NBL1 x Mental Health Month: Anneli Maley's journey

As a teenager, Anneli Maley struggled with her mental health. 

She couldn’t work out why she was feeling the way she did and whether she was the only one feeling this way. 

But once she started to recover, she began to learn that mental health is not a taboo subject and wanted to help others realise that as well. 

So ahead of joining the Eltham Wildcats for the 2021 NBL1 South season, Maley became a mental health ambassador for the club. 

“My role is to pretty much liaise with our Child Safety Officer and the other heads of the programs as well as Headspace to get information out to the younger kids and in bite-sized bits of information,” she explains.

“I know that it's been a really tough two years for a lot of people, so we’ve been able to find a way to communicate through social media and to communicate through Zoom meetings and just share really important tips and tricks on how to cope and how to keep in touch with each other.” 

Not only has the role been rewarding for Maley but she has also been humbled by the messages of support from the parents of the children she has been helping out over the past year. 

“It was really rewarding for me to hear that the talks and the little two-minute bits of information that I was giving out over social media were impacting people,” she says.

Reflecting on basketball’s role in advocating for mental health, Maley says the sport has come a long way. 

From an emphasis on the physical side of the game, the Wildcats star says the mental element is now just as important in many clubs. 

The NBL1 this year launched its Mental Health Round back in June, which Maley says was so beneficial for the Eltham community. 

“I know before things got shut down, we had Lifeline Round and we had a lot of chats with the younger teams, and we had a lot of internal chatter in the senior team,” she reflects. 

“We would sit down as a team and talk through what Lifeline Round meant for us, and having those internal chats encouraged by a lot of people was really nice.” 

While the success of the round was immense, the NBL1 South season unfortunately came to an abrupt end in light of a range of factors having to do with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Maley’s hometown, Melbourne, is also still in lockdown. 

However, in her typical positive self, the 23-year-old is finding ways to keep grounded in these difficult times. 

“The most locked-down city in the world doesn't come without its struggles,” Maley admits.

“I'm very grateful to have an awesome support system. 

“I've got a wonderful partner and I've got great family members and I have a dog who gets me outside every day to be in the sunshine. 

“I found that, for me, it's the routine that structures my day and I make sure that I'm making time for myself outside of work, basketball, working out and doing household chores.

“I like painting or going for a walk outside or going to sit down by the river or something like that. 

“I really make sure that I take some ‘me time’ outside of all the things that I'm supposed to be doing every day.” 

Moving forward in the sport, Maley wants to continue to be a role model for the next generation of talent. 

She says she has been inspired by the work of people like fellow NBL1 South star Jenna O’Hea, who through her ambassadorship with Lifeline has done a mountain of work in raising awareness for mental health in the basketball community. 

For Maley, simply having a conversation with someone can have a lasting impact on their mental health.

“I was more aware of asking people how they're doing and if they're okay and asking if they have the space to talk about things,” she says. 

“You'd be surprised how many people will actually come back to you and say that no one's ever really asked them that. 

“I make myself available for comfortable conversations because I didn't really have that growing up in the sporting world. 

“I didn't have my role models openly talking about mental health issues and I feel like it's much more prevalent now. 

“I just want to continue that conversation, especially for the younger kids.” 

If this article has brought up anything for you or someone you know, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit lifeline.org.au.