By Marnie Kunz

Athlete anxiety, which has long been kept quiet in sports, is gaining more publicity as famous athletes like Olympian Simone Biles, tennis star Naomi Osaka, and NBA player Ben Simmons draw attention to mental health and anxiety in sports. As a runner and coach who has experienced anxiety and often works with athletes with anxiety, I would like to shed light on this issue and offer strategies to help. Whether you are a runner struggling with anxiety or think you may have an anxiety disorder, this post will explain athlete anxiety and go over treatment options and ways to cope.

Types of Anxiety Disorders

In order to understand athlete anxiety, it’s important to have a basic knowledge of anxiety disorders. Anxiety is defined as a feeling of unease or worry and nervousness. When someone experiences ongoing anxiety, it can be so severe that it interferes with daily life activities, making it an anxiety disorder. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), anxiety disorders are the most common mental health issue in the U.S. Over 40 million adults in the U.S. - 19.1% - have an anxiety disorder.

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Anxiety disorders can be broken down into types. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, there are 5 major types of anxiety disorders. These include:

GAD

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by excessive and persistent worry that is out of proportion to events or situations. People with GAD may overthink things, perceive events and situations as threatening when they are not, have difficulty handling uncertainty and making decisions, and often have difficulty relaxing or focusing.

OCD

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a disorder in which people have persistent, recurring unwanted thoughts or sensations that drive them to do something repetitively (compulsions). People with OCD often feel compelled to repeat the compulsive behaviors to ease the obtrusive thoughts and sensations, and this interferes with daily life. Some common forms of OCD may include fear of contamination or dirt, doubting and double checking if you did things, needing things in a very specific order or symmetrical arrangement, and unwanted disturbing thoughts that may include fears of losing control and harming yourself or others.

Panic Disorder

Panic disorder. People with panic disorder have panic attacks, which are characterized by intense, sudden fear and a sense of losing control even when there is no clear danger or trigger. Panic attacks have physical symptoms that may include dizziness, rapid breathing, sweating or chills, racing heart, trembling, chest pain, nausea, and difficulty breathing. When someone has panic disorder, they develop a fear of panic attacks and often go to great lengths to avoid situations that may trigger panic attacks.

Social Anxiety

Social anxiety disorder is marked by an intense and persistent fear of being watched and judged by others, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. People with social anxiety may avoid places where there are other people and can experience the following symptoms in social situations: blushing, sweating, rapid heart rate, trembling, and having difficulty talking to and interacting with others.

PTSD

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a form of anxiety that develops after experiencing or witnessing a terrifying, dangerous, shocking, or scary event. PTSD symptoms include experiencing intrusive memories, avoiding thinking about or talking to people or going into situations or places that remind you of the event, negative changes in thinking and mood, and changes in physical and emotional reactions.

What is Athlete Anxiety?

When it comes to sports, athletes may experience anxiety in a variety of ways, and it is not always a disorder. Some runners may get performance anxiety before a big race or important training session, while other athletes may experience panic attacks before or during their sports events. Some athletes (like me) may have an anxiety disorder that affects their sports performance and mental health. People with anxiety disorders have a higher chance of suffering from sports performance anxiety.

Sports Performance Anxiety

Sports performance anxiety is the most common form of athlete anxiety. Estimates suggest anywhere from 30 to 60 percent of athletes experience sports performance anxiety. Sports performance anxiety is marked by an intense fear of poor performance at a sporting event. Athletes may view competitions as threatening and respond with tension and stress in the body and mind.

Sports performance anxiety, also called competitive anxiety, has mental and physical symptoms.

These symptoms include:

Shaking and trembling.
Racing heart.
Hyperventilation.
Muscle tension.
Gastrointestinal upset and subsequent bathroom issues.
Overthinking, self-doubt, and low self-confidence.
Lack of focus.
Fear of failure.

