Anxiety in Teens Who Play Sports

Sports participation by teens can have many positive effects, according to MassGeneral Hospital for Children. These include higher self-esteem and confidence, lower incidence of depression, better physical fitness and reduced risk for using alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs. Teens who play sports also learn about teamwork and hone their ability to work well with others. Sometimes these good things are offset by increased anxiety, which can counterbalance the benefits.

  1. Definition

    • The American Academy of Family Physicians defines anxiety as a feeling that warns of impending danger. It prepares a person to deal with a potentially threatening situation. Anxiety can also be triggered by situations that are not actually dangerous but that make a person nervous or excited. It gets the body ready to expend energy to handle whatever it will be facing.

    Distress

    • Neumours, a children's health organization, explains that distress is a negative type of sports-related anxiety. It happens when a teen has too many demands. This might result from sports pressure or it might occur when the teen is trying to juggle sports with several other activities and responsibilities. This type of anxiety can negatively affect sports performance because it interferes with concentration and sleep patterns and often saps a person's energy.

    Eustress

    • Eustress is the good type of anxiety, according to Nemours. It occurs when a teen is pumped up about sports participation in a positive way. He might be excited and nervous about his performance, and the anxiety stems from this anticipation. it can help him perform better by sparking more energy and adrenaline.

    Solution

    • Nemours recommends several coping methods for sports-related anxiety. Teens can use relaxation techniques such as deep, controlled breathing or taking a short mental break to visualize a peaceful place if the anxiety happens during a sports activity. Progressive muscle relaxation, which involves tensing and releasing each muscle from head to toe, can be used before participation.

      Being prepared to deal with mistakes and losses during sports practice and competition can neutralize anxiety. Nemours advises using poor performance as a learning experience and concentrating on improvement instead of wasting energy on anxiety and disappointment.

    Warning

    • Too much sports-related anxiety can be unhealthy for teenagers, especially if it starts interfering with other areas of life such as school and social relationships. Nemours warns that chronic stress can even lead to health problems such as headaches or stomach distress. It might be necessary to cut back on sports activities or balance the teen's overall schedule more carefully if this happens.