Bonita Shurmer was a young gymnastics star and is now thriving in the CrossFit world, but away from sport the islander has had battles with mental health.
From the highest of highs of her experiences at the Commonwealth Games, to the lows of her struggles, Bonita opened up in an exclusive interview with Sportscast Jersey.
Have you always been into sport?
I started gymnastics when I was 2 years old as I was always upside down and had lots of energy. I started competing in the U.K. when I was around 7 years old, and would train between 20-30 hours a week all throughout my childhood. I loved it so much and would wake up at 5am before school to fit in extra conditioning at home before the day started. (Slightly obsessed but I’m very all or nothing!)
Talk to us about your gymnastics highlights!
My biggest highlight was the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia. I was able to make history by becoming the first female Jersey gymnast to qualify for the all around finals which was such a great experience!
I’m grateful to have competed in quite a few Island Games too which is always a fun competition to compete in.
You’ve been through some mental health struggles. What have they been, and how hard has that been over the years?
I’ve struggle with my mental health since I was little. I have OCD which impacted me a lot growing up. I was always so anxious and worried about everything, I could go a whole day without talking to anyone at school because I was so overwhelmed with everything going on in my head. I went to therapy on and off throughout my childhood which helped me to understand what was going on in my head and make sense of all the worries.
OCD. What is it and how has it affected your life?
OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) is where you have unwanted and repetitive thoughts (such as “my house is going to flood”) and then feel the need to repeatedly perform certain actions or rituals to try to reduce the anxiety from the thoughts (such as turning the tap on and off 8 times).
It’s affected my life in so many ways, OCD makes you feel like such a bad person and you are constantly overthinking everything which gets exhausting. I’ve never been on a plane by myself, never been drunk, terrified of hospitals, all because of the fear of people “being sick”. I feel like I’ve missed out on a lot (especially in my teenage years) because of OCD.
How has gymnastics and CrossFit helped your mental health?
Gymnastics helped me so much growing up, it was my way to escape from everything going on in my head, knowing I had to concentrate on not landing on my head in a skill helped quieten the intrusive thoughts too!
I’ve only started CrossFit within the last year, but it’s been the best thing for my mental health. I struggle with food and body image, and CrossFit has really changed my perspective on training for performance rather than changing what I look like. It’s also such a positive and supportive environment which has really helped me build confidence in the last year.
How much would you encourage people to take part in any sport if they’re struggling with their mental health?
I would encourage anyone who’s struggling with their mental health to take part in sport, try a few things, find out what you enjoy and what makes you feel good. Don’t compare yourself to others, because I know how much that can affect our minds too, just do it for you.
It really helps to have a break from “reality” and find something that you look forward to each week too. I have met the best people from getting outside my comfort zone and joining places like CrossFit, it’s hard to put yourself out there but it’s so worth it and has saved my mental health over this last year.
