Athletes’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health

1. Background: This study provides insight of why so many athletes turn to drug abuse during their careers. A specific type of drug that is discussed are PED’s (performance enhancement drugs), and how athletes do not just use them to gain an unfair advantage, but to help cope with the amount of pressure athletes can face.

How I used it: I used this article to discuss PED’s. Instead of showing that athletes just use PED’s to cheat, I used it to show that they can also use them as a coping mechanism. While they can be used to gain an upper hand on the enemy team, they can also be used to help fight the immense amount of pressure an athlete can face. I also used this article to show where the pressure can come from like coaches, teammates, fans and even family members.

SUBSTANCE ABUSE CONCERNS FOR ATHLETES AFTER INJURY

Background: This article talks about proscribed drugs that athletes can be given and how athletes can become addicted to them. If an athlete does become addicted it normally happens after an injury. This article also briefly talks about how young athletes can also become addicted to prescribed drugs, along with professionals. This can help show that drug abuse can happen in athletes of a wide age range. It gives examples of athletes who dealt with addiction to prescribed drugs, also talks about how addiction can happen during, and after a athletes career.

How I used it: I used this article to talk about another from of drugs that athletes can use to cope in prescribed drugs. I mainly wanted to show that athletes won’t just turn to drugs that will make them better physically, but drugs that they believe will help them feel better mentally and emotionally. And bringing in prescribed drugs, drugs that doctors can give out, helped me show how easy it can be for an athlete to get their hands on.

The Mental Health of Elite Athletes: A Narrative Systematic Review

Background: This article reviews the mental health and well-being of athletes. Some aspects that can cause disorders are things like injuries and retirement. This is interesting because injuries can be avoidable, to an extent, but every single athlete will retire at some point in their careers.

How I used it: I used this article to give more reasons on why athletes will turn to drugs. This time not to help the pressure they face, but to help cope with injuries and retirement. A main point I made using this article was to show that, while injuries may be avoidable for some athletes, retirement is not. So if an athlete doesn’t start using drugs because they didn’t get injured, they could very well start using when they retire. This also helped me show that there can be many big points in an athletes career where they might feel the need to turn to drugs.

https://achieveconcierge.com/blog/the-link-between-athletes-and-depression/

Background: This article discusses depression among student athletes. The article uses statistics to show the rates of depression in student athletes compared to students who do not play a sport. It is found that since student athletes face higher amounts of pressure, it can also cause higher amounts of stress and are more likely to become depressed. This article also goes into how having performance issues can cause depression.

How I used it: I used this article to discuss mental health among student athletes. I mainly used this article to show that not just professional athletes can face mental health but also student athletes. I also used this to show that student and pro athletes both face pressure which can cause stress, anxiety and depression. I also was able to bring a new aspect that can cause mental health issues in having performance issues.

Why is Alcoholism so Common Among Athletes?

Background: This article goes over the many aspects of alcohol addiction in athletes. It gives statistics regarding alcohol abuse and athletes, why athletes turn to alcohol and how it can affect the way they play. It also gets into alcohol abuse among student athletes. For the student athletes, it gives solutions for parents and teachers to use to help their young athletes.

How I used it: I used this article to bring another substance that athletes can abuse in alcohol. Alcohol is a really substance to obtain so I made sure to bring light to it. I also discussed how student athletes can suffer from excessive alcohol drinking because of college stereotypes, and the need that athletes can feel to fit in.

Mental Health in Athletes: Moving beyond the Stigma

Background- This article goes into a various amount of things. Some of these things are, why athletes suffer, what factors go into the suffering and why there is a stigma around the mental health of athletes. 

How I used it: I used this article to discuss the stigma around athletes and why they are afraid to talk about their mental health. I discussed on why they have a fear of judgment and all the people they are afraid to disappoint like their family, coaches, fans and teammates.

Why Olympic Athletes Shouldn’t Try to Calm Down Before a Big Moment

Background- This article talks about the various strategies that can be used to make sure that stress and anxiety don’t get the best of us. It also argues that it is better to not stay calm before big moments.

How I used it: I used this article to show that athletes should stay calm, rather than stay anxious during big moments, as this article suggests that people should do. I wanted to show that anxiety and stress are very complicated things to deal with so there is no real right way that will work for everybody, as this article tries to suggest.

Drug Fact Sheet

Background- This article is about anabolic steroids. It goes into the specific types, both medical terms and street names, how they can get used, like injections and gels. It also goes into how they can be abused and the many effects it can have on both the mind and the body. 

How I used it: I used this article to categorize a certain type of steroids in anabolic steroids. These are the ones that athletes use. I used this article to talk about the various types of anabolics, and how many ways that they can be used. And discussing these things helped show that since there are many types to use and many ways to use them, it makes them easier to obtain and use.

7 Athletes That Have Struggled With Mental Health

Background: This is article is about seven athletes who have struggled with mental health. This article shows that even the top tier superstar athletes, like Serena Williams and Michael Phelps, can suffer from mental health issues.

Common Prescription Medications Used in Athletes

Background: This article is about the different types of prescribed drugs that athletes can use. This article discusses that athletes use different medications at a high rate than the general population, which just shows how easy it can be for an athlete to get these types of drugs.