Sports Psychiatry

Although psychiatrists and other mental health clinicians interested in sports practice already have the necessary general skills to help competitive athletes deal with adversity and the multitude of emotions that sports can elicit, most typically they lack the sports-specific knowledge necessary to truly help these patients and clients. In Sports Psychiatry: Strategies for Life Balance and Peak Performance, the long-time team psychiatrist for the Baltimore Orioles and the Baltimore Ravens intends to remedy this knowledge gap by sharing his unique perspective and rare expertise in cultivating athletes' peak performance while promoting team unity, sound judgement, personal growth, pride, and a lasting sense of accomplishment. The book: Explains sports culture and team structure and function, vividly describing the environment in which elite competition takes place Focuses on the shifting nature and intensity of athletes' emotions -- the highs that come with success and the lows that accompany poor performance -- and describes the situations that magnify them, including injury and pain, media scrutiny, the availability of performance-enhancing drugs, and the fear of both failure and success Addresses critical topics, such as regulating energy, recognizing and controlling stress, preparing mentally for performance, and treating mental disorders common to athletes Draws on the author's length of experience and clinical observations, the evidence base of sports psychiatry, and fascinating stories of athletes at all levels to inform, teach, encourage, and inspire. Although written for mental health professionals, the book will also be of great interest to primary care and sports medicine physicians, athletic trainers, team owners and managers -- and of course -- the athletes themselves. Engaging and insightful, Sports Psychiatry is the go-to book for those in need of practical strategies for supporting and attaining peak performance.

This book has it all - written by national and international experts and edited by world authorities, it is the first book on sport psychiatry in over a decade. Dealing with psychopathology, mental health problems and clinical management, it differs markedly from sports psychology books that focus on performance issues. Eating disorders, exercise addiction, drug abuse are all problems that are seen in 'everyday' athletes, not just elite performers. This book shows how to help. This text covers the most important topics in contemporary sports psychiatry/psychology from an international perspective. Chapter authors are experts in the field and global leaders in the related professional organizations, including current and past Presidents/Chairs of the International Society for Sports Psychiatry and of the World Psychiatric Association Section on Exercise and Sports Psychiatry. Authors are mainly psychiatrists: the rest are PhD sport psychologists. The book comprises representative chapter authors from around the world, to an extent unprecedented in this topic. The authors and editors are well-informed in global perspectives, e.g., having served as consultants to numerous Olympic teams, in addition to service on the International Society for Sports Psychiatry's Board of Directors. Specifically, this book covers four main categories of topics: 1) mental health challenges faced by athletes (including substance use disorders, exercise addiction, eating disorders, depression, suicide, and concussion), 2) treatment approaches and therapeutic issues with athletes (including different types of psychotherapy for psychiatric disorders, psychotherapeutic performance enhancement approaches, transference and countertransference issues, achievement by proxy, psychotherapeutic issues as applied to a couple of sports that are played around the world, and use of psychiatric medications in athletes), 3) psychosocial issues affecting athletes (including sexual harassment and abuse, cultural issues, and ethics issues), and 4) the field of sports psychiatry (including work within one common sports psychiatry practice setting, and current status of and challenges in the field of sports psychiatry). There is a growing need for this book. Performance-enhancing drugs, use of psychotropics in impaired athletes, head trauma, sexual abuse, eating disorders, ethics, and depression and suicide in athletes, are just a few of the timely subjects addressed in this text. This is the only comprehensive reference available for those working in the field (or merely interested in it) to consult for current information on these topics. The existing sports psychology texts all focus on performance issues, with little, if any, attention paid to these areas of clinical significance. The book addresses the core differences between sports psychiatry and sports psychology, as well as the areas of overlap. Emphasis is placed on how the disciplines should work together in diagnosing and treating athletes dealing with emotional stress and psychopathology. Chapters include case examples and specific goals listed at the beginning, along with tables and graphs to highlight key concepts.

The ISSP Manual of Sports Psychiatry is the first text describing the role of a sports psychiatrist. Covering both individual as well as team sports, contact and non-contact, from childhood through late adulthood, the manual describes the role of sports in our culture and details the psychiatric interventions associated with players and their teams. The editors take a broad focus, covering topics from neuroscience-psychiatric and psychological aspects, performance enhancement, team chemistry and dynamics, organizational issues to working with medical, orthopedic/surgical and neurologic colleagues to provide comprehensive prevention and treatment to enhance well-being and performance. This text will be invaluable to medical and psychiatric physicians, psychologists and other mental health professionals, as well as athletes, trainers, leagues and their commissioners, sports writers-and even "fans" anxious to understand what is going on with their teams.

In this issue of Psychiatric Clinics, Guest Editors Silvana Riggio and Andy Jagoda bring their considerable expertise to the topic of Sport Psychiatry: Maximizing Performance. Top experts in the field cover key topics such as defining the role of the sport psychiatrist, achieving peak performance, the pathophysiology of brain injury and behavior, and more. Provides in-depth, clinical reviews on maximizing performance from a Sports Psychiatry perspective, providing actionable insights for clinical practice. Presents the latest information on this timely, focused topic under the leadership of experienced editors in the field; Authors synthesize and distill the latest research and practice guidelines to create these timely topic-based reviews. Contains 13 relevant, practice-oriented topics including motivation and burnout in sports; nutrition, eating disorders, and behavior; sleep disturbances; selection and interview criteria for drafting players; and more.

Psychiatric conditions of all kinds can present in sporting populations due to the high intensity physical effort, competition and anxiety associated with competitive sports. Mental illness is not just a health concern but is likely to have a significant impact on sporting performance and achievement. Part of the Oxford Psychiatry Library series, this concise and practical pocketbook covers the breadth of psychiatric conditions that can present in sportsmen and sportswomen. It provides practical and up-to-date guidance which is invaluable for all health professionals working within sporting communities. There are a variety of topics covered from 'Eating disorders' to 'Psychotropic drug prescribing' and it is based on the latest research to help health professionals working within sport better assess mental health problems and support those in need.

The first, ever, sports psychiatry case-study book, blending athletes' experience with evidence-based, expert clinical guidance.

For professionals and others involved in sports who want to better understand the innermost lives of athletes and to treat the complex problems that can arise from competition, this book provides both invaluable guiding principles and treatment specifics.

Clinical sport psychology is a rapidly growing field that brings together research and clinical interventions from both clinical psychology and sport and performance psychology. Complementary to sports medicine and clinical sport psychiatry, clinical sport psychology addresses the mental health needs and psychological well-being of athletes, coaches, and other members of the sport community. It offers scientifically informed conceptualizations of psychological distress as it manifests in sport settings, as well as empirically supported clinical interventions tailored to the needs of sport populations. This volume addresses the latest research findings regarding mental health among athletes and other sport professionals, including epidemiological research concerning depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and conduct and interpersonal problems. In addition, it explores the unique etiology of mental health problems among athletes, including psychological sequelae of injury and trauma, as well as concise practice guidelines for conceptualizing and treating psychological distress in sport populations. Strategies for thorough yet efficient psychological assessment of athletes, coaches, and other sport professionals are also provided. A compendium of relevant empirical research and clinical best practices for assessment and treatment, this handbook charts the course that clinical sport psychology has taken since its inception as a distinct clinical specialty and highlights future directions for this rapidly growing practice domain. It offers essential reading for psychologists and other mental health professionals who provide clinical services in sport and performance settings.