Mind Game: An Inside Look at the Mental Health Playbook of Elite Athletes

by Julie Kliegman

Overview

A deep look into how even the best athletes struggle with and persevere through mental illness.

In growing numbers, athletes are speaking up about their struggles with mental illness—including high-profile stars such as Michael Phelps, Kevin Love, Simone Biles, and Naomi 'saka. More disclosures are surely on the way, as athletes recognize that their openness can help others and inspire those around them.

In Mind Game: An Inside Look at the Mental Health Playbook of Elite Athletes, Julie Kliegman offers insight into how elite athletes navigate mental performance and mental illness—and what non-athletes can learn from them. She explores the recent mental health movement in sports, the history and practice of sport psychology, the stereotypes and stigmas that lead athletes to keep their troubles to themselves, and the ways in which injury and retirement can throw wrenches in their mental states. Kliegman also examines the impacts of depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, substance use, and more, with a keen eye toward moving forward with acceptance, progress, and problem-solving.

Featuring insightful interviews with Olympians Chloe Kim, McKayla Maroney, and Adam Rippon, NBA players Kevin Love and DeMar DeRozan, former U.S. Open tennis champ Bianca Andreescu, and many other athletes and experts, Mind Game breaks down the ongoing, heartening movement of athletes across sports coming forward to get the care they need and deserve—and to help others feel safe opening up about their struggles, as well.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538168066
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	03/05/2024
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	626,055
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Julie Kliegman is the copy chief for Sports Illustrated. Previously, she was copy editor at The Ringer, weekend editor and breaking news contributor at The Week, and a news fellow at BuzzFeed. Her writing on a wide variety of topics has appeared in outlets including Sports Illustrated, The Washington Post, The Ringer, Vulture, BuzzFeed, Vox, The Verge, Bustle, Washington Monthly, The Week, and more. Kliegman is a frequent guest on radio and podcasts and has been interviewed about her work on shows including SportsNet 90 The FAN, Sports Media With Richard Deitsch, New Hampshire Public Radio, BTR Daily Beat, and FM 96.9 The Game. She lives in Queens, New York.

Table of Contents

Foreword

Introduction: Learning From Our Idols

PART I: Eyes on the Prize: How Mental Performance Shapes Athletes

Chapter 1: Mentally Tough: The Stereotypes Athletes Fight

Chapter 2: Looking Back: A History of Sport Psychology

Chapter 3: Science and Practice: What Mental Performance Coaches Actually Do

PART II: The Megaphone: Speaking Out About Mental Illness

Chapter 4: The Firsts: Trailblazers Who Came Forward

Chapter 5: Open the Floodgates: More Athletes Join the Cause

Chapter 6: The Greats Chime In: Anxiety and Depression Amid a Pandemic

Chapter 7: On Campus: The Push for Better Care at Colleges

PART III: The Diagnosis: Coping With What You’ve Got

Chapter 8: Substance Use: From Alcohol and Cannabis to Psychedelics

Chapter 9: Body Image: Eating Disorders in Professional Athletes

Chapter 10: Life Out of the Game: Injury, Absence, and Retirement

Conclusion: So What’s Next?

Acknowledgements

Bibliography

About the Author

Editorial Reviews

Julie Kliegman’s Mind Game is a vulnerable, visceral, and essential volume examining how elite athletes handle mental health and mental illness. Kliegman writes with biting clarity that is at times funny and at others devastating. This book is a fearless look at a topic that is at once ubiquitous while also completely ignored. Absolutely essential reading.

Katie Barnes

Kliegman has succeeded in writing a book that is engaging but at the same time important.

Sports Illustrated

Mind Game is an important read for anyone undergoing any level of mental challenge in their life or those who want to better understand the importance of mental health in sports or everyday life. Julie Kliegman is very thorough in telling the stories of elite athletes and outlining methods that can lead to overcoming mental obstacles that lead to a more peaceful and fulfilling life.

Mardy Fish

At a time when sports have (finally) come to appreciate the importance of mental health and clarity, here comes Julie Kliegman with an extraordinary examination of the topic. Thorough, empathetic, and relevant, Mind Game helps us understand elite athletes—while packing practical applications that extend way beyond sports.

L. Jon Wertheim

The focus of [Kliegman's] book, Mind Game, is on how athletes work on mental performance and the growing acceptance towards acknowledging their mental health struggles. She documents the stories of trailblazers in this area like professional basketball player Royce White, tennis star Naomi 'saka, and

Olympic gymnast Simone Biles.... Mind Game is an enlightening read for not only policymakers, but also parents of athletes. They usually go on this complex journey through elite sports with their children and this book offers insight that may be useful as their children develop as young people and athletes.

Nathan's Papers: Books for CONGRESS

Thanks to the openness of professional and Olympic athletes such as Simone Biles, Michael Phelps, Naomi 'saka, Kevin Durant, and many others, we are learning about the mental-health challenges of some of the world’s best athletes who previously seemed invincible. Sports journalist Julie Kliegman describes the relevant research and shares compelling and sometimes painful stories of the struggles with which many top athletes have been confronted. Mind Game sends a powerful message to athletes of all ages and abilities (as well as to parents and coaches) to prioritize mental health over performance and results, and, more importantly, to seek professional help when needed.

Jim Taylor