Anxiety in Sports
Do you ever feel like during a game you “choke up” or start to forget how to play the sport you’ve put so much time and commitment into? Not even know why you feel that way and become frustrated with yourself because you can’t figure out why? Some might say that people feel that way because “ they have extremely high expectations of their success.” or that “they have an audience.” How you feel about the situation you’re in or even how you’re mentally talking to yourself can contribute to how your handling the “play” or “situation” and can effect how you play and even when it has nothing to do with the play you’re in.
Especially in children, sports anxiety is very real. Lots of children have trouble even knowing they have anxiety about games because they can’t recognize what their feeling so they will often act on edge or irritable. When they can’t realize why they are feeling this way, they could start saying “they might wanna quit a formerly beloved sport or activity” or even “might pretend to be sick or injured to avoid participating.” Parents often don’t even know how to deal with what their children are going through inside their head so they instantly go to thinking that their children are not giving their all and not trying hard enough. Parents can be the root of the problem because without knowing it, they try to live through their children. The University of Washington researcher Frank Smoll calls this the “reverse dependency trap” in which parents over-identify with their child’s experience and define their own self-worth based on the success of their children. It almost comes full circle, parents want to make their children the best they can be, putting them in lesson’s and in front of coaches to get their name out there to succeed. Children become overwhelmed and start to angst the thought of going out to play again. Small things can add up immensely and cause so much anxiety and problems for not only professional athletes but children included.
