Simone Biles has compared her recent mental health struggles at the Tokyo Olympics to suddenly going blind and being expected to work as normal.
In July, the 24-year-old Olympic champion withdrew from the women's team all-around gymnastics final at the Games, with Team USA Gymnastics citing an unspecified "medical issue".
The following day, it was reported that she was also pulling out of the final individual all-around gymnastics competition in order to "focus on her mental health."
She later explained that she was suffering from what is known as the "twisties", a kind of mental block where a person's mind and body are not in sync, and as a result, they have less control over their movements.
Now, in a new interview with The Cut, Biles explained the phenomenon further by using the analogy of waking up to find that you can no longer see.
She told the publication: "Say up until you're 30 years old, you have your complete eyesight. One morning, you wake up, you can't see s***, but people tell you to go on and do your daily job as if you still have your eyesight. You'd be lost, wouldn't you?
"That's the only thing I can relate it to. I have been doing gymnastics for 18 years. I woke up - lost it. How am I supposed to go on with my day?"
After withdrawing from most of her individual events, Biles did manage to compete in the balance beam event, for which she received a bronze medal. She also earned a silver medal as part of the team event.
Also in her interview with The Cut, Biles recalled seeing a therapist in the lead-up to the Games this past summer and said she felt sure at the time that she was mentally strong enough to compete.
She did add, though, that she found the impact of Covid-19 on the Olympics difficult to get accustomed to.
Biles continued: "[The therapist] was like, 'Yes, you're good enough to go and do your stuff, but you have to come back.' And I was like, 'Nah, I'm good.'"
"There was no crowd, no parents," she said, referring to the recent Olympic Games. "I was not physically capable. Every avenue we tried, my body was like, 'Simone, chill. Sit down. We're not doing it.' And I've never experienced that."