Playing Hurt: My Journey from Despair to Hope - Hardcover

"A story that merits both sympathy and attention."--Kirkus Reviews

"An inspiring call to action about mental illness."
--Sports Illustrated

"For sports fans and anyone who has struggled with depression."
--Library Journal

"The book...isn't a puffy portrait of the long-time fixture on ABC's college football coverage and 'The Sports Reporters'-though it's true Saunders was one of the most-liked sportscasters on ESPN through his career. This book explores Saunders' off-camera struggles, which included the events surrounding his life-long battle with depression...Readers will learn so many things about Saunders they would have never expected to hear-and they will also gain a better understanding of the day-to-day lives of people with depression. Saunders proves it's not what you think."
--Sporting News

"In this book, Saunders gives an astoundingly honest account of his lifelong struggle with depression...Playing Hurt makes it clear that depression doesn't care who you are. It doesn't care about your race, gender, age, family background, professional success, or anything else like that. This book also does an amazing job of saying to readers who suffer from this illness, "You are not alone," which is a message that can never be stated often enough...The honesty of this book, especially for such a public figure (who assumed he'd be alive when it was eventually published), is breathtaking...Playing Hurt is a gripping story, it is an emotional story, and above all else, it is an important story. It is not hyperbole to say that this book will save lives. It is a must-read."
--Clearing Out the Clutter

"[A] moving chronicle of [Saunders'] struggle...Readers will ache for him as he struggles to overcome brain trauma while still battling depression. This is a tough read; there's a lot of pain on the pages. But, as Saunders promised in his preface, there's a kind of hope as well."--Booklist

"This is an important book. Parts will leave you shaken, others will inform you, still others will uplift you. Playing Hurt is the final act of grace in John's remarkable life, so we may learn of the toll of depression, the need for diagnosis and treatment, and the hope that awaits."--Bob Ley, host of ESPN's Outside the Lines, winner of 11 Emmy Awards

"Playing Hurt is a public service. Here is a trusted friend, a man who has spent so many hours in our living rooms, providing an education about brain injury, about depression, and the symbiosis between the two. Knowing he died so soon after he emerged from this fog is heartbreaking. Playing Hurt is a testament to John and the hidden struggles he overcame."
--Ivan Maisel, ESPN.com, six-time winner Best Writing, Football Writers Association

"Edgy [and] revelatory...An important book about mental illness."
--Wil Haygood, Washington Post

"For 30 years, my friend John Saunders earned my admiration for his understated demeanor, his top-of-the-line professionalism, his Old World ways, and his gentle yet warm smile and laughter. I'm sure those who never met him except through TV felt the exact same way. After reading Playing Hurt, my respect for him has increased exponentially. So will yours. Thank you, John."--Chris Berman, legendary ESPN broadcaster

In Playing Hurt, a leading figure in the sports world--the quintessential "man's man," who seems to have it all--confesses his constant battle with depression and how it nearly cost him his life. John Saunders--stellar athlete and respected sportscaster--welcomes readers into the heart of his desperate struggle against depression: from insights into the illness's root causes to the nature of modern treatments, from both a medical and cultural perspective. His story unfolds as so many of our lives do--among family, friends, and colleagues--but it also peers into places we don't often discuss openly--psych wards and hospitals. Here is the honest story of a public figure facing his own mental illness head on, and emerging far better off for his effort.