Sports as a Path to Resilience: The Sports Institute’s “Mentally Strong” Program Helps Students Build Coping Skills

The Sports Institute at UW Medicine has launched a new program called “Mentally Strong” to teach young athletes crucial coping and stress management.

In a conversation with King5, Dr. Sara Chrisman, a pediatrician and professor of adolescent medicine at the University of Washington School of Medicine, talks about the importance of taking care of mental health.

The idea for the initiative came to Dr. Chrisman while watching teenage Olympic ice skaters struggle emotionally with failure. 

“We could use sports as a way of teaching these kinds of coping skills because when you play sports, there are lots of amazing things that happen, but they're also stressful. You're going to fail, you're going to miss that goal, you're going to drop the ball, and you're going to do it publicly in front of all of these people," adds Dr. Chrisman.

Studies point out that 40% of teens struggle with depression and anxiety, and this also worsened during the pandemic, which Dr. Chrisman said provided an unexpected, natural experiment.

Through a program called "Mentally Strong," the Sports Institute designed an educational tool that trains coaches to teach athletes how to manage stress and reset after challenging moments.

Rather than using clinical terms like meditation or mindfulness, the program employs sports language, such as controlling breathing, to help focus and navigate through difficult moments.

The program has already been piloted at Ballard, Ingraham, and Garfield high schools in Seattle, with plans to expand to more schools through a mobile app.

Read the full interview about Mentally Strong on King5. 

More about Mentally Strong can be found at the Sports Institute.