By Molly Benetti
How do I improve my mental health? How do I balance being a student-athlete in college?
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Coming out of halftime, I had lost control of my mind. It was the same basketball I have played my whole life but something felt off. I was focused on everything but the rest of the game I had to play. One mistake after the other — turning the ball over, taking bad shots, and not being in the right place defensively — led to disappointment in myself and feeling like I let my teammates down. Mentally, I felt stuck. The amount of pressure I put on myself to perform well started to pile up and affect my confidence and performance.
After we lost that game, I placed the blame on myself. Talking down on myself and constantly thinking about the mistakes I made. I noticed these effects pushing over into the next few weeks of the season. I continued to make mistakes and play below the level I knew I was capable of.
Reaching out
Eventually, I knew I needed to find ways to deal with the performance anxiety that kept holding me back. After having conversations with coaches, teammates, and important people in my life, it was clear that I needed to make a change.
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My team on a trip to New York City to compete at New York University.
Handling the pressures of being a student-athlete can seem nearly impossible. Going to class, achieving high grades, and maintaining a social life, all on top of going to team weight lifting and practices, can be mentally draining. Finding a balance of these responsibilities is something all athletes try to achieve, but it’s easier said than done.
Taking action
In the past year, I have made significant progress with my mental health and confidence in my performance.
Six small changes improve my mental health every day:
- Recognizing the signs of becoming overwhelmed instead of ignoring them. Understanding when my brain was overwhelmed with worries and stress helps me pause and refocus on the things I could control.
- Doing breathing exercises before games allows me to calm my nerves to prepare for the big moments.
- Journaling throughout the week. Finding time to write about what I did each day in a journal allows me to reflect on my growth and improvement.
- Allowing myself to have a day off without feeling guilty. This can be hard as an athlete. I remind myself that it is okay to take a day off for my body to recover.
- Limiting negative self-talk. This small shift is making a large impact. Being intentional about positive self-talk (“Mistakes are OK”) rather than negative.
- Finding a daily routine that works best for me is huge. Waking up early, eating a good meal — usually eggs and toast with coffee — and finding time to work out each day gives me structure and accomplishment that I look forward to. My routine does not always look perfect or the same every single day, which is okay. It is important to focus on putting in effort and being intentional.
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Celebrating with my teammates during a game at Nazareth. |
Staying focused
My mindset changes have helped me manage the challenges of being a student-athlete. Making a shift to your routine and habits to improve your mental health doesn't show weakness, but reflects self-awareness and dedication to improve. I have learned that dedicating myself to improving my mental health is just as important as my commitment to improving athletic performance.
While I continue to take the steps towards improving my mental health, I remind myself it is an ongoing process. Each day I am able to work on myself and grow as an individual, learning skills that I can take beyond my time as an athlete. By developing these skills, I can balance academics, relationships, future careers, and goals with confidence and focus.
Molly Benetti is a senior majoring in sports, entertainment and arts management with a minor in digital marketing. She is on the women’s basketball team and has been playing basketball since first grade.
