Student Athlete Mental Health Awareness Week

Sept. 30 through Oct.7 is nationally recognized as National Student Athlete Mental Health Week. 

By acknowledging the challenges student athletes face in juggling academics and athletics, we aim to foster mental toughness while also promoting a culture where seeking support is seen as a strength.

Tanner Peterson, USD’s coordinator of student athlete mental health, said that he wants the athletes to know that even though they are athletes, they do not fight their inner battles alone.

“I would just like to encourage people to remember that athletes are people, too,” Peterson said. “They struggle too, and although they may be extremely talented, they too fight the imperfections of what it means to be human. We all fight this battle.” 

Peterson said some reasons he found for why being a student athlete is difficult is that many student athletes struggle with mental health under all their responsibilities.

“Oftentimes, this increase in practice time, more intense academics, a greater performance expectation and navigating the lifestyle of being a student-athlete can often be challenging to juggle. These can compile and lead to some challenges,” Peterson said.

Peterson said that some signs of a student struggling with mental health are not visible to anyone but the individual who is struggling.

“Whether a student athlete or traditional student, some things I encourage students to keep in mind is how they talk to themselves. Oftentimes, how we talk to ourselves can lead to different concerns,” Peterson said. “If we talk down to ourselves with statements like, “I’m an idiot” or “I’m an embarrassment,” for example. I encourage clients to talk to themselves how they would talk to a friend.”

Peterson encourages students to keep track of their own day-to-day behaviors and to recognize changes in their behavior.

“It’s important to monitor things such as sleeping, eating and socializing habits. These are three key areas to our wellness and keeping up with them will be key to your self-care process,” Peterson said.

If any athletes are struggling with mental health, they can visit the mental health resources tab on the usd.edu/SCC, or contact [email protected].