PFA commissions guidebook to help footballers cope with depression

? Book to be sent out to union's 4,000 members
? Mental health initiative supplemented by hotlines

The Professional Footballers' Association has commissioned a book to help its members deal with depression which will be sent to 4,000 players and be made available to 50,000 former professionals.

The book, which includes the testimonies of Stan Collymore, Paul Gascoigne and the union's chairman, Clark Carlisle, will supplement the provision of hotlines for members who are seeking help in a concerted effort to improve the organisation's mental health provision, reports the Daily Mail.

The 36-page guidebook is the personal initiative of the PFA's chief executive, Gordon Taylor, and highlights some of the symptoms of depression to raise awareness and help players identify them.

Carlisle, who was treated for alcoholism and depression in 2003, wrote: "Football is the beautiful game. This guidebook acknowledges the pressures and it also acknowledges that professional footballers are human beings, not machines."

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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/nov/30/pfa-guidebook-depression

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