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13| W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,A ugust 9,2018 w aterloochronicle.ca THE INNOVATORS OF COMFORT™ RECEIVE $600 OFF* your purchase of StresslessWing in select colors. Also save up to 25% on matching sofas.* For a limited time only, Stressless is increasing the savings on itsWing model recliner. Purchase any size StresslessWing recliner and ottoman, LegComfort™ or Office and receive huge savings in ALL Paloma leather colors. Combine with our extra savings on over 12 different model sofas to complete the perfect living space. *See sales associate for complete details. Stressless is proudly endorsed by the American Chiropractic Association. 1373 Victoria St. N., Kitchener 519-742-8501 www.internationalhomeinteriors.ca Clint Malarchuk sur- vived a pair of near-death experiences, and will par- lay those experiences into a pair of mental health talks in Kitchener next week. The former NHL goalie, who took a skate to the jug- ular vein in 1989 and sur- vived a suicide attempt in 2008, will be speaking on Mon. Aug. 13 as a part of the International Softball Con- gress 2018 World Fastball Tournament, which runs from Aug. 11 to Aug 18 in Kitchener. Malarchuk, who now re- sides in Nevada, almost lost his life during an NHL game in 1989 when he was playing goal for the Buffalo Sabres. The skate blade of St. Louis Blues' forward Steve Tuttle caught Malar- chuk's neck, which severed his jugular vein. The grue- some injury caused pools of blood to squirt out, and as he described vividly in his March piece in The Players Tribune, he thought he was going to die. Miraculously, Malar- chuk returned to the ice just ten days later, but the effects of the injury, atleast mentally, didn't go away. "At first I didn't think it did, I came back really quick, and I got playing right away to just prove to management, coaches, fans, myself," he said. "So I came back quick, and I didn't understand, kind of rode the adrenaline of be- ing almost worshipped in Buffalo because of the comeback and the severity of the injury and every- thing, I kind of rode that adrelanine.: The next sea- son, I started to have really bad nightmares abotut the incident; you know, flash- backs. I couldn't sleep, I had OCD tendencies. It took me forever to leave these house, things that I may struggled with as a kid, after that injury, the trauma caused everything to explode even worse, de- pression and anxiety too." "Having survived that attempt is what keeps me going, you know, I got well, I do realize and understand there's still a lot of people in a very dark place, and they're probably doing it alone, and not telling any- one, and not getting any help or treatment." Malarchuk, who was born in Grand Prairie AB., struggled for years with Post Traumatic Stress Dis- order, which all came to a climax when he attempted to end his own life in 2008. His own experiences pushed him to speak out and hold talks on mental health. "Being a suicide survi- vor is probably my driving force, having struggled with mental illness most of my life, I think, but after my big injury in Buffalo, it really blew up with PTSD, I struggled. I guess i suffered in silence for so many years, with undiagnosed PTSD that led to a suicide attempt and I finally got the help that I needed." He will have two talks at 9 a.m. at 4 p.m at Edelweiss Sports Banquet Hall. Tick- ets for the event are $10. Malarchuk faced a lot of OCD issues even dating back to his childhood, but he says some of the issues helped him focus more on hockey as well. Malarchuk's book, The Crazy Game, was released in 2014 and is "more a book life then it is of hockey." FORMER NHL GOALIE CLINT MALARCHUK TO SPEAK ON MENTAL HEALTH IN KITCHENER Clint Malarchuk spent time with the Buffalo Sabres, Washington Capitals, and Quebec Nordiques. NAMISH MODI nmodi@ waterloochronicle.ca NEWS SURVIVED SKATE TO JUGULAR VEIN IN 1989, SUICIDE ATTEMPT IN 2008 Photo courtesy Sandra Buscarini