John Western Parry is a lawyer, writer, and former substantive legal editor with many years of experience covering issues related to sports, mental health law, and disability rights. He has been the host and primary content provider for the website and blog, Sportpathogies.com since 2016. He also is the author of The Athlete’s Dilemma: Sacrificing Health for Wealth and Fame (Rowman & Littlefield, 2017) and Mental Disability, Violence, Future Dangerousness: Myths Behind the Presumption of Guilt (Rowman & Littlefield, 2013). In addition, he is a past recipient of the Manfred Guttmacher Award from the American Psychiatric Association and the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law. He lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.
"In the illustrative tradition of Leonardo Da Vinci, Parry's work provides us with a beautifully researched and written atlas of the dynamics of a win-at-all-costs mentality. It vividly portrays sports' ableism, physical perfectionism, and exploitation and marginalization of ""losers"" and those who do not conform to conventional heroic stereotypes. From experts and students of sports medicine to bioethicists to sports fans and the general public, all will learn from, enjoy, and cheer on the thoughtfully artful author as he gives new meaning to being ""a good sport"". --Harold J. Bursztajn M.D., co-founder, Program in Psychiatry and the Law at Harvard Medical School The struggles of superstars such as Naomi Osaka, Simone Biles, and Michael Phelps have put the issue of the mental health of athletes front and center in our discussion of sports. John Weston Parry's timely book, The Burden of Sports: How and Why Athletes Struggle with Mental Health, is a much needed and even-handed look at the various issues athletes face in their quest to entertain us and become the best they can be. While Parry focuses mostly on the problems in major American spectator sports, I think this important book will resonate throughout all levels of the national sports landscape. --Fred Bowen, Washington Post sports columnist for kids and children's book author"