The latest on Gracie Gold

[ancientpeas]

I started having panic attacks during school my freshman and sophomore year in high school. My anxiety became so bad that I dropped out of school. Honestly, I stopped going to anyplace where there wasn't noise. I would get panic attacks in quiet places. Plus, because I was ashamed about dropping out, I avoided going to places on the weekends to avoid seeing people that I might know. I lived like this for 4 years. Then my aunt offered me a job in an small tax returns office. The office didn't get a lot of business and my aunt almost always had the TV when there weren't any customers. This was when my anxiety lessened, but it didn't go away. My main fear was still school, after all. My fear of quiet places was a manifestation of my fear of being inside a classroom. After a year, my family moved to another city. Without a job and with nothing to do I was back to where I was before I got a job. I decided to get my GED and I started attending college. I had to take several tests to start college in very quiet classrooms. It was horrible, but I didn't have any panic attacks. My first semester was the second summer session and both of my classes were online. The next semester I had 4 online classes and 1 class I had to go to school. This semester is my third semester, I have 3 online classes and 2 classes that I have to go to. Every Tues & Thurs from 9 am to 4 pm. Every time I have to go to class I get extremely nervous but I no longer get panic attacks during class. What helped was changing my way of thinking. Instead of disliking myself for being anxious and nervous, I had to accept that I was an anxious and nervous person. If I get a panic attack the best thing is to do is just let it happen. Trying to stop panic attacks makes it worse. If I get nervous, then it is just something that is going to happen. Accepting it rather than fighting my feelings made them less severe. However, it is easier said than done. Every Tues & Thurs is still a struggle, but it's getting better slowly.

You should be proud of the fight you are putting up. I hope you are. Most people with severe anxiety problems are perfectionist at heart and so finding pride in accomplishments is hard because they are rarely an unmitigated success.

That is what Exposure or Desensitization treatment is all about. Feel the fear, do it anyway. It's not easy but it is worth it. And it's a struggle. Every day. But getting your life back, reaching the goals you set for yourself and finding happiness are worth it.

I wish you continued success.

ETF my terrible grammar.

 

[NanaPat]

Now, see, if you were a true fuddy-duddy you would say, "Give me command line, and take away this durned mouse.

Give me a piece of paper and a pencil. Or a blackboard with chalk. None of these new-fangled white boards for me!

 

[NAOTMAA]

I've seen a lot of people in this thread (and others) mention that she's 21 years old and therefore an adult. This is true but she is also a professional athlete and when you are one things go off kilter. Gracie may be more mature then the average 21 year old in some aspects due to her status and position but it also limits her and therefore she is also more immature then the average 21 year old in other areas that one would think odd. I can't imagine how difficult and confusing it must be to be in her position the last few months

 

[ancientpeas]

Give me a piece of paper and a pencil. Or a blackboard with chalk. None of these new-fangled white boards for me!

I hate white boards. If anyone writes on them with the wrong kind of marker you might as well take them down and get new ones. Blackboards lasted forever.

 

[NanaPat]

Yes it is, yes it is! I suffer from the most literal kind of agoraphobia -- "fear of the market place." Crowds in general are not threatening to me. Concerts, no problem. But going to a shopping mall makes me physically ill.

I have to go anyway, but I am not any better.

I can shop in general, but used to have panic attacks at WalMart. Even the WalMart parking lot was intimidating to me.

Since I moved to a smaller town with limited shopping opportunities, I have learned to cope with WalMart. For many things, it's shop at WalMart or do without. Kind of sad, isn't it? The town does have many good features to counteract the limited shopping.

 

[sabinfire]

Probably a bit before 4 pm on Saturday, January 21. Gracie made a press statement at the time.

https://twitter.com/olyphil/status/823295765346942977

The ladies free skate didn't even start until 6pm on Saturday. Do you mean Sunday, January 22nd?

