This is probably one of the hardest blog posts and topics for me to discuss, but I feel it is important and needed at this time. That being said, I want to be clear that this post is NOT about any particular person, case, or situation. At the time of writing this, the volleyball community lost a young professional. The questions, posting, and comments I personally received or saw is what prompted this writing. I do not want to seem like I have any insight or knowledge to Eric Zaun’s personal situation. I do know that the few conversations I had with him, and watching him on (and off) the court was a privilege that was taken away from so many and too soon. So please, do not think this post is an analysis or “report” on Eric or any person for that matter. This is a general look at Athletes and depression. There are a few studies and research that I feel deserve some mention before we begin:
– Armstrong S, Oomen-Early J. Social connectedness, self-esteem, and depression symptomatology among collegiate athletes versus nonathletes. J. Am. Coll. Health. 2009; 57: 521–6.
Armstrong and Oomen-Early found that college athletes reported lower levels of depression than those reported by nonathletes. This study used a sample consisting of 227 participants, 104 of which were male and female athletes from various sports. Overall it was found that 33.5% of the sample reported clinically significant levels of depression. The percentage of athletes endorsing clinically significant levels of depression was reported to be “significantly lower” than that of nonathletes. This study also found that athletic status was not a statistically significant predictor of depression when compared with other variables investigated in the study including gender, self-esteem levels, social connectedness, and rested sleep
– Baum AL. Suicide in athletes: a review and commentary. Clin. Sports Med. 2005; 24: 853–69.
In certain subpopulations of athletes, there may be a higher rate of depression than nonathletes. Clearly depression in athletes exists. Suicide in athletes, a tragic outcome that can be associated with depression, exists.
With all the available studies available (and like most mental health issues, there are a lot), a common theme is:
- Athletes, as a whole, have a lower depression and suicide rate than the non-athletic population.
- Certain subsets of athletes are at higher risk than other athletes.
- Male athletes have a higher suicide rate than their female counterparts (note: male non-athletes also have a higher suicide rate than female non-athletes)
- Female athletes have higher report levels of depression than their male and female non-athlete counterparts.
- Athletes with concussions have a higher rate of depression/suicide
- Athletes often do not have the mental health resources needed to support them.
- Injury is a MAJOR contributor to athlete depression and suicide rates. The influence of the injury increases with the severity.
So what does all this have to do with my blog post? Those in the coaching profession, regardless of level, need to consider the situations that may put one of their players at risk. I want to explore a few of those situations:
Injured Players
It is easy for a coach to see the impact of an injury on the physical performance of a player, but what about the mental aspect? Do you, as a coach, do enough to help your athletes in these situations? How can we involve the injuries athlete to keep them engaged and feeling like part of the team? It needs to be more than a simple “hey, you can help run this drill” or “write these things down at practice”. We need to create buy-in from the injured player that they are a contributing part of the team. Personally, I have a protocol that I use for injured players, depending on the severity of their injury. I like to involve those players more in planning, meetings, and time-outs. It is a chance, as a coach, to get a different perspective on your team and even opponents. Don’t lose a good opportunity.
Freshmen/New Players
The adjustment to a new program, school, and environment can be a key contributor to depression. Even if a player has grown up around your program, maybe as a younger school level or sibling, things are different once you are officially a member of the community. The “stress to impress” can be a dangerous thing. A suggestion to combat this scenario is to express and show how the new player not only fits into the program but how they are contributing. Most athletes want to more than just “be part of the team”, they want to contribute. Acknowledging their contributions can help lower their levels of anxiety and thwart depression.
Graduating/Retiring Players
The end of a career can be very stressful (and depressing). The level of stress/depression can also depend on what the future for the athlete holds. For example, the end of a high school career may not be as depressing to a player because they are going to play in college. Whereas the end of a college career may mean the end of all competitive aspects of the sport for the athlete. So it is important to understand that two graduating high school seniors may have very different reactions to the end of their season, due to post-high school plans. Again, this would be a good time to maybe show the player how much they have contributed to the program and how they can still be a part of it in the future (like coming back as alumni to speak).
I know a lot of you will be saying “that is pretty much the entire population of my team”. You may be correct. That doesn’t mean we, as coaches, can ignore it. No one is asking us to be a clinical psychologist, but we need to learn the warning signs and situations that may cause anxiety and depression. This can obviously lead to an unfortunate situation with hospitalization or even death. That is my main purpose of this piece. I want all of us in position of leadership to know the warning signs and situations that can contribute to depression. It is not our job (unless you are also a psychologist) to treat the player. It is certainly our job to bring attention to it have a plan of action to help our athletes.
I will close with this final thought. I think it is great that people are trying to bring awareness to suicide prevention and depression. While the phrase “ask me if I am ok” is great, I think we can do more than that. It can be more than a conversation. It can be some action. We can look at our controllable’s and make sure we are doing the best job we can to make our environment mentally safe as well as physically safe.
There is obviously a lot more we can (and will) discuss over time on this topic, but I wanted to get a post up to start the discussion in the gyms, at the dinner tables, and around the campfires of the world.
As always…So until next time…Be a verb and do something. #DONTSUCK
Some Resources to Explore
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2. Appaneal RN, Rockhill-Levine BR, Perna FM, Roh JL. Measuring postinjury depression among male and female competitive athletes. J. Sport Exerc. Psychol. 2009; 31: 60–76.
3. Armstrong S, Oomen-Early J. Social connectedness, self-esteem, and depression symptomatology among collegiate athletes versus nonathletes. J. Am. Coll. Health. 2009; 57: 521–6
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