Puka Nacua shares therapists role in becoming best version of myself

As Puka Nacua looks back on a turbulent offseason, one that brought headlines for all the wrong reasons and put a massive contract extension on hold, it’s not the money he might have lost or the embarrassment that weighs on him most.It’s the feeling that he let down the people who love him.So when it comes to redeeming himself – entering a rehabilitation center last March, staying committed to therapy, limiting who he allows in his circle, and making necessary lifestyle changes – the message it sends to the Rams about being a trustworthy long-term investment almost comes second.The one that matters most is the message he’s sending to his family.“There have been some things that obviously happened this offseason that haven’t been the truest reflection of who I believe I am or how my mother raised me,” Nacua said Wednesday after a spirited Rams training camp practice at Loyola Marymount University.“And there’s definitely been conversations with her to apologize.”It was his mom’s response that stuck.

And it’s what’s fueling Nacua now.Owning his mistakes to her wasn’t easy.Neither was confronting how far the impact reached.

But in that moment, she gave him something he needed.“For her to say that she supports me,” Nacua said.That reinforcement, along with the tough love from his brothers – “probably my biggest critics,” he calls them – has been freeing.So has becoming a dad last November, which Nacua said “changed my life.”All of it has kept him grounded.It’s sharpened his sense of responsibility, not just to his family, but to prove to the Rams he can be trusted long term.Which is why skipping camp was never an option, even without a new deal and as he enters the final year of his rookie contract.Instead, Nacua is letting his off-field growth match his on-field production, and making his case that way.“Hopefully, if I continue doing my part, everything else will fall into place,” he said.Four days into camp, it’s...