ATHLETE RETIREMENT COUNSELING SERVICES
Hanging up your cleats is just the beginning
Neumo offers athlete retirement counseling services to those who are considering or are in the act of retiring from sports.
THE STATISTICS
Several different sources* have found that current athletes have been found to experience the following:
58% have a diagnosable mental health condition
23 to 34% have depression and/or anxiety (Women were twice as likely to report depression symptoms than men)
19% with some form of alcohol misuse
Studies go on to suggest that these numbers increase during periods of increased stress, such as a major life experience like athlete retirement. Furthermore, athletes tend to practice avoidance as a primary coping skill, increasing the effects of such problems.
* US Olympic and Paralympic Commitee (2020), Gouttebarge et al. (2019), and Wolanin et al. (2015)
Challenges to athlete retirement
Up until the time of retirement, athletes are required to dedicate a major portion of physical, cognitive, and emotional resources to reach peak performance in their discipline. However, retirement from sports poses unique challenges to the athlete that they may not be well prepared for. From the physical challenge of changing nutrition and exercise, the mental challenge of letting go of the old identity and finding a new one, to the challenges of navigating relationships, retiring athletes are left to navigate a completely new lifestyle. Given the focus and dedication necessary to achieve success in sports, they may not have had any experience or training in how to navigate these new challenges. This can often lead to depression, anxiety, grief, isolation, substance abuse, disorder eating, lack of self esteem, or a general sense of lacking a purpose.
Freedom starts where sports end
If this situation describes you, stop for a moment and consider the possibility of a future of your own making. No longer at the mercy of constantly practicing discipline in what you eat, how late you stay up, or keeping to a schedule created by someone else, you now have the freedom to spend time engaging in that hobby you have always wanted to try. Consider the freedom to be a husband, wife, son, or daughter first rather than an athlete first. Imagine having the freedom to control your schedule rather than have a schedule control you. Visualize the peace of no longer experiencing the pressures of performing, having only yourself to keep happy. Many of the characteristics required for high performance in sport that already exist within you can be used to achieve such a lifestyle. Let Neumo help show you how with athlete retirement counseling.
How counseling with Neumo can help athletes successfully navigate retirement
Neumo is here to help you sort it all out. Starting with an assessment of all life areas, we will work with you to identify barriers to moving forward with your life. Next, with the help of a counselor, you will create goals and develop a program of education, training, and support as steps to overcome hurdles to reach these goals. While working closely with the support in your life, or helping to create a new support system if necessary, you will find a comfortable environment in which to process what retirement means to you. By creating a program with a solid foundation to work from, we will help you to find purpose and build confidence for whatever challenges may lie ahead. We will help you to see that retirement is just the beginning of your story, not the end.
Common Interventions and topics covered in athlete retirement counseling
- Depression and Grief screening and treatment (see our depression counseling and grief counseling services)
- Anxiety screening and treatment (see our anxiety counseling services)
- Substance use screening and treatment
- Providing skills for decision making about retirement
- Processing the narrative of your athletic career
- Exploring your old identity as an athlete as you learn skills and practice a new identity of your choosing (see our blog on sport and therapy)
- Identify strengths and skills developed throughout your experience as an athlete
- Assessment of pain and psychological pain management tools
- Development of a new social network given the potential loss of teammates, coaches, trainers, etc., including review of skills for healthy communication, boundary setting, assertiveness training, and relationship skills
- Career assessment and career counseling
- Review of body image expectations as a result of no longer keeping up with a demanding workout and diet schedule
- Review of expectations about new habits as a retiring athlete, and education and skills to develop new habits, i.e., sleep (see our sleep counseling services or our blog dedicated to athlete sleep), diet, exercise, etc.
- Time management skills now that you are on your own schedule
- Skills, support, and practice to manage emotional experiences
- Exploration of anger and relevant anger management skills
- Mindfulness and relaxation training (This blog may help you get started)
Experience meets passion to take on the challenges of retirement
Having grown up with the intention of becoming a professional athlete, my youth, adolescence, and early adulthood were dominated by all things sport. This meant that how I thought, what I did, and how I felt were all related to my sport. Little did I realize that when that final whistle blew at my last collegiate game almost 20 years ago, this would all change in an instant.
Now as a clinician, I have the opportunity to help retiring athletes with the decision and transition experience. With my education in behavioral health, experience in working with many different populations in transition, and still having a passion to be involved with all that is good in sports, I am honored to be able to work with athletes through such a major transition, and help them to realize the potential of their future.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT ATHLETE RETIREMENT COUNSELING
What level of athlete does Neumo work with?
Neumo can help any individual who identifies as an athlete and is struggling with a transition. Accordingly, it is also important to consider that the higher the level of achievement in sport, the harder the transition is to a new lifestyle. Generally, those at the highest levels of their sports would benefit the most from retirement counseling services.
I am not ready to retire yet, but I am interested in starting to plan early. Can you help me?
Absolutely. The earlier that an athlete can start to plan for the future, the easier the transition will be. Given that studies have shown that involuntary retirement, i.e. forced retirement, from sports is more difficult than voluntary retirement, athletes need to be prepared for the unexpected. Building skills and knowledge now will ensure that you are prepared for the retirement process, however and whenever it comes.
How much does athlete retirement counseling cost?
To get the answer to this and other frequently asked questions, check out or main FAQ page.