Jennifer Royer, PhD Youth sport has many stakeholders, ranging from the athletes themselves to their caregivers, coaches, sports organizers, and communities. While all those roles come with their own challenges, the role of schools or communities in helping to develop healthy youth sports can be especially complex. A recent recommendations [...]
As national statistics and stories continue to unveil, young athletes are in crisis in the U.S. right now, thanks in large part to a plethora of pressures placed on them. With this in mind, how can you best support their mental wellness while helping them grow as people and athletes? Here, one [...]
TrueSport Expert Nadia Kyba Unfortunately, workaholism is a term that’s no longer reserved for adults, and our experts are finding that young athletes and student-athletes can easily fall into this trap too. Workaholic tendencies are often praised as hustle, grit, or enthusiasm, but over time, these tendencies can lead to [...]
TrueSport Expert Nadia Kyba You’ve probably heard of self-care, but have you heard the term ‘communal care’? As a member of a team, whether you’re in a leadership role or not, you can be practicing communal care to help your teammates—and to help yourself in the process. But how do [...]
Being a perfectionist might sound like a positive trait, but for a young athlete, it can be deadly. Athletes who suffer from maladaptive perfectionist tendencies are at a high risk for anxiety, depression, burnout, and even suicide. And unfortunately, with social media, commercial opportunities for younger athletes, and pressure to perform from [...]
Kevin Chapman, PhD Now more than ever, young athletes are feeling pressure: Pressure to perform in sport, to have a certain image on social media, to get good grades, to do extracurricular activities, and to get into a certain school on a scholarship. These pressures often lead to performance anxiety, [...]
Charron Sumler, LPCC Whether in high school or in college, your athletes are probably not getting enough sleep to maximize their potential at practice and on gameday. As a coach, this can be frustrating, since it can seem out of your control. In fact, even athletes themselves have little control over [...]
Kevin Chapman, PhD It can sometimes feel like you’re under pressure in every aspect of your life, from your grades to your sport to your social life. And to some extent, pressure is a normal and even positive part of your life, pushing you to reach your potential. But there [...]
As an athletic trainer (AT), you play a unique role in a young athlete’s life. You typically have significant insight into an athlete’s health and wellbeing, and often serve as an athlete’s advocate to their coaches and their parents. One key area that is often overlooked by coaches, athletes, and families is [...]
TrueSport Athlete Ambassador Abby Raymond Worried about your athlete's wellbeing but not sure how you, as a parent, can help? Maybe your athlete has asked for more space, or maybe a coach or trainer has policies about parents’ involvement. There should be boundaries, of course, since athletics also help kids [...]
Matt Fedoruk, PhD As a coach, you have the ability to either help or hinder your athletes' pursuit of success in sport, as well as their overall wellness. A good coach ensures that mental and physical wellness are prioritized for their athletes, even if it means de-prioritizing performance and wins. [...]
Kevin Chapman, PhD Mental wellness can be difficult for parents, coaches, and other guardians to cope with when it comes to young athletes. Is a bad grade on a test just because an athlete didn’t study, or is it a sign of something deeper? Is an athlete who’s been tired [...]
Kevin Chapman, PhD If you’re an athlete’s parent or guardian, you likely feel the same pre-competition nerves and jitters that your athlete does. You may notice that in the minute before the competition starts, your heart beats just a bit faster, or you struggle to sleep soundly the night before [...]
Maybe you’ve heard your coach tell you to ‘walk it off’ or ’shake it off’ when something went wrong during a game, or you lost a critical competition. While that advice is usually coming from a well-intentioned place, unfortunately, it makes many athletes feel like it’s not right to feel sad, mad, [...]
Coaching isn’t easy…there is pressure from parents, administrators, and athletes – all with different agenda and needs. These days, helping athletes through mental health struggles and tough times can also be part of your role as a coach. But your mental health matters too. Now more than ever, it’s easy to end up [...]
Creating strong boundaries is an important and often overlooked piece of the coaching dynamic. A lack of boundaries can not only impact a team’s success, but also lead a coach to experience burnout and negative mental health effects. Here, TrueSport Expert Kevin Chapman, PhD, clinical psychologist and founder of The Kentucky Center [...]
Kevin Chapman, PhD As a busy coach, you likely haven’t spent a lot of time thinking about your own mental health and wellness. Sure, you’ve told your athletes to seek professional help if they need it, or maybe even spent time doing group activities with your team to promote mental [...]