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Life After Sports

The life of an athlete or sports person is filled with striving, momentum, excitement, career and being in the spot light. But what happens when you have to retire, whether through age, fitness, exhaustion, or injury.  The change can be dramatic, with many athletes struggling to adapt to regular life afterwards. 

Ceasing the demands of rigorous training, athletic performance and peak fitness, can leave anyone who has left their sporting career reeling from the experience of sudden loss.  The transition into a life that no longer requires the level of dedication, determination, and commitment, along with the loss of a community spotlight, can evoke strong feelings of depression, emptiness and an acute loss of identity. 

Athletes and Sports persons are often portrayed by the media as, being able to take on any challenge and to be mentally tough, leaving it difficult to speak about how life has dramatically change and the impacts on psychological and cognitive wellbeing. 

You have a right to get support like anyone else. 

Carol Duffy, Psychotherapist