For athletes to be mentally healthy

Perhaps you instinctively read the title more than once. That's normal. We are used to hearing about mental health as a concept, an idea; we often talk about "THE" mental health. Do you remember the last time you said or heard someone say, "I am mentally healthy"? Then, when was the last time you said or heard someone say, "I am physically healthy"? The latter is much more common, isn't it?

By Joey Toupin

However, when we look at its definition, mental health represents a " state of well-being that allows everyone to realize their potential, cope with the normal challenges of life, work successfully and productively, and be able to contribute to the community " (WHO, 2024). So, it is a mental state of well-being
in which a person can achieve their goals, connect with others, and function productively in their environment. It's clear thatan athlete with good mental health is an athlete whose performance is much more likely to be optimized.

What can sometimes be challenging isfinding a way to contribute to the development of mentally healthy athletes while also helping to normalize the mental health issues 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. Behaviors that ensure psychological safety aim to create a positive environment that promotes the psychological well-being of all by developing relationships of trust and respect for their 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) they can try new things, (b) failures and mistakes are part of the process, (c) poor performances are learning opportunities, (d) that the people around them are there to help them if needed, (e) that coaches also have challenges to overcome and that they too ask for help, (f) that athletes will be included as they are, and (g) that it is encouraged to be authentic and vulnerable. Athletes will understand that if something is wrong (e.g., loss of motivation, symptoms of anxiety, concussions, or eating disorders, witnesses or victims of psychological, sexual, physical, or neglectful abuse, etc.), they will feel confident that they will be heard and welcomed, and that their place on the team will not be jeopardized if they need to step away to take care of themselves.

Let's take responsibility for creating an environment where athletes are mentally healthy and where it's easy for those who need it to seek help. Everyone wins, both in terms of health and performance.

For further reading, see: Fransen et al. (2020); Gosai et al. (2023); Hägglund et al. (2023); Jowett et al.
(2023); Wagstaff et al. (2023); Walton et al. (2023)