out of control. You feel like you don’t have control over your emotions.

“[You’ re] taking that control back, as an athlete and as a person and as a human.”

The conversation around mental health has evolved in recent years. The stigma attached to anxiety, depression, and other conditions has begun to fade. Lynx Head Coach and General Manager Cheryl Reeve believes teams and sports leagues can continue to improve in providing resources for athletes when it comes to mental health issues.

“I think being mindful that these athletes are people,” Reeve told media. “I think we should be able to support the players and the athletes more fully and recognizing that mental health is completely different. When I played mental health was not talked about. You were not to talk about whatever feeling you may have had. Very, very different than today.

“I think the players should feel safe enough to be able to come to an organization and say ‘I’m struggling, and I need help.’ and there should not be consequences to that.”

Thanks to athletes like Osaka and McBride sharing their struggles, that support is becoming more and more important.