Ethan Bear opens up about his time in the NHL's Player Assistance Program

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Sam Hutch
September 22, 2024 (3:16 PM)

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Washington Capitals defender Ethan Bear has opened up about his time in the NHL's Player Assistance Program and how it has helped turn his life around.

Ethan Bear of the Washington Capitals has recently opened up about his time in the NHL's players assistance program which he entered on March 27th of this year after signing a two year contract with the Capitals in December of 2023

Bear, recently sat down with the Hockey News's Sammi Silber to discuss what life is like now that he's come out of the NHL's Player Assistance Program. To say that bear feels a sense of relief, is an understatement.

�It's like I'm seeing life through a new set of lenses. My brain, my mind, has never been more clear, Bear told The Hockey News, adding, Life for myself is just a lot better. I'm just really excited to play hockey, have a clear head and just have some fun, being around the guys. It feels good again.'

According to Bear, after signing with the Washington Capitals, he was never able to find his game or get the footing required to be able to stay in the lineup on a regular basis. With that, he started to struggle, mentally and day-to-day activities became more strenuous as a result of feeling mentally and physically exhausted.

I noticed myself not being able to go to bed at night, not being able to wake up in the morning... it was hard for me. It felt like everything was just very challenging to do.

Bear continued by saying he knew he needed to get help, fast for what was going on, but that the decision to do so was very tough.

It's a tough thing, because we're in the spotlight, right? And everyone's watching us. People look up to us and kids, so we have a lot of pride in what we do. We don't want to see like we're weak or less than what we could be," Bear pointed out. "You don't want to lose your spot in the lineup, and there's money on the line, your job's on the line, your integrity's on the line. It's not something a lot of guys want to do, and it's really hard to see the benefit of it until you actually do it.

As a result of his decision to get the help he knew he needed, the Assistance Program was able to help him with his at the time unknown and undiagnosed anxiety and depression.

It's a very good thing that Ethan Barrow was not only able to get the help that he needed, but it's not afraid to speak out about the benefits of getting the help and not being ashamed to ask for it especially when you're in the spotlight an NHL player is

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Do you think Ethan Bear's decision to speak out about his time in the player assistance program is a good thing?
Yes	83	83.8 %
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He's a role model	6	6.1 %
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