A ndy Murray’s announcement that he is contemplating retirement from professional tennis is sad news – as it always is when one of the game’s greats leaves the court for the last time.

The reason for his retirement – a persistent pain in his hip that has lasted for 20 months – was clearly evident in his first-round loss in the Australian Open.

By the end of five sets he was hobbling badly, prompting commentators to speculate whether, if he had won the match, he would have been fit to contest the next round.

This is not a minor pain, but one that at times has prevented him from doing just about anything – including, apparently, putting his own shoes and socks on.

Since his announcement, much has been written about Murray, from how he handles the media and how his legacy will be framed, to his “unabashed feminism” and, of course, how he’s facing his future.

Retirement isn’t easy to face, especially for elite athletes. And especially when it’s brought on by injury. After all, Andy Murray is closing a chapter in his life, a large part of how he sees and understands himself.

Through this experience of oncoming retirement, as he transitions to a new life, Andy Murray has taught us an important lesson: how to seek professional help to ensure good mental health. And the media have been helping us learn this valuable lesson.

All in the mind

In the UK, most people are probably aware that one in four individuals will experience some form of poor mental health in their life. This now oft-repeated statistic speaks to the difficulties individuals will feel with depression, anxiety or profound stress. In fact, poor mental health encompasses all negative psychological aspects that affect our daily living.

Research shows that the more we know about poor mental health, the better equipped we are to do something about it. The field of mental health literacy speaks directly to the knowledge and beliefs we have about poor mental health. This has an impact on our ability to recognise mental ill health, manage it and even prevent it.

In a sense, mental health literacy is about what we know about poor mental health and the various treatments available to us. It is also about what our attitudes are to poor mental health, whether it’s our own or other people’s – and what intentions we have towards seeking professional care. The field of mental health literacy builds on research on health literacy, which examines how individuals access, read, understand and, ultimately, use information to improve their health.

When the game stops

Our recent research shows that elite athletes struggle when it comes to understanding their mental health and where to turn for support. We also found that many athletes lack the words necessary to describe what they’re feeling. In a sense, athletes are lost, not only in their own minds, but also their environment, uncertain as to where they can go for help.

Andy Murray's career high and lows Show all 10 1 /10 Andy Murray's career high and lows Andy Murray's career high and lows Highs: Summer of 2012 Only a month after his tearful fourth grand slam final loss to Roger Federer at Wimbledon, Murray gained redemption in spectacular fashion by emphatically defeating the Swiss to claim Olympic gold on Centre Court. He followed it up at the US Open by ending the long wait for a British male grand slam singles champion with a dramatic five-set victory over Novak Djokovic. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows First Wimbledon The victory that will always be top of the pile came on a glorious summer's day at SW19. Murray faced Djokovic again in front of an expectant crowd on Centre Court and rode the wave to finally consign Fred Perry to history, surviving a nerve-jangling final game. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows Davis Cup glory Wimbledon was Murray's crowning individual glory but arguably his most extraordinary accomplishment was winning the Davis Cup for Britain almost single-handed. His brother Jamie and James Ward chipped in but Murray won an unprecedented 11 out of 12 rubbers across four ties. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows 2016 Wimbledon and Olympics After reuniting with Ivan Lendl, Murray swept to his third slam title at Wimbledon, this time beating Milos Raonic. And a month later he made some history for himself, overcoming Juan Martin Del Potro in Rio to become the first tennis player to successfully defend an Olympic singles title. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows World number one The season of Murray's career had a golden ending when a run of five straight tournament victories, culminating in victory at the ATP Finals in London, carried him to the world number one ranking. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows Lows: Knee trouble Murray feared his career might be over before it began when knee pain interrupted his training in Spain at the age of 16. He was diagnosed with a bipartite patella but was able to manage it effectively. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows Anyone but England Teenage joshing with Tim Henman during an interview in 2006 came back to haunt Murray when his joke that he would be supporting 'anyone but England' at that summer's football World Cup was widely publicised and damaged his public image and his relationship with the press for several years. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows Back surgery Murray's first time under the knife came in 2013, when he decided a troublesome back problem needed to be fixed by surgery. The Scot was only sidelined for three months but it took him a long time to fully recover. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows Lendl split While Murray was working his way back in 2014, he was dealt a major body blow when mentor Lendl decided he no longer wanted to continue their relationship. Their reunion in 2016 helped the Scot win more of the sport's biggest prizes. Getty Andy Murray's career high and lows Hip pain The low that has overshadowed all the rest began after the French Open in 2017, when Murray found he was no longer able to recover from chronic hip pain that he had been managing. Despite surgery and long periods of recovery and rehabilitation, the 31-year-old has not found a solution. Getty

We also found that elite athletes are not immune to poor mental health – they have rates of prevalence for various symptoms similar to those experienced by the general population. But elite athletes who participate in racquet sports are at particularly high risk – partly because those competing in individual sports tend to burden themselves with the full weight of success or failure rather than being able to share these with teammates.

But poor mental health doesn’t end with retirement for elite athletes. In fact, it often continues into retirement, and in certain circumstances may even get worse.

Retirement plans

There are some hypotheses as to why some elite athletes become more vulnerable to poor mental health after retirement. Loss of identity is one factor, while changes in levels of physical activity may also play a role.

The higher levels of physical activity implicit in being an elite athlete may add a protective effect against poor mental health. In retirement, training regimens change and so do levels of physical activity. Lower levels of activity may not be as protective.

The Australian newspaper The Sydney Morning Herald reported recently that Murray had been speaking to psychologists about his life after tennis and how to go about his future.

Key to his discussions with the media was how his hip pain had brought about other difficulties, physically and psychologically. Murray’s casual depiction of his use of psychological care, his positive framing of mental health care services and his intention to continue to access support helped paint a positive attitude of mental health care and address some of the stigma held around seeking support.

Seeking professional help for poor mental health isn’t easy, especially for elite athletes in times of transition. Murray’s example is a powerful lesson for any athlete who may be experiencing poor mental health or uncertainty in their career or life. Reach out for professional help. Don’t do it alone.