Citation

Lawrence NM, Gunter K. HSS J 2023; 19(3): 373-380.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2023, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1177/15563316221141884

PMID

37435120

PMCID

PMC10331263

Abstract

High school students in the United States are being educated during an unprecedented time of social unrest, public health concerns, and gun violence. High school student athletes can be further challenged by sports-related stressors that may lead to anxiety, burnout, depression, disordered eating, sleep difficulty, performance-based identity concerns, and substance use. High school American football players, in particular, are at higher risk of concussion, musculoskeletal injury, and may feel excess pressure to compete from coaches, parents, and peers. One way to address these stressors among high school student athletes is to increase athletic department staff members' awareness of the symptoms of mental health disorders. Increased awareness helps staff members recognize when an athlete is in crisis, as well as respond with an established mental health emergency action plan as needed. In this review article, the authors provide a blueprint by which high school personnel can more readily identify and respond to mental health emergencies among student athletes.

Language: en

Keywords

mental health; emergency; crisis; football; high school; sports; student athlete