The Struggle of Being a College Student-Athlete

By Caroline Casey

Stonehill College News Blog Journalist

EASTON — After a rough and challenging college experience, Jacklyn Oleksak finally came to her breaking point as a collegiate athlete and had to leave Stonehill College after dealing with mental health issues for a while.

There were days that she didn’t want to live anymore and would harm herself, she said. There were days where she wouldn’t get out of bed so she didn’t have to interact with friends. These were dark times for her and she couldn’t find a way to deal with it.

Recently in college athletics, student-athletes are expected to be both mentally and physically strong, but there is no surprise that the pressures of being both can get in the way. This has caused many student-athletes to suffer from mental health issues because they can’t find a way to handle athletics and academics.

“During my time as a college-athlete I developed depression and anxiety stemming from issues outside of athletics, but ultimately ended up impacting my time as a college athlete eventually causing me to leave the school and the sport I love,” said Oleksak.

Oleksak isn’t the only college athlete to struggle with mental health. The National Collegiate Athletic Association found that between 10-15% of collegiate athletes experience psychological issues severe enough to warrant counseling.

The NCAA also said that in females eating disorders were found in much higher rates for athletes than non-athletes with 8% of student-athletes suffering from bulimia and 1.5% suffering from anorexia.

According to the NCAA website, college-athletes are under a significant amount of pressure. They have to balance school work, sports, social life, and all other factors that affect their lives.

There are warning signs that will help determine if a friend is experiencing depression or anxiety. These include sleeping more or less, rapid weight gain or loss, hopelessness, anger, change in academic performance, and appetite changes, just to name a few.

The NCAA also found that it is hard for college athletes to admit they are struggling with their mental health because they are usually looked up to by everyone else and don’t want to be portrayed as weak. College athletes don’t want to seek help because they think they can handle it on their own, but that makes it worse because the pressure of being perfect just builds up inside of them when it needs to come out.

Oleksak thinks that other people should realize that mental health is really an issue in student-athletes and she can provide evidence to those who don’t see the issue.

“Student-athletes tend to be portrayed as almost ‘perfect,’ when in fact they are not. It always seems like college athletes are stereotypically ‘good looking,’ smart, talented in their sports and very social. What people need to realize is that this is not true but really is just an added pressure that student-athletes feel which can often deter them from seeking help,” said Oleksak.

According to Erin Haugen, who holds a doctorate in sports psychology and works at Assessment and Therapy Associates of Grand Forks North Dakota, research suggests that 75% of mental health issues begin prior to age 24, so individuals in college, especially student-athletes, are vulnerable to mental health difficulties. If there are untreated mental health difficulties, there will likely be difficulty functioning in life, sport, school, and relationships.

Haugen states that the life of a college student-athlete is extremely busy and research suggests that when in season, Division I student-athletes spend over 70 hours in their sport and academics.

“That's nearly two full-time jobs and a lot to manage. So, the college student-athlete experience is full of stressors, including ones that the general college population doesn't experience,” said Haugen.

Haugen helps college student-athletes to improve their athletic performance, manage their mental health issues more effectively, and the intersection of both of these. She teaches family and sport medicine residents, sports medicine physical therapy fellows, and athletic training students regarding sport psychology and athlete mental health. Most of her work is individual work with athletes.

In a recent study James Beauchemin, “College Student-Athlete Wellness: An Integrative Outreach Model,” published in 2014 in the College Student Journal, researchers found that college student-athletes are afraid to admit to others when they are going through a difficult time in life. Athletes are seen as celebrities on large campuses and think if they struggle mentally they will be seen as weak.

The study also found that there have been a lot of deaths relating to mental health in college student-athletes. Many of these young athletes let the pressure of academics and athletics get the best of them. This then leads to unwanted outcomes that could have been solved with a little bit of help.

The main part of the study was the outreach model which consisted of relaxation, imagery, routines, self-talk, and concentration. These five mental skills were explained to the student-athletes to help them recognize ways of coping when they are struggling.

In the next part of the study, there were questionnaires for the student-athletes to fill out after learning about the five cardinal mental skills. Lastly, there were interviews done about their real-life experiences and if they thought the five cardinal mental skills can help them out in the future.

Researchers found that many students did not want to seek help but that they found relief in self-help coping skills such as relaxation, imagery, routines, self-talk, and concentration. These five skills have been proven to work and allow student-athletes to cope with their problems.

According to Haugen, athletes are human and humans experience mental health difficulties. Athletes are not immune to this by any stretch of the imagination. Sports have a lot of pressure and expectation for performance, so this can certainly complicate the circumstance for student-athletes.

Oleksak knows that there isn’t one perfect solution to ending mental health issues in college athletes.

“I believe that by making resources more available to athletes that it can help with the problem. I also believe that by training coaches, athletic departments, and team captains on this issue they can help guide student-athletes who are dealing with mental health issues,” said Oleksak.

“I was nervous to seek help at first because I didn’t want to admit to myself that I was struggling mentally, but I also didn’t want others to know I was struggling mentally too,” said Oleksak.

Oleksak knows how hard it was to be a college student-athlete. Before she came to college she didn’t think being a college athlete would take a huge toll on her mind and body. 

“For example, lifting with my team was something that usually left me sore, but I was able to recover at a normal pace. While dealing with depression and anxiety my body felt sluggish and it took me longer to recover. Not only did my mental health issues take a toll on my mind, but they also took a toll on my body as well,” said Oleksak.

People can suffer in different ways when it comes to mental health but in the end, there are ways for people to be treated.

“There's a wide range of what depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions can look like. Athletes can also be diagnosed with a mental health condition, be in treatment, and perform at high levels. Mental health difficulties are absolutely treatable, and it's important to work with someone trained in mental health and sports because they will get better,” said Haugen.

Mental health issues aren’t something people should be ashamed of, said Oleksak. There are many student-athletes that suffer daily.

“I also believe that talking about mental issues the same as we do physical injuries that student-athletes will be more comfortable seeking help,” said Oleksak.