You Can Be Performing Well and Still Be Struggling
I remember in 8th grade, volleyball practice ended, but we had to hit 100 serves over the net before we could leave the gym. My shoulder and wrist were already shot from practice. I asked Coach if I could do 50. She made it 150.
By the end of that season I'd torn a ligament in my wrist. Surgery. Done.
Here's the thing, I wouldn't have called that a trauma back then. I would've called it "just what athletes do." Push through, don't complain, get back up. The vicious cycle.
That mindset doesn't stay on the field or in the boardroom. It follows people into their whole lives.
High-functioning anxiety looks like success from the outside
Athletes and high-achieving professionals share something that doesn't get talked about enough: you can be hitting every mark, every deadline, every competition, and still be running on empty underneath it. Performance and wellbeing aren't the same thing. One can look great while the other is falling apart.
When a therapist already understands the athlete experience, the work can start immediately. That matters clinically, not just logistically.
This shows up as:
Fear of mistakes that has nothing to do with actual skill level
Perfectionism that gets mistaken for ambition
Waiting until you're exhausted to ask for help, because you think you should be able to handle it yourself
Feeling like your identity and your performance are the same thing
That last one matters more than people realize. When your sense of self gets wrapped up in your stats, your title, or your last win, a setback isn't just a setback. It's a threat to who you are.
Why this needs better skills, not just more willpower
You can't grit your way out of a nervous system stuck in fight, flight, or flee. I use tools like Heart Rate Variability biofeedback and Brainspotting because talk alone often can't reach where performance pressure actually lives: the deep brain, not just the thinking brain.
Brainspotting may be explored as part of therapy for people carrying emotionally charged experiences tied to performance such as an injury, a mistake replayed on loop, a setback that still shows up in the body. It's not a replacement for established approaches like CBT or trauma-focused work. It's another tool for people whose nervous system needs more than conversation to shift out of that "on" state.
Biofeedback works differently. It gives you real, measurable data on when your body is actually calm versus when you just look calm on the outside. That gap is bigger than most people expect.
Better systems make a real difference too
Some university athletic programs are starting to build mental wellbeing into the structure of athletic development instead of treating it as separate from training. That's the shift worth paying attention to.
Mental health support shouldn't be the thing you reach for only after you've hit a wall.
That's why access matters just as much as approach, which is why I offer telehealth throughout Washington State, so a packed schedule or a long drive isn't the reason someone waits too long to get support.
You don't have to wait for a crisis
Persistent anxiety, exhaustion, sleep that won't settle, dread before performance — these are worth taking seriously before they turn into something bigger. Not because something is wrong with you, but because your nervous system is asking for support, and there are real tools that help it get there.
If you're in Washington State and any of this is landing close to home, reach out or book a free consult following the button below. Let's make this easy.