Overcoming Performance Anxiety for Athletes [Video]

Sports psychiatrist Dr. Rolando Gonzalez said anxiety is the most common reason high school aged athletes come in to see him. “They might say hey Doc anytime I go up to the plate my stomach tightens up I feel like I’m going to puke I’m sick to my stomach. And then they start thinking about what if he throws a slider what if he throws a curveball my mom isn’t the stands the scout is there today that can really affect your ability to play.”

Anxiety can cause physical sensations. Dr. Gonzalez helps teach his patients to recognize their emotions. “There are certain areas in the brain that are responsible for if your emotions, but also responsible for body movement, so if you’re thinking or an over analyzing a play or the next pitch, you’re probably not focusing on your body which is the most important.”

Data suggests that individual athletes tend to be more perfectionistic, the issue comes when they don’t meet that expectation. “You will ultimately fail or make a mistake. Everybody does. When they do that it’s crucial it’s just painful to hear what they say like beat themselves up and it becomes kind of dangerous,” said Dr. Gonzalez.

The stakes can be high with college scholarships on the line. A conversation with a sports psychiatrist can help change that negative self-talk into something more positive. “They’re honestly looking for somewhat to say hey that’s OK to feel that way that’s a lot of pressure, versus come on man just toughen up you can do better than that,” said Dr. Gonzalez. “I think a lot of people are in their ear saying do more, do more, but sometimes it’s OK to take a step back and say I’m having a hard time right now, I’m not feeling good about this.”

Better performance starts with a positive mindset. You can learn more by searching for pediatric behavioral health on leehealth.org.

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Lee Health in Fort Myers, FL is the largest network of health care facilities in Southwest Florida and is highly respected for its expertise, innovation and quality of care. For more than 100 years, we’ve been providing our community with personalized preventative health services and primary care to highly specialized care services and robotic assisted surgeries.

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