Finding Identity Beyond Sports

What happens when the thing that defined your entire life suddenly disappears?

In this episode of Enduring Minds, Evan Birch and I sit down with Trevor Ruhland for an honest conversation about identity, mental health, and rebuilding your life after sports. After leaving Notre Dame football, Trevor struggled with anxiety, self-worth, job pressure, and an eating disorder that nearly took everything from him.

But this episode is not just about struggle. It is about healing.

Trevor shares how endurance sports helped him reconnect with himself and why running became the bridge between who he was as a football player and who he is becoming today. We also talk about recovery, knee replacement surgery at 27, the pressure everyday athletes place on themselves, and why showing up nervous usually means you actually care.

There are also a few laughs because life would be unbearable if runners did not occasionally joke through the chaos.

If you are an everyday athlete navigating burnout, identity shifts, mental health challenges, or simply trying to figure life out one run at a time, this conversation will remind you that you are not alone.

Listen now and join the conversation.

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