Keeping athletes mentally healthy

You may have had the reflex to read the title more than once. That's normal. We're used to hearing about mental health as a concept, an idea, often referred to as "THE" mental health. Do you remember the last time you said, or heard, "I'm mentally healthy"? Then, when was the last time you said, or heard, "I'm physically healthy"? Much more often that last one, isn't it?

By Joey Toupin

Yet, when we look at its definition, mental health represents a " state of well-being that enables people to realize their potential, cope with life's normal difficulties, work successfully and productively, and be able to make a contribution to the community " (WHO, 2024). It is therefore a mental state of well-being
in which a person can achieve their goals, connect with others and function productively in the space in which they find themselves. You don't need to look any further to see thata mentally healthy athlete is one where performance is far more likely to be optimized.

What can sometimes be a challenge is tofind a way to contribute to the development of mentally healthy athletes and, at the same time, to help normalize the mental health problems experienced by athletes so that they can more easily seek help. How can these two aspects be combined?

In particular, by promoting a climate of psychological safety around athletes. Psychological safety behaviours aim to create a positive environment that fosters psychological well-being for all, through the development of trusting relationships and respect for psychological integrity (Fransen et al., 2020). Such an environment prevents burnout and improves overall health (Fransen et al., 2020).

Psychological safety takes shape when athletes are made aware that: (a) that they can try new things, (b) that failures and mistakes are part of the process, (c) that underachievement is a learning opportunity, (d) that the people around them are there to help when needed, (e) that coaches too have difficulties to overcome and that they too ask for help, (f) that athletes will be included as they are, and (g) where being authentic and vulnerable is encouraged. Athletes will understand that if something goes wrong (e.g., loss of motivation, symptoms of anxiety, concussion or eating disorders, witnessing or being victimized by psychological, sexual, physical abuse or neglect, etc.), they will trust that they will be heard, welcomed, and that their place on the team will not be jeopardized if they have to step aside to take care of themselves.

Let's take responsibility for creating a climate where athletes are mentally healthy, and where it's easy for those who need it to seek help. It's a win-win situation for health and performance.

Further reading: Fransen et al. (2020); Gosai et al. (2023); Hägglund et al. (2023); Jowett et al.
(2023); Wagstaff et al. (2023); Walton et al. (2023)