How can a Sports Therapist play a part in athlete psychology?

In a podcast with Ann Bach from A Winning Edge (AWE), we spoke about the role that Sports Therapists could play when supporting athletes, as we are an integral part of the multidisciplinary team that surrounds them.

Ann progressed from school PE teacher and keen volleyball player to sports psychologist and eventually moved into sports management through AWE Hub. Now she assists athletes to generate sponsorship and endorsements as well as constructing sports science teams to ensure that their welfare is taken care of.

In the conversation Ann acknowledged the role that Sports Therapists may be able to play with retired athletes too, as the transition from high performance to retirement can be difficult both physically and mentally. In Sports Therapy, we often talk about the biopsychosocial nature of injury, and it was interesting when speaking to Ann that she mentioned that athletes may have an element of fear which could manifest physically, with increased muscle tension due to anxieties. Sometimes that we can forget that the athletes/performers that we work with are people and may have additional contributing factors to how they present within our clinical practices, and we should be employing our softer skills to support them.

While talking, we also identified that coming back from an event such as the Olympic games or even a positive training camp can be difficult for both athletes and staff because of the positive atmosphere that can be created. We sometimes forget how involved we are in the processes of athlete success and failure.

In the comments below, let me know if you have experienced a training camp and how you felt afterwards?

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