By Bernard Golden, Ph.D. — 2020
Aspiring to be perfect is very different than believing we need to be perfect.
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Experts I spoke with for this story pointed to a couple of reasons professional athletes are particularly susceptible to mental health issues.
his fall, Ku Stevens became the fastest cross-country runner in Nevada. But he would be running even if he wasn’t winning.
In the documentary “The Weight of Gold,” Phelps presents a stark picture of the mental wear and tear Olympians endure.
Osaka’s mental health challenges are nothing new in her isolating sport. What is new is the acceptance she’ll face—and the paths back—if she takes a prolonged break.
In the past few weeks, my journey took an unexpected path but one that has taught me so much and helped me grow. I learned a couple of key lessons.
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Through the size of her platform, however, and her decision to choose well-being over pursuit of a Grand Slam title, Osaka offers the promise of bringing mental health awareness—both inside and outside of sports—to an entirely new level.
Setting high goals is great, but how you deal with falling short determines how long you’re willing to keep chasing them.
Michael Phelps, the most decorated athlete in Olympic history with 28 medals, has acknowledged that after the 2012 games, his longtime depression was so overwhelming he thought about killing himself.
An essential element of sport psychology is dealing with the emotions that come with competitive athletics. Whether you are an athlete, a coach, a referee, a parent, or a fan, the higher the level of competition, the higher the emotional level can become.
Two athletes I worked with had major issues around anger and competition. After three sessions each, both had good control of their tempers before during and after competitions.