Athletes’ performance often suffers as a result of this anxiety, with an impairment of motor skills and difficulty focusing at critical times of a game, race, or match. Athletes at all levels of sports experience performance anxiety. While some pre-event nerves can be motivating and are normal, when the anxiety spikes too high, then athletes suffer.

Some athletes tend to be more at risk for sports performance anxiety than others. People who already have anxiety disorders are more likely to experience athletic performance anxiety. In addition, young athletes tend to suffer more from high levels of competitive anxiety.

Youth Athletes and Anxiety

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When I train people, I tend to encounter more young people with anxiety, and this is reflected in current studies on anxiety in young people. NCAA research shows that almost 85 percent of certified athletic trainers believe anxiety disorders are currently an issue with student-athletes on their campus.

Anxiety in young people is continuing to rise, which puts more people at risk of sports performance anxiety as well. According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly 1 in 3 adolescents ages 13 to 18 will experience an anxiety disorder. These numbers have been rising steadily. According to NIH, anxiety disorders in children and teens went up 20% from 2007 to 20122.

Sports Performance Anxiety and Anxiety Disorders

Not everyone who has issues with sports performance anxiety has an anxiety disorder. However, people with anxiety disorders are more likely to experience sports performance anxiety. Other risk factors that increase a person’s likelihood of experiencing sports performance anxiety include doing an individual sport (such as running), having helicopter parents who place a lot of pressure on kids and teens to perform, having a coach who yells and places a lot of pressure on athletes and drawing a big part of your identity from being an athlete.

If you are experiencing sports performance anxiety, there are some steps you can take to ease the tension. Here are some strategies that can help reduce your anxiety:

Meditate

Just 10 minutes of meditation a day can make a big difference in reducing your anxiety. If you have a big sports event coming up, you can meditate on the morning of your event to help ease sports performance anxiety. (Here is my story on how meditation improved my running).

Talk to your coach

Coaches are here to help you and they can’t help if they don’t know what’s going on. Talk to your coach about your anxiety and your coach will be able to offer insights and adapt their training strategy to help you.

Listen to music

I used to love listening to a special playlist before running in track and cross country races. Make your own playlist with music to help soothe your nerves and give you confidence. Tuning out with music before an event is a great way to focus and prepare yourself for your performance.

Use mantras

Mantras are short phrases that help motivate you and keep you in a positive mindset. For athletes, mantras help replace negative self-talk during tough practices, races, or games. Pick a positive phrase that motivates you for your mantra and practice using it during workouts and on your game or race day. (We offer a new mantra suggestion each week in the Runstreet Wellness Wednesday newsletter.) Even if you don’t believe the mantra at first, over time it will sink in and help you to feel more positive and confident. Check out my post on how to use mantras for more help with mantras.

Practice visualization

Do some deep breathing and then close your eyes and visualize your event. Use all of your senses to immerse yourself in the sights, sounds, smells, and feelings of a positive race or game. When you visualize, you are training your mind to stay focused and positive on your event day. (Check out my tips for sports visualization for more steps to help you visualize).

Seek therapy

If you have an anxiety disorder or if your sports performance anxiety becomes so bad that you can’t perform or participate, then it’s time to seek professional help. Find a licensed therapist to get started with a treatment program. Your treatment plan will involve talk therapy and may also include anxiety medication.

As some of the world’s top athletes demonstrate, anxiety can strike anyone, and athlete anxiety is a complex issue that can affect performance, mental health, and all areas of life. If you are experiencing intense anxiety, see a licensed therapist to get treatment. If you have some anxiety related to sports performance, you can try some of these strategies to help put your body and mind at ease. And above all, be kind to yourself and know that you are not alone.

Good luck to you, and take care of yourself.🫶

Marnie Kunz is a NASM-certified trainer and USATF- and RRCA-certified running coach, dog lover, Akita mom, and writer based in Brooklyn, NY.

What is Athlete Anxiety and How to Deal