OPINION:
With another Super Bowl in the books and the offseason underway, many people might assume that the pressures of being a professional athlete wane. But this isn’t the reality.
An estimated 50 million Americans – roughly 1 in every 5 adults – struggle with anxiety, depression, or other mental health issues, and pro football players are just as vulnerable to mental health challenges as everyone else. As a licensed clinical psychologist and the Director of Wellness and Clinical Services for the Washington Commanders, I’ve seen firsthand how public and personal expectations can impact a player’s mental health - even during the off-season.
As is common in sports, we lionize those who fight through pain and injury to win at any cost. Unfortunately, this tendency can lead athletes to confront mental hardships in the same manner they do physical hardships – pushing through and not demonstrating any weakness. For my peers and me across the League, this mindset is particularly worrisome in the offseason, when sharply programmed routines relax, and the public’s focus is elsewhere.
Recognizing the urgent need to ensure our athletes are supported physically and emotionally year-round, the NFL launched its Total Wellness initiative in 2012. Over the last decade, the program has appropriately brought a renewed focus on mental health across the League through educational programming, mental health ambassadors, clinical resources, and the NFL Life Line crisis support initiative. These efforts were strengthened in 2019 when the NFL further increased mental health resources for players and club staff by requiring every team to have a licensed clinician and a pain management specialist on staff for at least eight hours each week.
Today, I serve as one of six full-time behavioral health team clinicians in the NFL. And despite decades of experience treating a range of mental health issues, providing mental health support to professional athletes is different – in large part because of a culture that fuels a tremendous amount of stigma around seeking help.
For this reason, fostering a culture of openness about mental wellness is central to my work at the Washington Commanders. Throughout the season, I attend practices to ensure I am easily accessible to players while always having my office door open to players in the facility throughout the day. That engagement continues in the offseason as we encourage athletes to focus on mindfulness and nurturing their interests outside of football, with the support of organizational leaders like Head Coach Ron Rivera, Team President Jason Wright, and Senior Director of Player Development Martin Blacken. I’m honored to serve alongside these leaders to provide essential mental health support, and I am heartened to see our League-wide efforts are making a difference for athletes around the country.
Last summer, Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin made headlines when he spoke with reporters about how counseling has helped him cope with the pressures of the job. McLaurin said, “It’s tough because I feel like people assume you have it all figured out… [but] people forget: We’re still human at the end of the day …[t]he only difference is we take losses, and we take our struggles … in the public eye.” Other athletes like New York Jets defensive tackle Solomon Thomas, former Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Marcus Smith II, and Detroit Lions wide receiver D.J. Chark have also been vocal about their positive experiences with counseling.
Still, there is an opportunity to build upon and strengthen our efforts. Building on the League’s initiatives, the Commanders are working to create a pipeline of full-time clinicians who are trained to work with athletes and their families throughout the year. This initiative will help expand our reach and create a more positive culture around mental health, leading to healthier and stronger teams.
NFL players have earned recognition and accolades for their physical excellence on the field, but they also deserve our respect as regular people. Looking ahead to the offseason and the 2023 season, we must continue to elevate conversations around mental wellness for athletes of all ages, levels, and backgrounds. We must maintain momentum and continue to make progress toward further expanding mental health care access, breaking down outdated stigmas around counseling and support, and encouraging more inclusive team cultures.
- Dr. Barbara Roberts is the Director of Wellness and Clinical Services for the Washington Commanders, and a member of the Adjunct Faculty for Georgetown University Medical Center’s Department of Psychiatry. She previously served in the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy as a Senior Policy Analyst and Coordinator for Health Policy.
