Athlete Mental Health & Performance
Being an athlete shapes how you see yourself, your discipline, your identity, and what you believe your body and mind can do. It can also mean carrying pressure that's hard to explain to people outside of sport.
The push to perform. The fear of letting your team down. Or yourself. The identity crisis of an injury that won't heal on schedule. The quiet grief of realizing your competitive days are over.
No part of the athletic experience is too small or too complicated to bring into therapy.
At Inner Sphere Wellness, we offer sports performance counselling for athletes of all ages and levels, grounded in real lived experience, and support for the full range of mental health difficulties that competing, training, healing, and stepping away from sport can bring up.
Athletic Identity Is Broader Than We Often Think
People often think of sport and performance psychology as being only about performance, mental skills like visualization, focus, and mental toughness. And while mental performance is part of it, an athlete's mental health is determined by far more than what happens in training or competition.
You may be experiencing something related to:
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Pressure to perform, whether from coaches, teammates, family, or yourself
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Injury and the physical, emotional, and identity disruption that comes with it
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Uncertainty or fear around returning to play
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The transition out of competitive sport: retirement, deselection, or aging out
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Burnout from years of training, competing, and pushing through
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Loss of identity when sport is no longer the center of your life
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Body image and performance-related pressure around weight, strength, or appearance
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Tension around team dynamics, coaching relationships, or comparison with teammates
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Balancing athletic demands with school, work, or family life
If sport has shaped who you are, changes to that relationship can affect your total well-being.
How This Can Show Up
Athletic stress doesn't always look like what people expect. It may include:
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Anxiety before competition or training
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Difficulty separating self-worth from performance
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Frustration, restlessness, or irritability
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Trouble sleeping, eating, or recovering
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A feeling of apprehension, numbness, or symptoms of depression around a sport you used to love
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Mental blocks that make it hard to trust your training or your body
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Feeling lost, adrift, or "who am I without this" after an injury or retirement
Some athletes experience this suddenly and disruptively: an injury, a bad season, a hard conversation with a coach. For others, it builds gradually, the emotional toll accumulating over years of training and competing without space to process any of it.
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There is no fixed timeline, and no "right" way for this to show up.
Our Approach to Athlete Counselling
Every athlete's relationship to their sport is different, and our therapeutic approaches reflect that.
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We work collaboratively, drawing on evidence-based strategies grounded in research and a holistic approach, to shape sessions around what's most useful for you.
This might include:
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Understanding your story - Exploring your athletic history, how you got here, what sport has meant to you, and what's changed.
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Processing performance pressure - Making space for the anxiety, self-criticism, or fear that can build up around competing and being evaluated, with practical stress management tools.
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Working through injury and difficulties - Supporting the physical and emotional experience of injury, including fear of reinjury and frustration with recovery schedules.
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Rebuilding identity beyond sport - Exploring who you are outside of your athletic role, especially during transition, burnout, or retirement from competition.
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Building mental skills - Developing psychological skills like goal setting and mental resilience, along with practical tools to build confidence and sharpen focus on the mental side of your sport.
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Working with the body and nervous system - Supporting emotional regulation when performance pressure or injury-related stress seems overwhelming.
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Because Brooke comes to this work as a former Division I track and field athlete, she brings firsthand, specific knowledge of the culture, pressure, and expectations that shape the athletic experience, and how hard it can be to ask for support from inside that world.
Athletic Pressure Can Feel Isolating
Athletes are frequently praised for pushing through, which can make it hard to admit when something feels wrong.
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There can be pressure to stay "tough," keep performing, and not let a struggle distract from your performance or the team.
Athlete counselling offers real psychological support, a space where:
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You don't have to perform for your therapist
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Your experience is received without judgment, whether you're a weekend athlete or competing at an elite level
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There's no pressure to "get back out there" before you're ready
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You can take time to process what your sport, your body, or this transition means to you
When to Consider Athlete Counselling
There is no "right" time to start.
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You might reach out if:
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Performance pressure or anxiety is affecting your training, competing, or wellbeing
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You're recovering from an injury and struggling with the emotional side of it
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You're facing retirement, deselection, or another transition out of sport
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You feel burnt out, depleted, or disconnected from something you used to love
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You're not sure who you are outside of being an athlete
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You don't need to wait until things feel like a crisis. Our mental health services can help at any stage of your athletic path.
Athlete Counselling at Inner Sphere Wellness
We support athletes of all ages and levels, providing athlete-focused counselling for youth, adolescents, university students, and adults, including current and former competitive athletes. Many athletes we work with come to us dealing with the particular demands of training, competing, and recovering, whether in person at our downtown Squamish location or online.
