As an athlete, your mental health is just as important as your physical health. In fact, mental health and wellbeing can often have a greater impact on performance than physical training. However, even with the progress made in breaking down barriers, mental health is often overlooked and stigmatized in the world of sports. Athletes are expected to be tough, resilient, and focused, but the reality is that they face a unique set of challenges that can take a toll on their mental well-being. In this blog post, we'll explore why athlete mental health matters, the challenges athletes face, and how to improve athlete mental health.
Why Athlete Mental Health Matters
Athlete mental health is important for a variety of reasons. The mind body connection is very real, and when an athlete is struggling with their mental health or mental blocks, that struggle with manifest itself in the physical performance of the athlete.
According to a study by the British Journal of Sports Medicine, athletes have a higher risk of developing mental health problems than the general population, and they are less likely to seek help for these issues.
Additionally, Mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and stress can lead to poor focus, decreased motivation, and physical symptoms like fatigue and headaches. Mental health issues can impact an athlete's overall quality of life, including their relationships with friends and family, their sleep, and their ability to enjoy life outside of sports.This can lead to a range of negative outcomes, including substance abuse, eating disorders, and even suicide.
The Challenges Athletes Face
Athletes face a unique set of challenges that can impact their mental health. Pressure to perform, is one of the most common factors. This pressure comes from coaches, teammates, fans, and even themselves.
Many athletes are raised playing sports, and are often validated and rewarded for their success in sport. While this appears harmless, and even positive, it often results in athletes feeling that their self worth is directly connected to their performance. When there are inevitable dips in performance athletes without mental training are susceptible to believing their worth has lowered along with their performance. This belief lowers confidence and motivation, which perpetuates poor performance, which in return makes the athlete feel worse and worse.
Athletes often have to deal with injuries, which can be physically and emotionally painful. Returning to sport after an injury can often leave athletes feeling frustrated, confused, and isolated as they try to hide their struggles from their teammates and coaches. In addition, athletes may have to manage a range of other stressors, such as financial difficulties, relationship problems, body image, and the demands of balancing sports with academics or work.
Furthermore, athletes are often expected and asked to suppress their emotions and tough it out when facing difficult situations, and are often encouraged to do this “for the sake of the team”. “Leave it in the locker room” is a common phrase that coaches will use to encourage athletes to not allow their internal struggles show in practice or games.
However, this can often lead to the idea that feelings make you weak and get in the way. This messaging inhibits athletes from appropriately processing their emotions and being able to use them to their benefit.
This can lead to a culture of silence and shame around mental health issues in sports, as well as an increase in mental health issues.
6 Ways to Improve Athlete Mental Health
Improving athlete mental health starts with recognizing that mental health is just as important as physical health. Coaches, teammates, and sports organizations can take a number of steps to support athlete mental health, including:
Educating athletes, coaches, and staff about mental health and training mental skills the same way we train the physical.
Creating a supportive team culture that encourages open communication and destigmatizes mental health issues.
Encouraging the use of mental health resources such as counseling, therapy, sport psychology and support groups.
Modeling a healthy work-life balance and equipping athletes with adaptive coping skill to manage stress, by making mental skill training a regular part of athlete and team development.
Prioritizing athlete safety, and reminding athletes that their wellbeing is more important than any game or outcome. Establish safe words or a protocol for athletes on your team to follow if they are struggling with mental health, but fear it will impact their playing time.
Being proactive about identifying and addressing mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression, before they become more serious. Try to avoid making statements such as "shake it off" or "toughen up". When an athlete comes to you validate their concerns, thank them for sharing, and help them come up with an action plan to address their concerns.
Athlete mental health is a critical issue that requires attention from coaches, teammates, parents, and sports organizations. By recognizing the unique challenges that athletes face and taking steps to support mental health, we can help athletes not only perform better but also live happier, healthier lives. Let's work together to make athletics healthier and safer for our athletes!
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