Professionals reflect on mental health in college athletics
Photo by Editor in Chief Anna Shand.
The mental health of college athletes has recently become an international conversation. During the Tokyo Olympics this summer, one of the most recognizable athletes, Simone Biles, withdrew temporarily, citing her mental health, bringing the conversation to prominence among athletes.
Biles’ decision resulted in an uproar in the sports community, some taking her side and others berating her. However, her decision opened the door for international discussions about athletes and mental health.
Director of the Counseling Center and licensed psychologist Dr. David Quagliana sees the discussion as a great thing.
“There is often a culture of silence around mental health struggles, especially amongst high performing people.” Quagliana said athletes like Simone Biles “are challenging oversimplified assumptions that we all have about mental health; that if a person who is succeeding at the things that are important to them, [they] will be happy.”
Quagliana thinks many Christians with anxiety believe they are doing something wrong spiritually, but he says that is not always the case.
“I think there is a struggle with achievement, worth and identity. When a significant portion of your identity and your well-being is wrapped up in your athletic identity, then all the more pressure to succeed,” Quagliana said. He believes faith in Christ allows for the development of healthy approaches in life, and can enable better mental health.
Quagliana understands being honest about mental health struggles is scary for some because of the potential of being judged, misunderstood or rejected.
“In general, non-judgmental loving, truly listening and hearing the actual needs that a person has, are some of the things Christ modeled for [us],” Quagliana said.
Quagliana believes the Counseling Center at Lee is the perfect place for students to talk about their mental health struggles. It is free, confidential and willing to engage in conversations about vulnerable things, according to Quagliana.
This is not the only resource student-athletes have; Director of Athletics Larry Carpenter is hiring a Director of Student Athlete Welfare soon.
“She’s going to be doing some one-on-one counseling or group counseling. She’s also going to be leading some life skills, which I think is important for our student-athletes, and she’s going to do some work with positive team building,” says Carpenter about his new hire. “We want her to be positive, proactive and just be there for our students.”
Carpenter says college athletes deal with a lot of stress, and COVID-19 has a lot to do with it. According to Carpenter, athletes are required to test once or twice a week, and there is always a fear of whether they get to play or not depending on their test results.
Photo by Senior Photographer Isaac Vacheresse
Additionally, athletes are under pressure to be excellent students.
“[Athletes] still have to deal with all the things. They still have to take that test that everybody’s taking or turn that paper in everybody’s doing, so they [deal with] the same things that non-athletes are going through, but they’re more visible,” Carpenter said.
Carpenter hopes the new Director of Student Athlete Welfare will be helpful to student-athletes; he hopes students know they can talk to him or any of the staff if there is an issue.
“The welfare of our student-athletes is the most important to us,” said Carpenter. “Prayer helps a lot, but there’s also God-given people in the profession that are here to help; that are trained to help.”
Dr. Richard Albright, licensed professional counselor, part-time faculty and former student-athlete, recognizes there can be a stigma with athletes wanting to speak out about their mental health.
“Culture in athletics suggests to athletes that their negative thoughts or their distress feelings are signs of weakness that ought to be hidden or defeated,” Albright said.
Albright hopes the Lee community can push back against the stigma and love one another as Christ instructed by normalizing the challenges athletes go through.
“It takes strength to ask for or accept help. In spiritual terms, we call it humility,” said Albright.
He sees family, friends and coaches as the most influential people in many athletes’ lives. Albright believes if this support system encourages athletes to seek professional help, it may change the stigma surrounding mental health in college athletics.
Albright encourages student athletes to “seek out an opportunity to strengthen your mental health. It’s an asset to be grown, not a tumor to be removed.”
Mallory Orchard, sophomore environmental science major minoring in math, plays for the Lady Flames softball team and was officially diagnosed with anxiety disorder during her senior year of high school.
“I’m always nervous before games. Sometimes I used to throw up,” Orchard said. Though she has performance anxiety, Orchard knows it is a learning process.
“It’s honestly a part of the journey, because you grow from it. You’ll get through it, and if you need help, don’t be scared, because I was super scared,” said Orchard. “Especially at Lee, there’s a lot of support. I’m from California, so I didn’t have a family here, but now I feel like I have a family because they actually care.”
The LUCC is located in the Watkins Building, and their phone number is (423) 614-8415.
