Loughlin to speak about addiction issues at Rosemount event

Westmeath football star Luke Loughlin will be among the guests at an upcoming mental health and well-being event which has been organised by Rosemount GAA Club.

The event will take place in Rosemount Community Centre next Wednesday evening, July 27 and long serving Offaly football ace Niall McNamee will also speak at the event.

Loughlin and McNamee were on opposing sides in the Tailteann Cup semi-final between Westmeath and Offaly last month, but they will share a stage next week in order to help raise awareness of issues that affect many young people.

Both McNamee and Loughlin have struggled with addiction issues, with Loughlin opening up about his problems recently.

McNamee's gambling problems have been well documented and the talented Rhode footballer has spoken publicly on many occasions to highlight the dangers gambling can pose.

"Luke Loughlin and Niall McNamee will be our special guests talking about their own mental health and struggles they have had in the past," said a Rosemount GAA statement.

"We will also have Finola Colgan from Mental Health Ireland there to speak and provide information that would help out coaches, parents and young people.

"We hope that the whole club will get behind this, as mental health is so important for everybody. We will also be raising money for Pieta House on the night. Hope all can attend and support the event,” added the club.

Loughlin recently spoke to RTE's Morning Ireland programme about his battle with addiction.

"A year ago I was in a very bad place, and I had to come to terms with an addiction to alcohol and drugs," Luke told RTE's new Midlands correspondent Sinéad Hussey.

"Basically, my addiction was anything that could take me out of reality. I was ruining my life every time," he said.

In July of last year, the 27-year-old went for treatment in the Cuan Mhuire addiction centre in Co. Galway.

"I could go on the beer for two weeks or go missing for two weeks and missing from work. I was so consumed by what other people thought about me and about my image. I was so insecure about the way I looked," he said.

"I genuinely got to the stage where I hated everything about myself so when I was drinking and doing drugs, I was becoming someone else but ultimately that person I was becoming was killing me. It was killing everything, my reputation, my family life."

Loughlin was on the Westmeath team which recently won the Tailteann Cup and the personal turmoil he has endured off the field made the success all the more special.

"I thought about my mother Oonagh. I’ve put her through such hardship over the last ten years and seeing the smile on her face," said The Downs footballer.

"She was the first person I saw after the final whistle. She's not the biggest football fan but she's my biggest fan and my best friend. My brothers were there too. It was very special.

"This time last year a video went around of me asleep at the side of a train track. I had been on a bender for two months.

"I just thought about all the people who messaged me to say how happy they are to see me healthy and happy now," he continued.

Luke also hailed his Westmeath teammates for their support.

"The Westmeath team is such a special group of people, so close. Everyone is so special. I keep saying the word special because that's what they are.

"I'm delighted we won something because it's something to show for all the hard work."

Loughlin said his time in Cuan Mhuire helped him to open up about his problems and tackle them.

"It changed my life. I was able to focus on myself for the first time ever. I was able to deal with the problems that I had from when I child. I was able to deal with my addiction," he said.

Having spent three months in Cuan Mhuire, fitness became another important part of his recovery.

"I spent so much time in my local gym, Wolfhound Fitness with the owners Joe and Katie. They were basically my aftercare. I've never left the gym in bad form. Exercise is so important. Even going for a walk, it's so good for the mind.

"Football has been unbelievable too. This is the first year that I've made it from pre-season with Westmeath to the last game of Championship without getting dropped, without getting dropped and called back in or without doing something stupid with drink.

"To be honest I'm very proud of myself. It might sound so small to someone else but that's huge for me."

Luke admitted that he still struggles at times, but now feels he knows how to cope with his problems.

"A year ago, I was so full of fear, fear of being rejected and today I still struggle with a lot of those things, but I know how to deal with now," he said. "I can talk about them openly and I think if people did more of that we wouldn't have half the problems we have."

And he has urged young people, in particular young men, to reach out for help.

"Being yourself is the most important thing in life. People are so worried about what others think but you can waste your life trying to be someone different and that's exhausting," he told RTE.

"Everyone has problems. Everyone on this planet has problems. It's all about talking about them. This went on with me for ten years and it just got worse.

"If you are going through something, share it. You don't have to be macho. You don't have to be like that. You can show weakness, you can let things out.

"You feel so much better if you talk about stuff. I think that’s the important message," he added.

On the pitch Loughlin continued his impressive form for The Downs in their Westmeath SFC opening round win over Coralstown/Kinnegad last Sunday, and he also plays hurling for Clonkill.