{"id":20246,"date":"2021-09-02T09:24:20","date_gmt":"2021-09-02T16:24:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/?p=20246"},"modified":"2024-02-27T11:43:12","modified_gmt":"2024-02-27T18:43:12","slug":"6-ways-to-help-your-student-athlete-balance-high-school-sports-and-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/blog\/mental-health\/6-ways-to-help-your-student-athlete-balance-high-school-sports-and-mental-health\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Ways to Help Your Student Athlete Balance High School Sports and Mental Health"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The anxious anticipation of the starting gun. The red, flashing shot clock that causes one\u2019s stress to rise as the numbers count down. The deep breaths taken in the locker room to calm one\u2019s nerves away from the public\u2019s watchful eye.&nbsp;&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;<br>This&nbsp;summer&nbsp;Olympics&nbsp;brought to the forefront&nbsp;the immense pressure&nbsp;that young athletes&nbsp;and high school students&nbsp;face, but they\u2019re also becoming more vocal about setting boundaries to protect their mental health. From&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/2020-tokyo-olympics-gymnastics-simone-biles-injured-463f9be556246eada6dec265297df4d2\">Simone Biles<\/a>&nbsp;to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/6077128\/naomi-osaka-essay-tokyo-olympics\/\">Naomi Osaka<\/a>&nbsp;to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/espn\/feature\/story\/_\/id\/16425548\/michael-phelps-prepares-life-2016-rio-olympics\">Michael Phelps<\/a>,&nbsp;high-profile&nbsp;competitive&nbsp;athletes have been&nbsp;shining a light on mental health as a key component of overall wellbeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In some ways, the pandemic may have opened the door for these conversations, as we\u2019ve all become more aware of how stress, mental illness,&nbsp;and anxiety can affect our state of mind in the past year and a half. From complex&nbsp;coronavirus&nbsp;protocols to having suffered loss,&nbsp;competition cancellations,&nbsp;feeling isolated, or being physically removed from their support system, training and competing&nbsp;in&nbsp;tournaments&nbsp;during a public health crisis only adds to the pressure&nbsp;and mental health concerns like&nbsp;anxiety&nbsp;disorder, or depression one might face.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But&nbsp;school athletics&nbsp;and mental health should be just as central to the conversation. It\u2019s important to help&nbsp;high school&nbsp;athletes&nbsp;build the coping strategies they\u2019ll need to handle the stress of competing before it increases throughout their athletic career.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-state-of-competitive-high-school-sports-and-mental-health\"><strong>The State of&nbsp;Competitive\/High School Sports and&nbsp;Mental Health&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>We often talk about the mental health benefits of exercise&nbsp;and physical activity. Still,&nbsp;evidence suggests that as young people compete more intensely in sports, gains in mental wellness may be replaced by mental health challenges particular to competitive athletics.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>In&nbsp;one <a href=\"https:\/\/pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/23528842\/\">study of competitive Canadian swimmers<\/a>, 68% of the college athletes studied met the criteria for depression.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nata.org\/sites\/default\/files\/developing_a_plan_to_recognize_and_refer_student_athletes_with_psychological_concerns_at_the_college_level.pdf\">A&nbsp;study done by the National Athletic Trainers\u2019 Association<\/a>&nbsp;found that student-athletes report&nbsp;experiencing&nbsp;negative emotional states&nbsp;more often&nbsp;than non-student&nbsp;athlete adolescents.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Increasingly, high school student-athletes are&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/aaos-annualmeeting-presskit.org\/2018\/research-news\/sports_specialization\/\">specializing in just one sport<\/a>&nbsp;like cross country&nbsp;or lacrosse&nbsp;and playing&nbsp;throughout the school year&nbsp;and even the summer&nbsp;as a means to gain athletic mastery of the sport. A few years ago, the&nbsp;American Academy of&nbsp;Orthopaedic&nbsp;Surgeons found&nbsp;that a third of high-school, college, and professional athletes surveyed trained in a single sport.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For the athletes whose identity is wrapped up in the sport they play,&nbsp;their&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S2352250X16301658?via%3Dihub\">self-worth can become linked to their performance<\/a>.