The most vulnerable people in sports are those that get in their own head. Those people think about what they did wrong and bring themselves down, causing them to have trouble in games or practices. They can have mixed emotions anywhere, and anytime. Those people are your friends, teammates, and coaches.
Players struggle both on and off the field. Players often go home and overthink after a bad game, causing them to get upset. A way to get rid of the negative thoughts is talking with school counselors, coaches, and teammates, who will always be there to talk to you and help you push forward with your health. Violet Lilis, a freshman basketball and volleyball player, shared “My coaches really do help me and my teammates always help too. If I’m upset, they help me talk it through and help me feel better.”
If players have mixed emotions and are not focused, they can also talk to their coach. Coaches are there to help and want players to be focused for the game, and typically want the players in their best way possible. Teammates can also help overcome a bad play. Mr. Lance Windish, a coach for Woodgrove football, said, “I think as a high school coach you kind of have to wear a lot of different hats. One of the hats is dealing with that side of the coaching aspect, making sure your players are good, and mentally physically good too.”
Some players use breathing techniques and take deep breaths. Taking a breath before a game can calm the players down. Breathing relaxes your body muscles and heart if you’re nervous or stressed. Noah Goff, a junior hockey player, explained, “Music and breathing helps you out. Like I said, breathing can help calm you down and think about the next day, not what happened previously.”
Players often struggle after they make a bad play or had a bad game, as they overthink and get in their head. However, fellow players, teammates, and coaches are there to help the players to get out of their head. Counselors, teachers, and your parents can help the players too. Sometimes the players don’t like talking about it, so they do breathing techniques and listen to music to help them.