Depression in athletes
You can ask for help without waiting for your career to stop. This guide helps you prepare for an assessment and think about support inside and outside sport.
02Performance anxiety or an anxiety disorder?
The important question is not whether you feel nervous. It is what the experience is doing to your life, and what kind of help would fit.
03Trauma, abuse and psychological safety in sport
Support should begin with safety, choice and a clear explanation of what happens next. You should not have to tell your full story to start asking for help.
04Eating disorders and REDs in athletes
Food, training and body concerns deserve a health-led assessment. This guide is not a weight-management plan or a tool for deciding whether someone is medically stable.
05ADHD support for athletes
Separate an established diagnosis, new concentration difficulties and the practical demands of sport. Each deserves an appropriate assessment rather than assumptions.
Start with what has changed
You do not need to arrive with a diagnosis. You might want to discuss your mood, relationships, sleep, concentration or the effort it takes to get through an ordinary day. Write down what concerns you, when it began and what you would like help with.
Use these guides to organize questions, not to decide your diagnosis. A drop in performance is neither a requirement for seeking help nor a reliable way to identify a mental-health condition.
Choose the right conversation
For an assessment, ask about the clinician’s professional registration and experience with your concern. For performance-skills work, ask what that practitioner can and cannot assess or treat. One person may hold both sets of qualifications; a job title alone does not explain their scope.
Your next step
Consider a conversation with your existing doctor, an appropriately qualified mental-health professional, or a player-association support service. Student-athletes can also ask their institution about its mental-health referral pathway.[1]
Sources & further reading
Sources and further reading for this guide. Confirm current program details directly with the provider.