&nbsp;Or, they may feel pressured to keep playing long past the time they stop enjoying their sport&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/303511177_The_Impact_of_Family_Financial_Investment_on_Perceived_Parent_Pressure_and_Child_Enjoyment_and_Commitment_in_Organized_Youth_Sport_Family_Investment_in_Youth_Sport\">because of the sacrifices and investments<\/a>&nbsp;they and their parents have made. If they do finally quit, they sometimes feel guilt or like a failure for letting others down, which can lead to self-destructive behavior&nbsp;and other student-athlete mental health issues.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The challenge of balancing it all &#8211; teammate&nbsp;relationships,&nbsp;workouts,&nbsp;academics, sleep, daily activities, and other interests &#8211; can feel overwhelming for student-athletes.&nbsp;Though parents and coaches are often best positioned to remedy&nbsp;student-athlete mental health&nbsp;issues, they&nbsp;can&nbsp;exacerbate the problem by adding to the pressure these athletes face.&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;<br>All of these factors make high school sports and mental health such an important topic.&nbsp;But,&nbsp;the good news is that the&nbsp;overall&nbsp;problem is coming&nbsp;more and more&nbsp;into focus for many programs across the nation.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On the heels of the&nbsp;chief medical officer of the&nbsp;National Collegiate Athletic Association&nbsp;(NCAA)&nbsp;discovering that&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncaa.org\/sport-science-institute\/introduction-mind-body-and-sport\">mental health was student-athletes&#8217; top concern<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/college-sports-newest-need-psychologists-1541688698\">college sports&nbsp;programs began to add therapists<\/a>&nbsp;to their athletic departments, screen players for anxiety and depression, and trained staff on how to detect warning signs.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s not a stretch to assume that,&nbsp;over the years,&nbsp;similar&nbsp;support for high school sports and mental health practices will become commonplace at that level, too.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-high-school-athletes-and-mental-health-the-unique-stressors-they-experience\"><strong>High School Athletes and Mental Health:&nbsp;The Unique Stressors&nbsp;They&nbsp;Experience<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"AdobeStock 116915040\" class=\"wp-image-20251\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-150x100.jpeg 150w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-500x333.jpeg 500w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-2048x1365.jpeg 2048w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_116915040-scaled.jpeg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Student-athlete mental health issues can arise from the stress of the balancing act they have to navigate each and every day.&nbsp;The tension can compound for the young athletes who are also attending school or pursuing a degree while competing.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A student-athlete has to focus their time and attention on studies, rigorous training, social life, work, close relationships, other interests or hobbies, and normal day-to-day activities.&nbsp;To address the stress of it all, Shane F., a former&nbsp;student-athlete, shares his advice:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cDon\u2019t be afraid to seek counseling or therapy. The pressure of being a student-athlete can be overwhelming,&nbsp;and it can be difficult to talk to peers.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Injuries, concussions,&nbsp;overtraining, sleep disorders, and&nbsp;anxiety&nbsp;are&nbsp;just a few&nbsp;other&nbsp;factors that also impact&nbsp;athletes engaged in high school sports&nbsp;and mental health&nbsp;issues that can arise.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Additionally, they\u2019re facing a lot of pressure to perform. Robbie G., a former All-American collegiate wrestler and current&nbsp;professional&nbsp;mixed martial arts&nbsp;fighter, says, \u201cStress and anxiety are normal, built-in traits that helped keep us safe from predators and rivals in prehistoric times.\u201d&nbsp;Today,&nbsp;student-athletes often experience&nbsp;adrenaline rushes and fight-or-flight responses. Robbie offers a recommendation to young athletes:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;\u201cTo help lower stress,&nbsp;believe in your training and visualize events happening,&nbsp;so it doesn\u2019t feel like the first time you\u2019re&nbsp;experiencing an&nbsp;event or competition. Create a goal and focus on that rather than the anxieties that may exist.