Our work is:
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Athlete-informed: formed by real experience in high-level competitive sport
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Identity-focused: attentive to who you are beyond your role as an athlete
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Trauma-informed and relational: grounded in safety, belonging, and genuineness
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We understand that the demands and difficulties of sport are real, and that stepping back, whether by choice or by circumstance, deserves real, ongoing support.
Talk to Someone Who Understands
Sometimes the hardest part is knowing where to start. Brooke specializes in athlete mental health and performance counselling, drawing on her own experience as a former collegiate athlete, she's here to help you make sense of the pressure, the setbacks, and the identity questions that come with being an athlete, at a pace that feels right for you.
Registered Clinical Counsellor
Get Started with Athlete Counselling
You don't need to have it all figured out before starting.
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Being an athlete comes with a specific kind of pressure, one that can be hard to explain to people who haven't lived it. Therapy gives a space to process that experience in a method that feels supportive and real.
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If you're looking for athlete mental health and performance counselling, whether you're a recreational athlete or competing at a professional or elite level, we're here to help.
Common Questions We're Asked
No. This work is for athletes at any level: recreational, competitive, collegiate, or professional. If sport plays a meaningful role in your life or identity, this space is for you.
That's one of the most common reasons athletes reach out. The transition out of sport can bring up identity questions even without a specific symptom or diagnosis attached.
No. Sessions are shaped around what's useful to you; sometimes that's directly about sport, and sometimes it's about everything sport has touched: relationships, body image, self-worth, or what comes next.
This is a private, confidential space. It's not about "fixing" you for your coach or team; it's about supporting you.
It varies. Some athletes come for support through a specific transition (like injury recovery or retirement), while others benefit from longer-term work. We adapt according to your needs and goals.
No matter your background, identity, or where you are in your journey, you're welcome here.
The Outdoor Adventurer
Living for the next summit, ride, or backcountry challenge? Therapy helps make sense of the internal terrain that's present on every adventure, supporting you through future challenges.
The Homebody
Yes, you exist — even in Squamish! Not everyone's seeking adrenaline rushes. Your quiet, interior world is just as worth exploring.
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Women in the In-Between
Not quite in your 20s anymore, but "middle-aged" doesn't fit either. We offer a feminist, life-stage-aware approach to reclaiming this rich (often under-supported) era. Health, hormones, menopause, and so much more.
The Expat
Straddling cultures, missing home, navigating a new normal — therapy can be a grounding space where you don't have to translate yourself. Whether you're bringing British dry humour or longing for a deeper connection, we get it.
Caregivers, Parents & Helping Professionals
Burnout, compassion fatigue, emotional labour — if you spend your life holding others up, it's okay to need space to be held too.
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First Responders
You manage high-stress, trauma-exposed roles and still have a personal life to juggle. Therapy offers a confidential space to unpack both.
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Entrepreneurs & Business Folks
High-pressure work, leadership stress, impostor syndrome — therapy helps navigate the emotional weight behind high-stakes decisions and carve out that elusive work/life balance.
The "Lost Soul"
Maybe you were the Peter Pan type — seasonal work, freedom, no fixed plans. Now you want more… but you're not sure what "more" looks like. We can work with that.
The Neurospicy Crew (ADHD, Autism & Beyond)
Fast brains, unique wiring, quirky strengths — we get it. We help you better understand your brain, build on your strengths, and explore how this fits with relationships, work, and wellbeing.
Men
We know therapy can feel unfamiliar. We offer a style that suits you — whether that's private space for deep emotional work, something more grounded and pragmatic, or support accessing emotions that aren't always easy to reach.
Queer, trans, non-binary, or questioning
Whether you're out, exploring, or somewhere in between, therapy can be a space where you don't have to explain the basics. Your identity isn't up for debate — just show up as you are, and we'll meet you with curiosity and care.
Living in a body that's disabled, chronically ill, or outside the thin ideal
Whether you're navigating access barriers, medical gaslighting, or trying to rest without guilt — your body isn't the problem. Therapy is a place to be heard, supported, and real — no fixing required.
Indigenous, First Nations, and Métis
We know therapy exists within systems shaped by colonialism. Our aim is to offer space rooted in respect — for your lived experience, your knowledge, and your definition of healing.
BIPOC folks in mostly white spaces
Code-switching, cultural load, intergenerational weight — it's exhausting. Therapy can be a space where you don't have to translate or shrink your experience to fit.