In high school, athletes are often a big representative of “who” a school is. Athletes gain more recognition, more publicity, and more money for their programs over other school clubs or activities. However, the outward appearance of an athlete’s life doesn’t show the tiring practices, hard losses, and long nights athletes go through. Most athletes have been to the point of straining their mental health for their sport, causing some to question if the end really does justify the means.
More than ever before, mental health awareness has risen in the past few decades. Athletic burnout, the declining of performance and/or decreased motivation due to excessive training, is common among all sports. Jerry Maina, who runs both cross country and track, explains, “There’s definitely been times I’ve been burnt out, I think it happens to everybody. This past cross country season I suffered a lot of injuries and it made my motivation drop.”
Along with burnout, pressure from external factors have a significant impact on mental health. Sophomore Reegan Mckinney expands, “There can be some toxic people that create a toxic environment. For example, if your parents are always screaming at you, you can lose interest.” As stress accumulates, it takes a toll on athletes mental h
ealth, which can result in losing love for the sport.
Despite the negative impacts athletics can have on mental health, athletes find ways to minimize and avoid bad habits. From planning ahead to knowing when to not overwork oneself, every person is different. When asked how to maintain a balance between school and sports, multisport athlete Ella Robertson explains, “I make schedules, I’m a big planner. I always plan out what I’m going to do because I like to fit everything in to maximize my time.”
Each athlete has their own methods. For example, UCLA softball commit Layla Lamar states that what helps her is “using my friends and talking out about my emotions and also taking breaks and knowing when enough is enough; when I just need to stop practicing for that day or focus my mind on something else and not sports 24/7, it’s really helpful”.
Every athlete’s journey is different; however, balancing mental health with any sport proves to be no easy feat. Mental health is important to take care of and important to maintain for the well being of athletes, a message we should take into the spring sports season and beyond.
