PREVIEW:

An athlete may be winning trophies and medals, but sometimes we don’t know that they can be losing a silent battle that they don’t even talk about. Some athletes live up to expectations placed by other people and get pressured to push harder or else everyone will be disappointed at them. But if they don’t prioritize their own mental health, how do we expect them to keep winning? In this episode, clinical therapist Chris Blankenship talks about the mental health challenges some athletes go through, the reason why some athletes decide to get treatment, and a message to the parents of athletes. 

GUEST PROFILE:

CHRIS BLANKENSHIP, MSW, LCSW

Chris Blankenship is a Senior Clinical Therapist who works with transition-age young adults and their families at Open Sky. Chris’ clear and direct therapeutic approach helps students deepen their understanding of their presenting issues as well as the underlying processes resulting in these symptoms. Using evidence-based treatment modalities, Chris provides direct and supportive techniques that help families to understand not just their child, but their entire family system. He strives to help his young adults stabilize, to give them the tools necessary for growth, and to provide a sophisticated assessment for future treatment options to effect positive change and growth.

TOPICS COVERED: Athlete, Expectations, Mental Health, Sports, Substance, Therapy

00:00 Intro

01:55 What makes athletes prone to mental health challenges?

05:09 The stigma around mental health treatment for athletes

07:00 Increased awareness of the importance of mental health treatment

08:13 Burnout, substance use, and other challenges

10:55 Expectations and pressure

14:13 Treating different types of athletes

17:06 Transitioning athletics to life

21:55 Finding direction (navigating new stage of life)

25:30 Athletics and family dynamics

SELECT QUOTES:

“Sports are innately a win or lose game.You're striving all day every day, to be the best at something, to vanquish your opponent. That kind of stress is going to lead to a lot of extra work. It's also going to lead to occasional failure, which puts you under a lot of pressure. I think with student athletes, they’re also under pressure to be students.”

There are actually a lot of studies that suggest that athletes participating in mental health treatment is significantly more likely to happen if they're being encouraged by their family or their friends. And it's really not that likely to occur if they're being encouraged by coaches or teammates, because those are the people that they're actually beholden to. Those are the people they want to be there for.”

“It's disheartening because this is supposed to be a game. It's supposed to be fun, it's supposed to be entertainment, but what it turns into for a lot of people is really life or death. It turns into the difference between me being healthy and me losing control of my life.”

“The majority of people that I've worked with who've been either college athletes or high-level high school athletes who are then transitioning out of it have done so well here because they see this as kind of the new sport. This is the new team.”

“You might have to get back in the driver's seat a little bit and say, ‘Hey, I want you to figure things out and I want you to be happy. And it is okay if you take a different road….I know I once put pressure on you, but now this is your thing and it's been your thing for a long time.I want you to know that it is okay to find a new thing. It is okay if you want to go different.’”