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;All of that would be a lot to handle for an adult, but when you put that weight on someone who is still psychologically, biologically,&nbsp;and neurologically developing, the pressure and stressors that youth athletes face may put them at risk for the development or exacerbation of mental health disorders.&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;<br>Matt Snider, a former collegiate football player,&nbsp;and retired NFL player, notes more resources&nbsp;are&nbsp;available today than there ever were before. He says:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cThe focus on today&#8217;s athletes\u2019&nbsp;mental health is 100 times more thought&nbsp;out&nbsp;than it was when I was playing professional football,&nbsp;college football,&nbsp;and high school football&nbsp;decades ago.&nbsp;Now, it\u2019s recognized that the athlete&#8217;s brain&nbsp;and mental wellbeing&nbsp;are&nbsp;oftentimes way more important than the athlete\u2019s physical&nbsp;wellbeing,&nbsp;body,&nbsp;and strength.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Snider notes that coaches, athletic directors,&nbsp;and general managers&nbsp;are acknowledging that mental health&nbsp;issues&nbsp;will affect&nbsp;a student-athlete\u2019s&nbsp;performance.&nbsp;He also brought up the point that one\u2019s performance can directly affect their opportunities or even their job in the case of professional athletes \u2014 and that can compound the pressure and stress of having mental health experiences affect performance for athletes.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-helping-student-athletes-with-mental-health\"><strong>Helping&nbsp;Student-Athletes with Mental Health<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"AdobeStock 379248093 2\" class=\"wp-image-20252\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-1024x683.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-768x512.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-150x100.jpeg 150w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-500x334.jpeg 500w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-300x200.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-1536x1025.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-2048x1367.jpeg 2048w, https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AdobeStock_379248093-2-scaled.jpeg 1199w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s important that you recognize the symptoms of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/depression-in-teens\/\">depression<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/anxiety-in-teens\/\">anxiety disorders<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/substance-use\/\">substance abuse<\/a>,&nbsp;and other&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/teen-mental-illness-and-treatment\/\">mental illnesses<\/a>&nbsp;to help your student-athlete if needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1186\/1471-244X-12-157\">Studies<\/a>&nbsp;show that the stigma&nbsp;is&nbsp;the most important perceived barrier to seeking help&nbsp;when it comes to student-athlete mental health. Other notable barriers were a lack of mental health literacy and negative past experiences of help-seeking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The parents and coaches of&nbsp;competitive, collegiate,&nbsp;and high school sports&nbsp;athletes can help overcome these barriers&nbsp;and support&nbsp;prioritizing mental health&nbsp;by following these helpful tips:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Spend time outside of training to be or get in&nbsp;attunement with the teen or young adult.<\/strong>&nbsp;If you\u2019re only focused on training&nbsp;for high school sports and mental health and&nbsp;relational&nbsp;connection&nbsp;take&nbsp;a backseat, you\u2019ll lose valuable insights into&nbsp;your teen\u2019s&nbsp;day-to-day needs, feelings,&nbsp;and challenges. Building that connection will help in getting them to open up when they need to do so.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"2\">\n<li><strong>Talk openly about issues and encourage them to educate&nbsp;themselves.<\/strong>&nbsp;If you\u2019ve had experience with mental health issues, tell the teen about it \u2014\u202fshow them that it\u2019s normal. In sharing your experiences, you\u2019ll start to educate them, and can encourage them to continue doing so.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"3\">\n<li><strong>Be conscious of language and&nbsp;the&nbsp;treatment of others.<\/strong>&nbsp;Words matter, and if the&nbsp;vocabulary&nbsp;you use is charged with words that negatively speak to mental health conditions, you\u2019ll perpetuate the stigma. Instead of \u2018crazy,\u2019 say \u2018wild.\u2019 \u2018Nuts\u2019 can become \u2018unbelievable.\u2019&nbsp;Show compassion to those experiencing mental health issues.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"4\">\n<li><strong>Treat their mental wellbeing as equal to their physical wellbeing.