Mind Competitor
The Power 5 conferences unanimously passed legislation Thursday, at the NCAA convention, requiring their schools to make mental health services and resources available for student-athletes.
This marks a huge turning point in college athletics; a long-awaited recognition of the mental health need in even our greatest college competitors.
Without clear guidelines stated, one can only hope that this legislation is further clarified into concrete ‘action steps’ to build in available, athlete-specific services and support for athletes on campuses in the very near future.
Better yet, every college and university campus, across all conferences and divisions, should follow suit and require on-staff mental health providers within athletic departments.
Truth is, athletes’ exist in microcosms of society; they face constant social and performance pressure, high-stakes decision making, physical and mental challenges, and personal anxieties daily that can wear down one’s resilience to life stressors.
Athletes’ live in environments that continually demand them to jeopardize their physical health: “put it all on the line,” and also their mental health: “don’t give up, play on,” without the right kind of support.
Wellness in sport is very much a privilege, not a right.
Mental health is not something you have or you don’t have. It’s something that’s earned, that’s worked towards. Just as we athletes work at our skills in sport, the same dedication, focus and respect must be paid to mental health.