Sport Affecting Mental Health

Sports affecting Mental Health: A Social and Cultural View

More than ever sports are affecting the mental health of athletes and everyday people. Everyone who engages in what is considered to be a sport is affected mentally. The ongoing debate, being whether or not the effects are predominantly good or bad. This particular issue is now at a national level, due to the fact that it is embedded in professional, youth, and leisurely sports. Multiple perspectives and views have arisen from psychologists, psychiatrics, positively affected athletes and negatively affected athletes. Research done by Psychologist, Matthew Smith suggests that professional athletes are suffering from mental illness more than ever “And yet, today, when they are better

In a Australian Sports Commision interview with OCD affected gymnast Josh DiNucci, he discusses how his sport affected his life and mental health. During the podcast Josh goes in depth, talking about how the OCD in his sports caused him to do these “rituals”(6:00). It is evident that these rituals were the product of his OCD socially interacting with the pressures and demands of his professional sport. The NCAA published an article called “Mental Health” that explains one of the prominent reasons for mental problems in collegiate sports is due to their stress load. The average student-athlete faces pressure to play/perform well, meet class expectations and grades, and be responsible living on their own. This stage of growing up coupled with immense physical and education stresses allows leeway for a sport to affect an individual in a negative way. The movie Concussion directed by Peter Landesman illustrates the discovery of the mental diseases CTE and how the NFL tried to cover it up. Doctor Bennett Omalu, who is in fact a real doctor, studies the timeline of real-life hall of fame center Mike Webster. His research shows a neurological breakdown of brain tissue similar to that of Alzheimer's. This leads him to conclude that Mike’s rough social interactions in the game of football led to the formation of CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy) in his brain. The relevance of this discovery is crucial, because the discovery of CTE in professional athlete’s Brains is becoming more and more common. In the past two years over 90 professional athletes have died with a CTE diagnosis or suspected CTE. That is the biggest number we have yet to see, showing us proof that mental deficiencies are in fact