The Invisible Opponent

“It wasn’t like ‘you have to do this or you’re not going to play.’ But my coaches care about me as a person first. They understand that baseball is a stressful thing … They said, ‘you need to get help because you’re going to burn yourself out.’

“I think the biggest thing I’ve learned is that it’s OK to feel the way I do.”

Costes credits skills like mindfulness and acceptance he’s learned from program director Dr. Michelle Garvin with helping him cope.

“I feel better equipped to deal with those emotions that come up every now and then,” he said. “The thing with mental health that people don’t understand is that it’s not like a yes or no thing. I still have mental-health struggles to this day. I fully admit that.

“But now I have the resources and knowledge and wherewithal to know how to deal with it. So that was the difference between before Dr. Garvin and after … now, I know how to deal with this. I know what sets me off. I know what to do when I’m feeling down.”

 

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Bethany`s Notes: Some great reads about college student athletes at Maryland and their progress in working through mental health challenges. Sports does not just include prehab and rehab for the body but also for the mind.