<\/strong>&nbsp;Check-in on their mental state just as much as you inquire about their physical&nbsp;condition. Similar to how you\u2019d want the young athlete to fully recover physically before getting back on the field, track, course, or court or back in the pool or gym, allow them the same time to recover from anxiety, stress,&nbsp;or trauma.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"5\">\n<li><strong>Make it a priority for yourself and lead by example.<\/strong>&nbsp;Do your own work, so you can model a healthy approach to addressing mental health issues and emotional responses.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"6\">\n<li><strong>Focus on the positives and empowerment that can come from mental wellness.<\/strong>&nbsp;Addressing&nbsp;student-athlete mental health&nbsp;means a teen or young adult is taking control of their life \u2014 that\u2019s empowering and takes strength.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-sports-traumas-effect-on-high-school-sports-and-mental-health\"><strong>Sports Traumas&nbsp;Effect on High School Sports and Mental Health<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Sports traumas can stem from&nbsp;things like&nbsp;injuries,&nbsp;a perception of failure,&nbsp;team or coaching conflicts, and negative media\/public attention \u2014 among other things.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>The&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/nchs\/data\/nhsr\/nhsr099.pdf\">U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports<\/a>&nbsp;that 8.6 million sports- and recreation-related injuries occur each year.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/aaos-annualmeeting-presskit.org\/2018\/research-news\/sports_specialization\/\">One study<\/a>&nbsp;found that early&nbsp;sports specialization leads&nbsp;to a greater risk of injury.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether a scholarship or a career is on the line, the fear of injury can also cause anxiety, and even a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.embarkbh.com\/blog\/anxiety\/fear-of-school-in-teens\/\">fear of school<\/a> and impact a student-athlete\u2019s mental health.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-brainspotting-helps-student-athlete-mental-health\"><strong>How&nbsp;Brainspotting&nbsp;Helps Student-Athlete Mental Health<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Athletes can experience performance blocks that can be&nbsp;linked&nbsp;to traumatic experiences.&nbsp;A common&nbsp;athletic performance block&nbsp;is the loss of ability or struggle to perform a typically unconscious or automatic task, such as a basketball player dribbling the ball down the court.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.psychotherapynetworker.org\/blog\/details\/717\/when-trauma-impacts-performance\">Brainspotting<\/a>,&nbsp;a therapeutic method that&nbsp;taps into&nbsp;the emotional and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/dana.org\/article\/the-senses-the-somatosensory-system\/\">somatic areas&nbsp;of&nbsp;the brain<\/a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;bypasses&nbsp;the&nbsp;areas of&nbsp;the brain that control&nbsp;thought and language, can help athletes overcome these performance issues.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In&nbsp;brainspotting,&nbsp;the athlete identifies&nbsp;spots in the visual field that trigger&nbsp;traumatic or&nbsp;psychologically intense memories&nbsp;using the&nbsp;feeling of somatic activation. Once&nbsp;they\u2019ve&nbsp;located&nbsp;that visual trigger,&nbsp;the athlete&nbsp;maintains&nbsp;their&nbsp;gaze while observing their internal&nbsp;response and processing the memory.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By processing the hidden&nbsp;trauma in the brain, the athlete can reduce the symptoms, including physical pain, that&nbsp;are&nbsp;attached to the trauma.&nbsp;Other traumatic processing interventions, like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.apa.org\/ptsd-guideline\/treatments\/eye-movement-reprocessing\">Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)<\/a>, are also effective.&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Injuries and emotional stress can lead to student athlete mental health issues like depression and anxiety. Learn more in this helpful guide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":20250,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[952],"tags":[1680,1732,1734,1742,1743,1744,64,1747,121,135,1514],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v21.1 (Yoast SEO v22.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>High School Sports and Mental Health - Embark Behavioral Health<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Injuries and emotional stress can lead to student athlete mental health issues like depression and anxiety. 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