THERAPY FOR ATHLETES IN OTTAWA, ON
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“I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.”
― Michael Jordan
When you are an athlete and you struggle with an injury, all the help is available. But when mental health is at the forefront, it’s a different story.
Despite the fact that you’ve been working your whole life to compete at your level, it’s not what you expected. Instead of feeling happy and confident, you’re finding yourself more anxious, depressed and self-critical than you’ve ever been. You may be feeling overwhelmed with all the pressure you feel to perform. Along with practices, training, rehabilitation and competitions, there are so many commitments you have to attend. It feels like everyone is depending on you.
Preparing mentally for a game takes up all of your mental space and you can’t seem to relax and take it easy like everyone else. You may find yourself comparing yourself to others, who seem to have it so much easier than you do. You may find yourself being very critical of yourself, of your performance, of your body size or ability. You may be training beyond your training plan and reducing your rest time. You may also be tempted to try just about anything that will help you improve your performance. Somedays, you don’t recognize yourself.
Maybe you’ve had a bad competition or two, or a bad injury, and are struggling to bounce back. You may start to feel nauseous, dizzy or have an upset stomach before competitions. You may find yourself clinging on to pre-game rituals and become very upset if things do not go according to plan. You find yourself lashing out at your loved ones for what feels like no reason, and feel very ashamed about it.
Or you may be a parent who is concerned about your teen or young adult who is an athlete and seems to be struggling. It seems like their mental health has deteriorated and you are concerned about their well-being. Despite your desire to help them, you don’t know what to do.
Maybe you are transitioning out of the sport, and having a hard time about it. Maybe it even feels like your heart is breaking. You invested so much of your life to the sport, and now it feels like your life lost all its purpose. Making decisions about the future, your body changing as a result of not training, and finding a new purpose in life can feel overwhelming. Others may say “it’s just a game”, but to you it feels like your whole life was ripped away from you.
How can someone benefit from therapy for athletes?
Being an athlete is all about pushing the boundaries of what you can do, and this can include your mind as well. It can be challenging, but it’s also a chance to learn new skills that help you grow. Athletes may seek therapy for a variety of reasons.
Here are a few:
– Feeling a lot of stress from your sport and other personal, and/or social obligations
– Having low self-esteem or self-confidence
– Feeling overwhelmed, anxious or depressed about your performance
– Experiencing challenges post-injury or bad performance
– Feeling angry or sad about transitioning out of the sport
Every experience is different. As your psychologists and psychotherapists, we’re here to make you feel at ease exploring and processing your life experience so you can move forward, grow and make empowered decisions. Our goal is to help you cope with the pressures of being an athlete so you can be happy and successful.
HOW CAN THERAPY FOR ATHLETES IN OTTAWA HELP?
Our therapists will help motivate you and feel good about yourself
At Uprise Psychology & Wellness, we understand that mental health struggles can impact your life in major ways and might make it seem like your dreams are out of reach. We want to help you work through your difficulties so that you can feel empowered and in control of your own life, regardless of what you have been through. Our psychologists and therapists have worked with many people who have struggled with a wide range of difficulties, including anxiety, depression, burnout, eating disorders and trauma. Before therapy, many people focused on what had gone wrong or what might go wrong. After therapy, they were able to enjoy the present moment more without worrying about the future knowing that they were able to work challenges that may come their way.
Our team is here to help!
Ryan Watt
Melisa Arias-Valenzuela
Amélie Vézina
Noëmie Nociti-Dubois
READY TO MAKE THAT FIRST STEP?
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