“Please see the attached paperwork!
If you could fill it out and bring it with you, that would be great. If you could come in comfortable clothes to move in, that will help for the movement screen.”
I printed the paperwork and replied to the email: “Thank you! Will do!”
A friend had brought me to her gym, a boot camp of sorts. Wanting to add more to my physical activity, I was intrigued. I run a lot. Yet with all the miles I run I am not doing anything for strength or core. This new gym would be great for that.
And my friend was right – how much socializing was I doing spending hours alone on my treadmill? Getting out with people would be great for that reason alone – to get out.
So, I agreed to a trial membership. I was going to work on strength, core and social skills. Sounded good.
I gathered the paperwork from my printer, sat down and began to complete the forms.
Thankfully I’ve been pretty healthy. When I get to here on forms, I can usually just draw a red line down the “no” column.
And then this form came along. And I had to stop.
Have you ever had:
- Tuberculosis yes ____no ____unsure
- Heart Attack yes ____no ____unsure
- Paralysis yes ____no ____unsure
- Angina yes ____no ____unsure
- Headaches yes ____no ____unsure
- EKG Abnormalities yes ____no ____unsure
- Depression yes ____no ____unsure
- Asthma yes ____no ____unsure
- Chest pain yes ____no ____unsure
- Arm pain yes ____no ____unsure
- Surgery yes ____no ____unsure
- Shortness of breath yes ____no ____unsure
- Stroke yes ____no ____unsure
- Severe illness yes ____no ____unsure
- Ulcers yes ____no ____unsure
- Hospitalized yes ____no ____unsure
- Overweight yes ____no ____unsure
- Black outs yes ____no ____unsure
- Hernia yes ____no ____unsure
- Back pain yes ____no ____unsure
- Nervousness yes ____no ____unsure
- Leg Cramps yes ____no ____unsure
- Joint Problems yes ____no ____unsure
- Low Blood Pressure yes ____no ____unsure
- Allergy yes ____no ____unsure
Why are they asking about depression? Nervousness? I can understand asking physical health related questions. But why was a gym – where I was looking to do squats, work with kettlebells and weights – why were they asking about my mental health?
So, I went down the list. Marked the appropriate “no’s.” This time I did have to mark “yes” for a couple. I have been overweight before. I had three C-Sections, so I have been hospitalized.
And then I came to depression. I skipped it, went on to nervousness. At the time, on the scale of 1-10, I was at a solid 5. I was buzzing with nervousness about my scheduled “movement screen” at this new gym. As the time to my appointment neared, I knew my number was just going to get higher. I hate those kinds of meetings. Being evaluated alone by a trainer. Who else would be there watching? Barf.
I marked “yes.” Yes, I have periods of nervousness. Back to depression. Alright – who cares? Just tell the truth. I marked “yes.”
I looked at them again. Why did they need to know this? How would this knowledge benefit my training there? I am meeting these people for the first time and they want me to expose my baggage? I went through all the scenarios in my head and could not come up with a reason. If I stopped attending classes I did not want them to assume it was because I was depressed based on my history. Maybe my child is sick?
I went back to the sheet and erased “yes” to nervousness and depression and marked “no.” That was better. But when I looked closely, I could still see the faintest X at “yes” even after much erasing.
“That won’t do,” I thought and did the only thing imaginable. I went and marked all the answers “yes” AND “no.” And then went and erased all the wrong answers. When I was done, in a sea of erased X’s, I still had only two “yes” answers. Yes, once I was overweight. Yes, I was once hospitalized. The rest were “no’s.”
“That’s better,” I thought. And on to the rest of the form I went.
The hesitancy I had in answering those questions surprised me. I have no problem admitting that I was overweight before. But I DID have a problem admitting to a someone I am meeting for the first time that I was depressed. That I get nervous.
Revealing these personal truths made me feel at a disadvantage. I felt exposed.
And Lord knows the last thing I wanted to do was to discuss it with them (“Oh! I see you marked “yes” here – tell me about that….”).
I am sure I am not alone. I am sure there are a lot of people who hide their personal truths as I did. Amongst a bunch of erased X’s in hopes of self-preservation. To avoid the stigma of mental health and share only when necessary and to others that can relate.
I really hope the gym works out. It might be really good for you especially bumping into a few more people. Yes it is funny I don’t give it a second thought putting down IBS or torn bicep or ‘slightly over desired weight numbers’ – can never find the ‘due to being big boned’ box to tick. Yet I dither over anxiety and depression questions. It just shows how messed up society is about mental health. Let’s be really open and progressive about it, then happily ask the question. If not, let’s not ask then. Half the time it’s nit about looking after our well-being it’s just about covering an insurance policy…
Yes! I agree – I will tell you all my physical ailments (and I am also always looking for that big boned box to tic 🙂 ) but I really need to feel comfortable with the reason why you want to cover mental health before I want to talk to this new person about it. I mean if the gym works out, which I hope it does, I don’t want her looking at me each time I go and see “depression” or “nervousness.” I think it would be good too to just be around people – fingers crossed!
