“If you don’t pick a day to rest, your body will pick it for you.” – Aly Raisman learned this lesson the hard way. The 6-Olympic medalist recently spoke to Alex Cooper on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast. Throughout the 1 hour 29 minutes long conversation, Raisman shed a light on several aspects of her life. What her childhood was like, her Olympic stint in London, and she also had some powerful points to make about how women often have to downplay their success to fit in.

But amidst this, she decided to open up about the darker side of the sport. Being an athlete isn’t an easy feat, and Raisman encountered several difficulties along the way. However, one moment after her retirement left her scarred. She tells Alex Cooper how during COVID, she had to go through a harrowing experience that involved hospitals and doctors. Not only did this affect the elite gymnast’s anxiety, but it also left her traumatized. What did Aly Raisman go through?

Aly Raisman’s pandemic scare left her reeling

In the podcast episode titled, Aly Raisman: Thirty Single & Thriving, the Olympian opens up about how not resting enough led her to the hospital not once, but twice. She had stated that she wasn’t privy to these visits, the gymnast had been hospitalized several times in the past. However, none had been as intense as this one. “But where like I have literally stroke-like symptoms, I can’t remember my name. I’m like slurring my words, I can barely speak.” Raisman recalls how she couldn’t move her body and was tested for a stroke both times. 

This was particularly scary for the gymnast because of a traumatic experience with a doctor in the past. It isn’t surprising that she was looking to lean onto her mother for moral support, but they wouldn’t let her in the ambulance with Raisman due to this being around COVID. “I can understand what someone is saying to me and asking me. Like I know they’re asking me what my name is but I can’t remember my name or say what my name is?” Not only did the Olympian feel helpless, she was also feeling lost throughout the frightening ordeal. 

Despite feeling disoriented, Raisman stated she was still aware of her surroundings. She explains what went through her mind, “Oh my gosh, I have two men and I can’t move my arms and my legs, I can’t move my body, I can’t speak. Like what if they take advantage of me.” The Olympian confessed how she was still dealing with PTSD around this time, and it was a really difficult time for her. “People don’t realize how much it still lives with you when you’ve been through something traumatic,” she expressed. 

Raisman also confessed how she went through intense training her whole life. However, when she used to compete, she was incredibly self conscious of her body. “In gymnastics, they were so strict with my weight. And even though we worked out so much, I still had to watch what I ate a lot.” She confesses how she now understands that it is important to feel your body and eat a lot of food. While she wishes she could advise her younger self to understand this, all she felt back then was immense pressure to be as skinny as possible. Raisman recalls how, despite working out immensely, she was told to lose more weight.

But when she looks back at her old pictures, she realized that she never needed to do that in the first place. She compares her experiences from when she had 12% body fat at 16 to when she had 5% body fat at 22. While she now realizes how unhealthy this was; she didn’t think it was concerning back then. The team doctors told her that this was too low, but Raisman clarifies how she refused to listen. “I just need you to be supportive and tell me it’s going to be okay.” But they refused. She goes on to state that she believes her body never recovered from the pressure she put on herself.

Multiple hospital visits led to frustrating misdiagnoses

Blaring lights. Frequent bouts of nausea and fatigue. An undiagnosed condition. This is what Aly Raisman had to deal with for a majority of her gymnastics career. She often had moments where she would voice how she doesn’t feel great, but it especially showed up during her Olympic stints. But it only got worse. After her retirement in 2020, Raisman decided to shift her focus to figure out what the cause behind her constant discomfort was.

The 6-Olympic medalist went through several experts, but no diagnosis seemed to be right. Most often, the professionals would chalk it up to her being depressed or anxious. But Raisman believed there was more to it than what meets the eye. She finally found herself on the doorsteps of Dr. Andrew Blumenfeld. During her consultation, he was led to believe that she was suffering from a particular neurological condition – migraines.

The giveaway for him was Raisman’s discomfort in the brightly lit stadiums during competitions. Relieved by her diagnosis, the Olympian was dismayed about how she had learned to push herself through moments of discomfort back then. “I’ve had to unlearn a lot of that unhealthy mindset and really learn to take care of myself.” While she thought she was working towards getting better, it did nothing but cause further harm to her body.

Raisman has come a long way from pushing through the discomfort to now nursing it in a healthy way. While her body has been through enough due to her intense training, misdiagnosis and health scares, she feels like she’s in a much better space than she was before. Despite the heavy-hitting conversation on the podcast, the 30-year-old talks about other lighthearted moments throughout her life. Have you had the chance to check out the episode yet?