 

[penguin]

In any case, I think Gracie's next coach will only benefit from being her coach: If she continues bombing, then it'll be because Gracie never figured out how to get it together, and if she starts to improve, the new coach will get all the credit as a miracle worker. Even for Gracie, it'll only be a good thing to get into a new environment and mindset. Even if she doesn't improve next season, she won't have lost much, but she has everything to gain.

 

[brightphoton]

The ladies free skate didn't even start until 6pm on Saturday. Do you mean Sunday, January 22nd?

D'oh! Yes

That's what I get for trying to be smart and calculate days of the week without a calculator

 

[espinaca79]

PLease, don't misslead any information. The statement you say Gracie made was published on sunday after Phillip Hersh published the article. Frank never had a meltdown.

 

[Sasha'sSpins]

In situations like this it's often called firing though. I was an attorney in my past life and we would fire clients all the time. Yeah, they were paying us, but that is still what we called it.

That's interesting. I'd never heard the expression used in that context. Technically it doesn't seem to fit but I suppose you are right.

 

[brightphoton]

PLease, don't misslead any information. The statement you say Gracie made was published on sunday after Phillip Hersh published the article. Frank never had a meltdown.

Not a meltdown? What exactly do you call:
1. Throwing Gracie under the bus by putting her jacket into a trash can in front of reporters and saying it's what Gracie wanted
2. Not telling Gracie to her face that he wasn't going to be her coach anymore
3. Telling the press this instead
4. Make sure to add in a callous comment about the legal paperwork. That's the important thing, not Gracie's vulnerable state, just to rub it in how much he doesn't care anymore

 

[sabinfire]

D'oh! Yes

That's what I get for trying to be smart and calculate days of the week without a calculator

No worries, just trying to piece together the order of events during the weekend.

My most surreal moment in Kansas City was heading out to a burger bar w/ a friend after the ladies free skate on Saturday night, and we ended up seeing Gracie there alone! She looked so sad. I had to go over & say something to her. She was incredibly gracious and even gave us her trademark bright beaming smile for a photo op.

Looking back on the pictures now, she was wearing the jacket from the alleged Jacketgate incident... hwell:

Everyone loves a good comeback story — especially during the Olympic season. I'm rooting for you, Gracie! :thumbsup:

 

[brightphoton]

No worries, just trying to piece together the order of events during the weekend.

My most surreal moment in Kansas City was heading out to a burger bar w/ a friend after the ladies free skate on Saturday night, and we ended up seeing Gracie there alone! She looked so sad. I had to go over & say something to her. She was incredibly gracious and even gave us her trademark bright beaming smile for a photo op.

Looking back on the pictures now, she was wearing the jacket from the alleged Jacketgate incident... hwell:

Everyone loves a good comeback story — especially during the Olympic season. I'm rooting for you, Gracie! :thumbsup:

That's so sad poor Gracie

I really hope she comes back and goes to the Olympics next year. I'm rooting for her too!

 

[louisa05]

I was there. Gracie got huge applause when announced. She landed a gorgeous triple right in front of our section during the group warm up and got huge applause for that. I truly believe the tepid applause when she finished was due to shock that she was that bad. The couple next to my mom and I were not skating fans but knew who Gracie was from the Olympics. They didn't know her whole season has been a mess. They expected the Gracie from Sochi. I'm sure they were not the only ones.

She also didn't help her cause. As a comparison, when Max finished his bad skate, he forced a smile. When they first showed him on the video screen in the kiss and cry, he mouthed "I'm sorry" to the crowd and then got applause as I think most people didn't want him to apologize. Gracie didn't even try to smile when she bowed.

 

[Hyena]

First of all, I'm a mental health professional (who has been through her own stuff) and I just wanted to tell all the posters sharing personal struggles in this thread that - You Rock

I have no idea if Gracie has a diagnosable mental illness or not. I've never met the girl and couldn't psychoanalyze her from afar, despite doing this for a living, so I'm amazed at how easily some in this thread of pinpointed Gracie as a "snowflake" (what a dumb term...) or spoiled brat. hwell:

I haven't always been a fan of hers but I so want her to come back and kill it next season.

