What is Olympic depression and what other mental health problems do many athletes have?
Almost 11,000 athletes participated in the Olympic Games in Paris and lived and breathed them until they finished their games. After they are over, many will experience mental health problems for many and varied reasons.
« Just participating in the Games is a huge mental boost “, he says Professor Dr. Rosemary Purcell Head of the Sports and Mental Health Specialist Group at the University of Melbourne. ” But it requires great mental and physical preparation, while the expectation for them is increasing day by day “.
However, mental resurrection does not last forever. Athletes are invited to return to their daily lives soon. Besides, it is done so sharply that it looks like a bumpy descent. One moment they’re at the center of sport’s biggest celebration, the next they’re back in a routine that sees them barely making enough money to survive.
Melancholy and depression
For many of the athletes involved, the result is what is sometimes called a mental breakdown the melancholy of the olympic games n. But for others, it is more serious and leads to depression.
Olympic melancholia is a sense of loss caused by athletes feeling mentally and physically overworked and exhausted. OR post-olympic depression but a deeper problem.
- « This is a true depressive episode where they have a bad mood, loss of interest in life and sports, and even negative thoughts. “, explains Dr. Purcell.
This phenomenon is not only rare. A study published in 2021 showed that 24% of the athletes participating in the Olympic and Paralympic Games felt it strong or very strong mental anxiety after their expiration.
The reason for this many different reasons according to Dr. Purcell. They go from not achieving their goals to achieving them and now wondering what’s next.
Injuries that suddenly sideline athletes from training and competition, or worse, end their careers, can also play a role. In addition to mental traumas, for other reasons that athletes can carry in themselves.
THE US rower Keith Knifton Participating in the first Olympic Games this year, he knows well how difficult it is to suddenly withdraw from competition. In 2022, he suffered a spinal injury that kept him out of training for months. As a result, he became depressed after sitting still from his training place all day. Now he is already planning what to do after his sports career is over.
On the other hand, leaders of leaders have spoken openly about the mental health problems they face. as gold Instrumental Olympic champion Simone Biles and swimming legend Michael Phelps .
Also before the Games
The world’s best athletes are emerging problems can be short-term or long-term . Studies have shown that they include among others:
- psychosomatic exhaustion (burnout)
- Eating disorders
- Anxiety disorders
- Depression
These things problems may arise before the Games start . University of Toronto scientists Ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, 41.4% of Team Canada athletes reported having one or more of these disorders.
However, it is more common among athletes with mental health problems they often plan for retirement Between games. According to experts, this usually happens as a reaction to feeling that they are losing their identity.
The first months are more difficult
Report informs that the most difficult period for athletes is the first months after the Games sports psychologist Dr. Karen Kogan by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC). He adds that while not all athletes suffer from mental illness, a number of them do.
For these reasons, Dr. As Purcell says we need to stop confronting athletes Olympic Games like superhumans . « This is their job and their passion and they are extremely good at it ” he says. ” But that doesn’t mean they’re immune to all things big and small in life. At the end of the day, they are just people. And like all of us, they are vulnerable to all the factors that can threaten our mental health “.