When an Athletic Identity Hurts Kids in Sports

When athletes' identities are wrapped up in sports, they can experience pressure and high expectations.

What's more, they might become disappointed if they go to college and are no longer the stars they were on their high school teams, said Zedralyn Butler, author of The Mental State of Sports and a former Division 1 basketball player. They can also be disappointed or depressed if they are injured or can no longer play sports.

One suggestion from Butler: Athletes should try to rediscover the parts of their personalities they left behind when they became immersed in sports.

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