Founder Story
Founder & Executive Director
My name is Jonathan Wang, and I am the child of first-generation immigrants. I am the founder of the Broad Shoulders Initiative. The name behind this initiative is rooted in a very deep and personal challenge that I faced back in elementary and middle school, and a challenge that, every so often, I am reminded of.
In elementary school, I struggled with my weight, being obese and having early stages of high blood pressure. I felt uncomfortable in my own skin, and I felt ashamed of who I was. This occurred at an early age, and I never knew anything about the importance of mental health, nor was it something that was emphasized in my family.
Founder Timeline
A few personal moments that shaped the meaning of Broad Shoulders, told quietly through memory, sport, and recovery.
In elementary school, I struggled with my weight, being obese and having early stages of high blood pressure. I felt uncomfortable in my own skin, and I felt ashamed of who I was. This occurred at an early age, and I never knew anything about the importance of mental health, nor was it something that was emphasized in my family.
After being constantly made fun of by my peers about my weight, I decided to make a change and believed the best way to lose weight was to stop eating so much. Before, I would often eat four meals, with one meal consisting very late at night, almost like a binge session, which probably contributed to my weight.
I decided to cut down on my food intake. At first, everything was fine, but as I watched the numbers on the scale slowly tick down, I started to cut more and more calories and became obsessive over it, remembering the calories of foods such as eggs, apples, and even gum. I started eating close to nothing, often throwing away the lunch that was packed for me.
I lost so much weight. Everybody around me commended me for taking initiative and responsibility and for losing the weight that I so desperately wanted to get rid of. Even after starving myself and becoming unhealthily skinny, I still felt uncomfortable. I felt my shoulders were too broad and my wrists too thick. In pictures, I started scrunching my shoulders up to make them appear smaller. This, I didn't realize at the time, was an eating disorder and a mental health issue rooted in body image.
I hope this initiative can help shed light on mental health, not just regarding body image, but also other factors that many students, including myself, have had to overcome, some feeling as though they were alone in this battle. These include the importance of prioritizing yourself over a sport as a student-athlete, navigating family situations as a child of a divorced family, and facing pressures and societal expectations from parents, teachers, and peers within a stressful and competitive school environment.
Slowly, I started to regain my reins and progressively return to a healthy weight. I became comfortable in my body, and I realized the danger that could have occurred if I continued down that path. The Broad Shoulders Initiative is my way of educating and giving back to a community that provided me with resources and positive affirmations that helped in my recovery.
It is my hope that individuals can learn from my experiences, understand the importance of mental health, and find a community that feels comfortable addressing the adversities they face in order to potentially inform others and help them realize that the challenges they face can be overcome.