You are so not alone in this, Robyn. Mental health is still – wrongly – a stigma for so many people. And we feel affronted when presented with forms like this, which I don’t like filling out anyway, and that’s largely because they tend to address these issues in unrealistic shades of black and white. The truth is, we’ve all felt nervous or depressed at times, because the whole gamut of human experience and emotions is a swinging pendulum and we are stuck on it for the ride. To have negative feelings and periods of depression is human, but it doesn’t come across as such in these forms. We’re all fallible creatures and in reality these issues are a grey area through which we’re all constantly passing,. However, your gym membership form, like so many others, doesn’t reflect that. Instead it forces us into portraying a false version of ourselves which we’re naturally not comfortable with, and this in turn gives those interpreting the forms the wrong idea of who we are and what our needs are. If I were you, I’d burn it and go for a long walk! Relax, and have a great day.
I agree with you – the grey areas don’t come across in these forms. I like that idea too – burn it and go for a long walk 🙂 Hope you have a great day too!
I mark all the extreme answers “YES” to make them nervous! Yes to ring worm even though I’ve never had it. Yes to depression and anxiety to give them fears me running around with scissors and knives! They are the ones who asked for it!
That’s great! You’re the best 🙂
Standard stupid form that everybody uses. Gah!! The gym probably doesn’t even realize those questions are part of it. Mental health questions really DON’T have anything to do with a gym membership.
I had a horrible experience in a consult with a new doctor when I was looking to have the surgery for the intrathecal pain pump. I filled out all of the questions honestly, like you’re supposed to with an M.D.. I answered yes to drug use, over 30 years ago. He was so rude and condescending. He told me he wouldn’t do the surgery because I wouldn’t come for my appointments???
It’s difficult to know what to answer on all the forms. Good luck with the gym👍💪
Exactly! I felt that my honesty was only going to take away something – somehow I would be limited in what I could do there. There was definitely nothing to be gained for me by being honest – so I wasn’t. Thanks! So far, so good!
This made me smile 😊 I’ve suffered from both anxiety and depression both of which most people will suffer with at some point in life. There is no shame admitting that we as humans can be sensitive and vulnerable. I don’t think it would have taken anything away from your experience I think it’s just a case of big brother watching us and seeing the increase of anxiety and depression when we are brave enough to admit it 😉❤️😉
That’s true! Maybe the more we talk about it the better things will be – good point!
Phew, my anxiety level went up thinking I might have offended you 😉
Oh no! Of course not! All good 🙂
Being part of the management team at a fitness center, I have a few thoughts. First and foremost, what HIPPA protocols do they have in place? Is your data being protected, are staff with access to this information receiving any sort of training? And then, will they have the information on hand in the event of an emergency? Not likely that there will be a depression emergency, but a heart emergency, yes, possibly. Do the trainers have sufficient medical knowledge to do anything proactive with this info? Is anyone even reading it (other than in curiosity)? If yes, they have an extremely sophisticated training staff. Where I used to work, we asked all these questions until the membership card was brought to a staff meeting for an unrelated topic. Several of us were shocked to see that we were asking these questions. We dropped all medical screening because we were in no position to evaluate or protect the information.
Wow, good point – I didn’t even think of HIPPA. But no, or at least I don’t think so because I wasn’t given any HIPPA notice or privacy form. I had to go over the form with the person that did the movement evaluation – and she took a lot of notes about all my feet injuries from running. Other trainers I have worked with read my packet – I know because they all know about my feet injuries and choose drills for me to do that won’t affect them – like I am sent to the rower instead of others doing jump rope. I don’t know where my packet is in their building, or who can see it – makes me glad though now to know I didn’t mark those.
Thanks for sharing this. It seems like an ordinary enough situation and the questions look simple and innocent but you brilliantly described what goes through the complex mind of a human with thoughts and emotions. It’s such an important issue yet these are the thoughts we have that we don’t talk about. Thanks so much for writing this.
Thank you! Yes, they were asking this information so nonchalantly. To me this information is sensitive and not something I share so openly. Thanks again!
They have to ask about depression. At a gym near me, a depressed man was lifting free weights, decided to end it all, and swallowed a one hundred and twenty pound barbell. It was probably more tragic than it was unimaginable…
That is tragic. If they knew he was depressed would they have denied him gym membership?
Well the whole Facebook case is the reason they ask these questions. Its all information that they can sell on or that goverments want for there records. 15% of the population is depressed for example.
I would have probably written across it that their form was intrusive and their questions inappropriate! It makes me angry that people are made to feel uncomfortable – not because they have anything to feel bad about, but because people don’t know the boundaries of what’s ok to ask. I understand the logic behind the physical medical conditions, but it feels like the rest is just a data collection exercise, and you don’t know what will happen to the data that is collected about you or who will see it. I’m sorry you had this experience.
I agree – collecting mental health information really pertain to my joining a gym. I am a member at a gym chain as well, Planet Fitness, and I did not get asked those questions. I guess it was a live and learn moment. Not going to give questions like that the time of day when they do not apply!
You know people usually take their mental health for granted initially and when things get really worse they start working on it.
Being a Mental Health Advocate, it cringes me when I get cases where people undergo stress, anxiety, depression, trauma, and mental illness!
My best piece of advice to them is start working on your emotions and then I help them to get out of their mental health illness and eventually reduce their stigma!
We all experience mental health struggle at some point in our lives and to improve one’s mental health, I’ve written an article, where I’ve covered 7 Emotions to take care of if you have to improve your mental health.
Do take a read and let me know what you feel. http://thesoultalks10.com/how-to-improve-your-mental-health-in-2019/
Have a great day!
Thank you! Will do! You too!
Thank you for doing so Robyn! 😊
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