Tackling the Transition from Sport
Key Practices for a Successful Transition
The transition that athletes endure after the sport is done with them is intense. Notice that I state that the sport is done with the athlete. There is research that estimates that between 14%-32% of athletes retire early because of injury. Some other reasons are factors like mental health, other health issues, and even lack of playing time. No matter the reason, the result is often the same; you (the athlete) who is “forced’ to retire has issues with the transition. These issues can profoundly manifest in mental, behavioral and spiritual ways.
Mental Health After Sport
As an athlete, taking care of your mental health can be the difference between a successful and not so successful career. Then as the transition from the sport to “real life’ begins there can be some mental challenges that should be addressed. Challenges such as:
Loss of identity: oftentimes your self-worth is tied to your roles and accomplishments in the spor.t; Therefore, retiring can lead to an identity crisis.
Depressing & Anxiety: Diagnosis like depression and anxiety can happen for anyone. Trauma, stress, grief and other causes can bring on these mental health issues. In the case of a retiring athlete, the shift from structure, competition and fandom to an unstructured, non-competitive and unrecognized life can bring about feelings such as emptiness, confusion, and sadness.
Cognitive Adjustments: The adjustments that take place in areas that you may never have thought about are real. From lifestyle, to family, to finances; these things can be stressful and overwhelming which effect your mental health.
The good news is there are some things that you can add to your everyday life that can help with these issues.
✅ Seeking therapy or counseling
✅ Developing new passions and interests
✅ Setting new personal and professional goals
Behavioral Health After Sport
· With retirement, there comes a lot of uncertainty. This is true for anybody but there are some very specific things that you as an athlete may have to adjust to after the sport. The shift from the life of an athlete with training, workouts, practice, and games to the place of not being required to participate in those things is difficult. I am sure that if you are an athlete who is no longer playing, you have felt that twinge of not knowing what or how to adjust to life after sport. Some of those areas that are most difficult to transition from are things like time management, discovering proper coping mechanisms, and socialization.
As an athlete you have been given a structured schedule for so long that when you no longer have that structure, it can be difficult to find a new routine. This can cause you to adopt poor time management skills.
One of the most difficult adjustments that I hear athletes share is missing the “rush” feeling that comes with competing and the crowds of fans. This can leave a void that it feels hard to fill. Unfortunately, sometimes this leads to unhealthy coping mechanisms like substance use.
In many instances, athletes reduce their world to just their teammates, coaches, trainers and other individuals involved in their sports life. When you are no longer in that space on a regular basis you often become isolated.
There are ways to address the causation of these behaviors to avoid negative behavioral responses.
✅ Creating a new structured routine
✅ Finding a community through coaching, mentoring, or networking
✅ Engaging in hobbies that promote personal growth
Spiritual Health After Sport
One of the biggest adjustments that a former athlete must make is finding a new focus or purpose. Sport is the main objective in many athletes’ lives when they are playing. You can agree that there becomes a singular focus on all things sport. But when the sport is done with you, what do you do when you have been hyper-focused. There are some specific struggles that you often face when the sport is done.
Finding purpose outside of athletics can be difficult when you have not explored other interests or passions.
Not having a spiritual routine that includes opportunities to be in alignment with God can cause athletes to struggle with life decisions like what should you do next.
The spiritual health of an athlete’s next steps are deeply tied to their ability to adequately make that transition utilizing spiritual practices.
✅ Exploring spiritual or philosophical beliefs
✅ Practicing gratitude and mindfulness
✅ Engaging in activities that align with personal values
Incorporating some or all of these strategies into your transition can make it much smoother. The life of an athlete is unique and the life after should be equally special. By embracing new goals, social connections, self-care practices, and a regular spiritual connection will improve your chances of transitioning smoothly. Finding professionals like counselors, coaches and ministers may be able to assist you in making that transition as well.
