Prioritize Your Mental Health

Reflections from our TWN Summit on Athlete Identity & Mental Health

There are a lot of factors that play into figuring out what’s next in life after the game. One of the most crucial pieces is the mental side. Many times mental health takes a back seat because of the stigma around being vulnerable. But asking for help and being vulnerable is a sign of strength- not weakness. So how do we start to prioritize our mental health?  

Our Athlete Identity and Mental Health Summit took this topic on in three incredible conversations with fantastic speakers. Here are some of the lessons we learned from them. 

EVERYONE STRUGGLES WITH THEIR MENTAL HEALTH AT SOME POINT. 

A lot of us are afraid to talk about our struggles with mental health. But the more we start to normalize mental health and the idea that everyone is going through something, the better off we’ll be. It’s not a weakness to share your struggles, and you can help others by sharing the challenges you are going through. You aren’t alone.  

“Remember that you are more than an athlete, remember that mental health struggles are not a weakness, it’s strong to reach out for help and know that opening up can allow others to open up as well. You never know what other people are going through.”
- Natalie Allport, Founder, 93 Agency, Former Canadian National Team Snowboarder

“We have to be able to be vulnerable. We have to be okay with not being okay. Don’t fear the unknown. It’s okay not to be okay.” 
- April Sykes, Founder, Sykes Serenity, Mental Health Coach, Overseas Professional Basketball Player

“Athletes are human first, and athletes second, maybe even third.”
- Christine Pinalto, Executive Director, Sidelined USA

“I was in individual therapy and my therapist recommended group therapy. At first I was skeptical but I ended up trying it anyway. And the first day of the group, I sat in the middle and each person told me their story. I realized, dang, I’m not the only one going through problems.”
- Isa Abdul-Quddus, Entrepreneur, Investor & Wellness Advocate, Former NFL Player

PRIORITIZING YOUR MENTAL HEALTH REQUIRES EFFORT. 

Just as it takes effort and hard work to prioritize your physical health, you have to put in the time and focus to prioritize your mental health. It won’t happen overnight, so start to create mentally healthy practices to support you as you navigate your life and what’s next after the game. 

“Learn how to breathe. As people, we shallow breathe and there’s so much peace with deep breathing and paying attention to that because that’s your center. Start journaling and jotting down your thoughts just to put words and get it out of your mind because when it’s in your head it could become anything, but when it’s on paper it’s more concrete. And ask for help. Every single one of us is equipped with the same emotions and opening up to someone else can help work out those emotions yourself.”
- Isa Abdul-Quddus, Entrepreneur, Investor & Wellness Advocate, Former NFL Player

“I took a lot of time for self-awareness. Rather than someone else tell me what’s best for myself, I figured it out for myself  and it was trial and error. Self-care is inherently self work.”
- Natalie Allport, Founder, 93 Agency, Former Canadian National Team Snowboarder

“Focus on what you do and not anyone else.”
- Dr. Nicole Clifton, The Sports Culture Coach, Sports and Social Emotional Learning Expert

“Your struggle does not define you. Enjoy life. Life is too short. We are built to make mistakes and learn from them. Embrace growth and educate yourself. Just because you got a diploma or a degree you should never stop educating yourself. And embrace your true self. Don’t allow how other people see you or treat you define yourself.”

- April Sykes, Founder, Sykes Serenity, Mental Health Coach, Overseas Professional Basketball Player

“At times for me, I was tunnel vision focusing on making the team or the next level. As your mental performance is increased it allows you to improve holistically.”
- Jonathan Jones, 2x TEDx Speaker, Best-Selling Author, Founder, Podcasting for Players, Former NCAA Basketball Player

DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP AND TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE GOING THROUGH. 

Don’t be afraid to share what you are going through. Storytelling is such an important part of normalizing mental health struggles. As we learned, it’s ok not to be ok. Talking about what we are going through can reduce the burden on our shoulders, and show others that we are not alone. 

