Millie Bright chose not to join England's Women's Euros squad to prioritise mental health and recovery after captaining Chelsea to a domestic treble. She described feeling on the verge of a breakdown when the season ended and recognising she could not mentally contemplate the tournament. Bright underwent knee surgery during the close season and began counselling to address issues and restore wellbeing. She framed the choice as the first decision made for herself rather than to please others and said the summer withdrawal was the best decision of her career. Bright holds extensive WSL experience and reached the World Cup final previously.
You get into that mindset where nothing comes between what it takes to win. It's like an engine, you just keep going. When the season ended, when you finally allow yourself to relax it hits you and I was like, 'I just need to take a minute otherwise I am on the verge of a breakdown'. For the first time in a long time I figured out where I was at mentally and I couldn't even think about the Euros. That was a big indicator that I needed to back off a little bit and just breathe. For the first time I made a decision for me and not to please other people.
Taking the decision in the summer was by far the best decision I have ever made and one that I am actually really proud of because it is not easy by any means.
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