Importance of addressing and coping with mental health pressures ahead of Tokyo Olympics 

Mental health is of utmost importance for any sportsperson. With a raging pandemic amplifying the need to stay in the right frame of mind, sportspersons are going the extra mile to create a positive vibe around them.

While top sportspersons seem to be in a happy space, it has come to the fore that mental health has kept them under a lot of pressure in their otherwise illustrious career. Stalwarts like Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Dutee Chand, Sania Mirza, Serena Williams and Michael Phelps have opened up on how the demands of professional sport can play spoilsport on their mental wellbeing. It has also resulted in sportspersons like Ritika Phogat, a budding wrestler, dying by suicide. Sportspersons, although leading a glamorous world outside, haven’t been in the best of times concerning their mental health.

Watch: Michael Phelps opens up about his struggles with mental health

More recently, Naomi Osaka made headlines when she opted out of media obligations in the ongoing French Open, citing mental health issues by saying, “….the process involved kicking a person when they are down.’

Read: Naomi Osaka opts out of media interactions in French Open

Mental health expert weighs in

The need for mental health experts has seen a manifold increase in recent times, especially during the pandemic. With less than two months remaining until the start of the Tokyo Olympics 2021, sportspeople have been focusing more on their mental health in their rigorous training regimen.

Mental conditioning coach Keerthana Swaminathan said, earlier mental health was a taboo in India. “Ever since the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been an increase in the kind of resources and information accessible to everyone in general about the importance of mental health. There have been various emotions like anxiety, fear and frustration that people have been experiencing over the last year. On one side it's taken a toll on mental health for few people, on the other hand, this pandemic has helped few people restore and find that balance from burnout,” she says.

Keerthana opines it is best for all Tokyo Olympics-bound athletes to concentrate on things that are in their control for better mental health. “The world is filled with too many uncertainties now. Athletes could be going through some form of fear and anxiety - it could be about the current situation or maybe even about their performance. Currently, our athletes need to be focusing on their processes. This will shift their focus from everything else to their performance at the Olympics. Most of us end up looking at the uncontrollable factors and miss out on things that we can have control over. So, it is important to focus on just the things they can control,” the noted sports psychology consultant explains.

Social media and its repercussions on mental health

With the advent of social media, news, views, accolades and criticism are never far away. Most athletes have a strong social media presence and are often subjected to praise or brickbats. While social media does give a sportsperson a chance to get closer with their fans, the flip side of it can have a telling effect on one’s mental health, too.

Keerthana says switching off from social media can help a sportsperson immensely in managing their mental health. “The most important thing to be done is to take time to reflect and introspect. It is crucial to be in tune with their emotions and how they feel. This awareness will enable them to focus a lot more on training and switch off from everything around them. Another thing that works wonders is to switch off from social media and surround themselves with people who motivate them. I've seen switching off from social media plays a vital role in reducing anxiety,” she adds.

Indian women’s hockey team defender Reena Khokhar, who is currently training at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) center in Bengaluru, says the women’s hockey team has been benefiting a lot through the mindfulness classes taken by the Indian team’s analytical coach Janneke Schopman.

She says: "We attend these sessions twice a week and do all types of breathing exercises. I feel this has been helping us a lot to stay calm and be in the present moment during our training sessions. It creates a positive energy around the team, and it's a very good exercise introduced by both Janneke and our Chief Coach Sjoerd Marijne.”

Link between #mentalhealth & #physicalhealth is often misunderstood & thought as separate entities, but the two go hand in hand. Physical activity is proven to not only keep you physically healthy, but mentally healthy as well. #anxiety#psychology #wellness #psychology #fitmind pic.twitter.com/r8ts51t31v

— Thinktrainperform (@thinktrainper) May 20, 2021

Mental health is closely connected to physical health and any noticeable changes in a pattern need to be observed and spoken about immediately, opines Keerthana. “Mental health is very closely related to physical health. The first sign that a person notices is probably excessive fatigue even with the usual amounts (or even a little more) of training. One could also face a loss of motivation or disinterest in training. Sleep and appetite could also show signs - like lack of sleep for some or it could even be sleeping a lot and yet having fatigue,” she says.

With things getting a little better, a silver lining is that athletes and coaches have started to talk about mental health more openly and transparently, however, there is still a considerable distance to be covered.