Gymnastics is in sophomore Jessica Hutchinson’s (Gilbertsville, Pa.) blood. Both her mother and grandmother represented Bulgaria in the Olympics in 1972 and 1992 respectively. Those are some big shoes to fill, but Hutchison sees her family background as more of an asset than a pressure cooker.
“It shaped my experience in a way that my family knew what was going, they understood me a little more than maybe a mom who doesn’t have any experience in gymnastics,” Hutchinson said.
Both Hutchinson and her mother were coached by her grandparents, something Hutchinson said was helpful because her mother could relate to her own experiences. She also said that most of the pressure came from herself rather than from her family.
Hutchinson competed for Bulgaria, even representing the country in the 2016 European Championships. In the end, Hutchinson said that competing for Bulgaria “wasn’t for [her]. It was a lot: trying to do gymnastics in the US as well as competing for Bulgaria”. She also added that she “couldn’t compare what they have to what [she has] because it is so different growing up in the US”.
Following a freshman season where she was named Big-12 newcomer of the week twice and was on the All Big-12 championship team for her work on the bars, Hutchinson is looking to follow up that success with an even more fruitful sophomore campaign. She says that her personal goal for this season is to be an All-American. She said that a goal for the team is to repeat as Big-12 tournament champions, which will be held at DU in Magness Arena on March 19th.
Hutchinson has been constantly working in pursuit of those goals. This offseason she has worked to round out her game and focus on the little things. She said “I feel like I have all the skills I need and everything, there’s just little mistakes,” specifically mentioning keeping her legs together on vault and bars.
Despite all of this success, Hutchinson has struggled with mental health issues. Hutchinson spoke out about the issue on her Instagram. She said that when she was struggling last year, she didn’t want to speak out because she saw that as a “weakness.” Eventually, she ended up mentioning the issue to the team trainer, who, Hutchinson said, was “really there for me, opened up to me and sent me out to other people to help me.”
She is certainly not alone in feeling that and it is important for athletes to be able to overcome mental health issues, to the point where many pro athletes have psychiatrists. . This is something she mentioned when discussing why she decided to open up on her Instagram, saying “once I started speaking up about it and getting the help I needed, I realized how much better it was. Hopefully, by people seeing it is okay to post about mental health, other people will be able to do the same which will help them.”
One thing she leaned on during this difficult time was her faith. She started going to Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) study groups with her roommate, and it is something she has been doing weekly ever since. Her faith has also given her a new outlook on the sport, as well as life in general. Hutchinson says, “I am realizing that I’m not really doing this sport for myself, I am doing it to glorify [God]”.
Her faith has also given her the mindset that everything happens for a reason, which is something that has helped her limit negativity and overcome self-doubt. She said that there were times in the past when she would view herself as a failure when she made mistakes, but now she says her mindset is: “God knows what he’s doing, he did this for a reason. This is a chance to learn and grow.”
In addition to leaning on her faith, she has also been aided by mental health professionals. She said that she started working with someone from the DU Health and Counseling Center (HCC), who helped her cope with the stress and anxiety she was suffering from. Her counselor helped her with scheduling and organization, doing things like making a calendar, which may seem simple, but go a long way according to Hutchinson.
She shared advice to people going through a similar situation, saying, “definitely speak up because there are people there; their jobs are to help you. Also, lean on your teammates and the people around you because a lot of your teammates are going through something similar and understand what you are going through. They know you very well and are a great support system.”
