How to Deal with Stress as a Student-Athlete

How to Deal with Stress as a Student-Athlete 

As I am in my fifth year of college sports, the stress and demands of basketball, academics, and life in general doesn’t get any easier, but the ways in which I approach the stress has strengthened. Student-athletes are said to be at a higher risk of anxiety and depression, most likely because the stressors look different than other students. We stress over things like performing, getting homework done while traveling, eating enough meals, and trying to get enough sleep to perform in school and our sport. That isn’t even including all of the personal and social responsibilities of maintaining relationships with family and friends.  

With all of these stressors, it is very easy to create pressures in our minds that are not really there. What I mean by that is, we could have so much going on and so much to do, while being expected to achieve all of it at our peak performance, that we can create more stress by adding unnecessary pressure to ourselves. 

In this blog post, I really want to dive into different ways to deal with stress and how to cope with all of the responsibilities and not only be able to be successful in what needs to be done, but to be relaxed, focused, and at peace in our lives mentally. 

Stress can be overwhelming, but stress can be a good thing, as long as it does not turn into anxiety! Stress is a signal to our bodies and mind that something needs to be done and motivates us to get that thing done. We just want to make sure we keep it at a healthy level, where the stress isn’t overcoming us and paralyzing our thoughts and actions. 

These are just a few ways that I have dealt with stress as a student-athlete: 

1)    Find a hobby you enjoy. 

My sophomore year of college I started really getting into reading. I almost became obsessed with it, because I really enjoyed learning and felt like I was getting better at something besides my sport. I think it is so easy to get wrapped up completely in our sport to the point where we find our identities in it. How well I performed or how I failed in practice and games would affect my days, my mood, and how I viewed life honestly. I started doing other things that I enjoyed to help get my mind off of basketball and to remind myself that there are other things in life other than basketball. I would encourage all student-athletes to find a hobby that they find enjoyment in. Whether it is cooking, reading, drawing, playing an instrument, or anything that comes to mind, attempt to find something that you find amusement in! I try to find different things that I enjoy doing, but writing and reading has always been a consistent hobby for me personally throughout my college career. 

2)    Find friends outside of your team.

In my experiences, having friends outside of my teammates has helped me detach my personal life from basketball. Sometimes you just need to get away from your teammates and anything to do with your sport, so you can renew your mind. I like to refer to my friends outside of my basketball world as my “outlets.” These are the people I confide in to help me get my mind off of the stressors of basketball and classes. It is not healthy to bottle up your thoughts and feelings, which is why finding a close friend or two that you can trust is vital in helping athletes deal with stress. In most of the cases when my stress turned into anxiety, it was because I made the situation bigger than what it really was, and my friends were the ones to bring me back to reality and give me a different perspective. Talking it out is one of the best ways to deal with stress. 

3)    Control what you can control.

According to my sports psychologist, there are three things that you can control: your attitude, your commitment, and your effort. All athletes have to accept that mistakes will happen, but the way we react to them ultimately determines our experiences. When we go into a practice or a run with a mindset that we can find enjoyment and purpose in it, our attitude towards that practice or run is completely different and brings a more productive outcome. It is when we dread the workout ahead that makes the workout “harder,” because our attitude towards it is not in the right place. When we switch our perspective to view workouts as something we can enjoy and get better in, it alleviates a lot of the stress that an athlete may have going into a workout. This is not always easy to attain, but I have found ways to do this by not speaking negatively or complaining, encouraging my teammates and myself, and looking at practice as an opportunity to be around people I care about and get better at something that I love to do. 

If you are struggling with stress as a student-athlete, I would strongly encourage putting these three things to action and being active in creating new habits to handle stress in a healthier way. It is hard to make time with the busyness of an athlete’s schedule, but mental health has to be a priority to be at your best in every area of your life. Make time for yourself and do things that you enjoy!