Sport Psychology & Athletic Counseling Course for Clinicians

Part 1: Getting Started with Sport Psychology & Athletic Counseling

Overcoming the Stigma of Mental Health in Sports

• Getting the Athlete in the door
• Identifying the core of mental health problems impacting sport
• Assessing for burnout
• Understanding your client’s identity as an athlete
• The role of psychoeducation for athletes
• How to be direct and directive

A DBT Framework for Athletic Counseling & Sport Psychology

• Getting started using DBT with athletes
• Incorporate a Process, Adversity and Genuine Confidence focused lens to DBT
• Core techniques, assumptions and how the 4 pillars support athletes
• Strategies to use in session one from youth to pro clients
• Personal Effectiveness strategies to improve teamwork, coaching relationships and more
• Distress tolerance skills for athletic adversity and stamina in the face of discomfort
• Using emotion regulation to help athletes feel without repressing
• Mindfulness skills to cope with anxiety and more

Part 2: Identifying Core Mental Health Problems, Diagnoses & Individual Athletic Struggles

Overcoming Common Obstacles to Success in Athletes

• Working with performance anxiety
• How to help athletes with perfectionism
• Helping clients with indecisiveness
• Breaking the cycle of overthinking Improving confidence and self-worth
• Managing and returning to sport after injury
• Reducing self-hate

The Reality of Eating Disorders in Athletes

• Risk factors, prevention of anorexia and bulimia
• Evaluating “excessive exercise”
• The role of menstruating, stomach pain and other physical consequences
• Overvaluing beliefs on body composition and performance
• “Fat talk”, skipping meals, and dieting

Treating Clinical Depression & Anxiety in Athletes

• Knowing the signs and risk factors
• Addressing sleep problems
• Early sport specialization and focused training since childhood
• Substance abuse, misuse, missing school and training
• Suicide, self-harm and risk assessment
• Causes of depression in athletes: Grief, ACES, Chronic Frustration, Failure
• Links to post-concussion syndrome
• Helping athletes control worry, catastrophizing, fears and more
• Exercises: Create a “pre-game” ritual, Grounding exercises

Helping Athletes Manage Injuries, Substance Abuse, and Self-Harm

• How early injury impacts retirement
• Addressing the emotional impact of injury and cognitive distortions
• The link between concussion and substance use
• Leading causes of substance abuse and prevention
• Keys to injury prevention
• Support athletes in retirement
• Exercise as “self-punishment” and intentional behavioral pain
• Helping to mitigate the true risk of suicide
• Questions that pinpoint reasoning for self-harm

Overcoming Burnout, Failure & Commitment Concerns

• Recognizing the signs and discerning the main problem
• Creating other interests/relationships
• Setting Boundaries and taking breaks
• Developing new coping skills
• Time management to address burnout
• Help clients prioritize self-care
• Exercise: Stress management and relaxation techniques

The Athlete Identity & “Life After Sport”

• Having hard conversations
• Playing within abilities: talent, knowing your role & more
• Understanding your client’s identity as an athlete
• The impact of self-worth being attached to outcomes
• Working with limited interests outside of sport
• Identifying a core identity beyond “the athlete”
• Judgement and outside criticism skill development
• Exercise: Creating a values list

Part 3: Working with Student Athletes, Parents & Teams

Undoing The Impact of Parental Expectations

• Conditional love, parental pressure, absent parents & more
• When parents are “living through their child”
• Helping kids manage unrealistic expectations
• Sports Obsessive parents and poor relationships with coaches/teammates
• Managing “over coaching”

Supporting Student Athletes & Teams

• Transition into college and preparing for demand of collegiate sports
• Supporting clients through the recruiting process and rejection
• Lack of coaching and non-relational coaches
• Favoritism and inconsistency with teams
• Unrealistic expectations and coaching ego Grooming, emotional and physical abuse
• Coaches lack of empathy
• Lies and Mistrust from coaches