 

[stella luna]

Thanks for sharing!

No worries, just trying to piece together the order of events during the weekend.

My most surreal moment in Kansas City was heading out to a burger bar w/ a friend after the ladies free skate on Saturday night, and we ended up seeing Gracie there alone! She looked so sad. I had to go over & say something to her. She was incredibly gracious and even gave us her trademark bright beaming smile for a photo op.

Looking back on the pictures now, she was wearing the jacket from the alleged Jacketgate incident... hwell:

Everyone loves a good comeback story — especially during the Olympic season. I'm rooting for you, Gracie! :thumbsup:

 

[Amei]

Yeah she definitely needs be with her family and take a break.

What makes me upset about these articles now is that Gracie never held Frank accountable. His speech to the press about legal issues means that he is clearly violating something in their coaching agreement by firing her like that.

Gracie never said a bad thing about Frank. Even in the article where she was thrown off, she says she is grateful and continues to respect him. In her previous article she said it wasn't Frank not being there for her, she wasn't there for him. Alex told Phil Hersh that him and Carroll are both working for her in the same article as well.

Now all those lines don't sound completely truthful to me.

Unless there was some clause regarding his ability to make comments he violated nothing, and if there is something in whatever contract there is between them that limits his free speech he could fight it as a violation of his constitutional rights. All he said to the press (quote below) was that there will be a change once everything is worked out legally, what he might've been doing is forcing everyone's hand to let him out of the contract because he's publicly stated he wanted out. Not only does this 'force' Gracie to move on, but the USFSA can't try to force them to stay together through next year.

“There will be a change,” Carroll said, according to Icenetwork.com. “But you can’t just say goodbye. It’s got to be worked out intelligently and legally when we get home.”

 

[ice coverage]

No worries, just trying to piece together the order of events during the weekend.

My most surreal moment in Kansas City was heading out to a burger bar w/ a friend after the ladies free skate on Saturday night, and we ended up seeing Gracie there alone! She looked so sad. I had to go over & say something to her. She was incredibly gracious and even gave us her trademark bright beaming smile for a photo op.

Looking back on the pictures now, she was wearing the jacket from the alleged Jacketgate incident... hwell:

Everyone loves a good comeback story — especially during the Olympic season. I'm rooting for you, Gracie! :thumbsup:

So Gracie still had her team jacket on Saturday night -- after she had left the arena and was by herself??

I'm happy to hear that she was wearing her team jacket.

And makes me wonder what the basis was for the published report about Frank supposedly throwing the jacket away per Gracie's request???

p.s. sabinfire, how nice of you to go over and speak to Gracie. And how nice of her to graciously smile for a photo.

 

[brightphoton]

So Gracie still had her team jacket on Saturday night -- after she had left the arena and was by herself??

I'm happy to hear that she was wearing her team jacket.

And makes me wonder what the basis was for the published report about Frank supposedly throwing the jacket away per Gracie's request???

p.s. sabinfire, how nice of you to go over and speak to Gracie. And how nice of her to graciously smile for a photo.

Gracie retrieved her jacket

Last paragraph
"A few minutes after Carroll threw her vest away, she went back and quietly fished it out."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...old-meltdown-caps-lackluster-season/96925948/

 

[ice coverage]

Gracie retrieved her jacket

Last paragraph
"A few minutes after Carroll threw her vest away, she went back and quietly fished it out."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...old-meltdown-caps-lackluster-season/96925948/

Sorry for my ignorance :hopelessness: and thx for filling me in .
I knew the excerpt in the tweet was from Brennan ... but had never clicked on the full story.
Too many different Nats stories (team selection, etc.) to try to keep up with .

In any case, the fact that Gracie was in the team jacket later when sabinfire stumbled upon her suggests to me that earning a Team USA jacket still is meaningful to her and will continue to be.