“Storytelling is important because it starts to form a community. Forming a community is what is really needed. That’s what’s needed: a community of like minded individuals who take care of each other because you take care of yourself. I want to encourage people to share their stories because there's freedom at the other end of that.” 
- Isa Abdul-Quddus, Entrepreneur, Investor & Wellness Advocate, Former NFL Player

“When you open up to someone else, there may be something else they’re going through that they may feel more comfortable about opening up about.” 
- Natalie Allport, Founder, 93 Agency, Former Canadian National Team Snowboarder

“I think that as athletes most of us have mentors or people we can confide in. For me, it was speaking to someone who understood me and saw me as April Sykes and not just the basketball player.”
- April Sykes, Founder, Sykes Serenity, Mental Health Coach, Overseas Professional Basketball Player

“Remove the stigmatism of an athlete seeking help. There's no shame, no guilt - there's nothing wrong with getting help. Sometimes it is just dropping that pride. And as athletes we are so conditioned to performance that it’s hard to let people in.”
- Jesse Bradley, International Speaker, Former Pro Athlete

“Give yourself permission to be human. A lot of athletes don’t do that, they just put their head down and keep grinding and suppress their personal needs. And that is not healthy to do.”
- Christine Pinalto, Executive Director, Sidelined USA

IT’S NOT JUST ON ATHLETES TO SPEAK UP. 

While it’s important for athletes to start to ask for help and prioritize their mental health, it’s not just on athletes. Those supporting and working with athletes should have mental health training or hire someone with that experience. We need to support and educate those young people interested in athletics all the way to those in the pros about the importance of mental health and check in on them. Don’t wait for the problems to arise. 

“Asking for help is one of the hardest things. I felt like I needed to carry the weight and didn't want to burden my coaches or my teammates. Checking in with the athlete can make all the difference. If you’re a parent or a coach if you can proactively check in with an athlete it is so important.”
- Natalie Allport, Founder, 93 Agency, Former Canadian National Team Snowboarder

“If you're around an athlete who you have a sense is not doing well don’t be silent or ignore that hunch. Just go there and ask them how they are doing. It’s said you have to ask three times: (1) How are you doing? (2)  How are you really doing? (3) How do you feel about that? and when you keep asking someone will open up.”
- Jesse Bradley, International Speaker, Former Pro Athlete

“It all starts with the top and goes down. I think we really need to start holding coaches, trainers, and athlete departments accountable because if they have that education, they’ll be better equipped to help.” 
- Marcus Alston, Founder & CEO, Alston for Athletes, Former NCAA Football Player

“Some teams have sports psychologists where you can talk to them about performance but there still is a stigma around it about going to therapy. Once you are on your way out you really need someone to talk to.” 
- Isa Abdul-Quddus, Entrepreneur, Investor & Wellness Advocate, Former NFL Player

“(1) Starting the conversation, acknowledging what’s lost. (2) Build strategies together. (3) prioritizing mental health within your organization. (4) knowing the signs of something more significant the athlete may not be able to articulate.” 
- Christine Pinalto, Executive Director, Sidelined USA

“Check on your strong friend. If you see something is up with your friend make sure to check on them. And if you are the strong friend that is checking on everyone all the time then ask the strong question. Find out what resources are available to you or find someone who you and others can talk to.”
- Jonathan Jones, 2x TEDx Speaker, Best-Selling Author, Founder, Podcasting for Players, Former NCAA Basketball Player

We are all getting more comfortable with acknowledging our mental health struggles. But when it comes to athletes, we still have a lot of stigma and barriers to break down. So let’s all commit to do our part to talk about these issues, share our stories and help all of us understand that we are not alone, and it’s ok to ask for help. 

Thank you to our incredible speakers who joined us to speak about the importance of mental health for athletes, and thanks to all of those who joined us live. If you missed it, check out last week’s blog highlighting takeaways from Day 1 of our TWN Summit on Athlete Identity & Mental Health, focused all about the importance of reshaping Athlete Identity.