Six Ways Perfectionism Impacts Athletes’ Mental Health
When you strive to be unrealistically perfect as an athlete, your perfectionism can negatively impact your thinking, emotions, and life. It can feel like you are wearing a 100-lb vest all day long. You feel exhausted and overwhelmed. Researchers who study athletes identified six ways perfectionism can impact their mental state.
Cognitive and Emotional Strain
Trying to be perfect can be tough on athletes. Being too much of a perfectionist can be bad for athletes' mental health. When they are constantly striving for perfection, it can make them feel stressed all the time. When stressed for too long, it can mess with their head and cause other problems, too, like feeling anxious or depressed. (Hill et al., 2018).
It can be challenging to keep up with high standards sometimes. It might even make you tired or worn out, leading to not doing your best. This situation occurs because it takes a lot of mental effort to maintain high standards all the time. (Madigan et al., 2019).
Anxiety and Depression
People who want everything to be perfect all the time often end up feeling anxious or depressed. This situation is especially true for athletes who have perfectionistic tendencies. They might feel nervous when competing, hurting their performance and overall well-being. (Gotwals et al., 2012). Also, when perfectionism becomes too much, it can make athletes feel like they are never doing anything right, even when they are. This maladaptive perfectionism can cause you to feel depressed. (Smith et al., 2018).
Burnout and Motivation Loss
Sometimes, trying to meet high standards can make athletes feel super stressed out. This stress can lead to burnout, which means they feel exhausted mentally and physically. They might feel like they are not achieving anything and lose their motivation. (Gustafsson et al., 2017). When athletes think they can't live up to their or others' expectations, they might start doubting whether their hard work is worth it. This doubt can eventually lead to them losing interest in the sport altogether (Hill et al., 2018).
Fear of Failure and Performance Anxiety
Many athletes who strive for perfection worry about failing, which can cause them to feel anxious before or during competitions. This anxiety can sometimes lead to physical symptoms like increased heart rate, nausea, and trembling. (Nixdorf et al., 2016). When athletes get too nervous, their performance can be affected, and they might not be able to concentrate or perform as well as they usually do (Hill et al., 2018).
Self-Esteem and Self-Worth Issues
People who want things to be perfect in their athletic performance connect their self-esteem with how they perform athletically. This connection can make them feel worthless and have low self-confidence when they cannot meet their high standards. (Madigan et al., 2019). Sometimes, athletes push themselves too hard, which can lead to mental health problems. These problems can create a dangerous cycle where athletes push themselves even more, making things worse. (Smith et al., 2018).
Social Isolation
Sometimes, trying to be perfect can make you feel lonely and isolated. For example, athletes might spend time practicing and forget about their friends and family. This overtraining can make them feel even more sad and alone. (Gotwals et al., 2012). When athletes don't have anyone to rely on, handling all the stress that comes with their sport can be challenging. (Hill et al., 2018).
Imperfection Is Normal and Essential
Suppose you experience perfectionist symptoms that impact your mental health, sport, or life. There are some people and techniques that can help you. Talk about it with someone you trust and seek the help of a counselor. Remember, it's normal to be imperfect. Imperfection means you are learning and growing in life.
References
Gotwals, J. K., Stoeber, J., Dunn, J. G. H., & Stoll, O. (2012). Are perfectionistic strivings in sport adaptive? A systematic review of confirmatory, contradictory, and mixed evidence. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie Canadienne, 53(4), 263-279.
Gustafsson, H., Sagar, S. S., & Stenling, A. (2017). Fear of failure, psychological stress, and burnout among adolescent athletes competing in high level sport. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 27(12), 2091-2102.
Hill, A. P., Mallinson-Howard, S. H., & Jowett, G. E. (2018). Multidimensional perfectionism in sport: A meta-analytical review. Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology, 7(3), 235-270.
Madigan, D. J., Stoeber, J., & Passfield, L. (2019). Perfectionism and training distress in junior athletes: A longitudinal investigation. Journal of Sports Sciences, 37(5), 545-550.
Nixdorf, I., Frank, R., & Beckmann, J. (2016). Comparison of athletes' proneness to depressive symptoms in individual and team sports: Research on psychological mediators in junior elite athletes. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 893.
Smith, M. M., Sherry, S. B., Vidovic, V., Saklofske, D. H., Stoeber, J., & Benoit, A. (2018). Perfectionism and the five-factor model of personality: A meta-analytic review. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 23(4), 367-390.
