Therapist JaQuinda Jackson stresses self-care for her athletic clients
As a shooting guard for the Lady Rams basketball team at Hillcrest High School in Simpsonville, South Carolina, JaQuinda Jackson learned firsthand about the mental and emotional pressure young athletes sometimes find themselves under. She was reminded of it later in her career as a therapist by a cry for help in the form of an Instagram message.
After earning her undergraduate degree in sociology at the College of Charleston, Jackson earned her master’s and doctorate degrees in inner-city Washington, D.C. Moving back home and starting her own practice helped her find her passion for breaking the stigma surrounding trauma and “helping individuals and families carry out their purpose in life,” she says.
After years of trauma work in the Upstate, a college athlete reached out to Jackson on Instagram, suffering from isolation imposed by the COVID pandemic. “It was an international student,” Jackson remembers. “She said, ‘Hey, I’m here by myself. I just need help. Can you come talk to me?’”
So Jackson talked to her and started reflecting on “the gap between athletics and mental health,” she says. “I opened up my practice to athletes and high performers who are, like, go, go, go, but are not very intentional about taking care of themselves.”
She brings her own understanding of their unique challenges to her practice, helping clients find “the ability to separate themselves from who they are and what they do,” she says. “For athletes and other high performers, their identity is wrapped up into who they are or what they do for other people or for their career. Being intentional about understanding themselves and taking care of themselves can help them show up as their best self when they do have to perform.”
Leaning into Pressure with JaQuinda Jackson
While the stress of wanting to excel can be motivating, it can also be debilitating, says Jackson, who encourages her clients to lean into the pressure without letting it take over.
“That pressure can be harmful when that’s all that we operate in. What I tell my athletes is, ‘It is OK to want to show up and perform at your peak. But it becomes harmful when we feel like we have to show up as our best self all the time and we don’t have room for failure.’”
Young athletes can feel pressured by family as well as coaches. Jackson frequently works with parents along with young athletes to encourage realistic expectations about what is being asked of them. A child whose coaches are demanding of time and effort doesn’t necessarily yet have the life experience to understand how stressful and harmful overcommitting can be.
“So it’s up to the parents to be able to advocate for their children,” Jackson says. “Are you having a conversation with the coach? Are you saying, ‘My child can only practice Tuesdays and Thursdays,’ versus letting kids get into this ideology of ‘I always gotta be working?’”
Whatever the sport or occupation, physical activity is a key part of the mental health of anybody who aspires to high performance—something Jackson is often eager to demonstrate in person with her clients.
“Sometimes I work out with my athletes,” she says. “I do believe that regardless of where you are on the spectrum, moving your body increases your positive mental health as well.”
Pressure to Perform
A 2019 study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that 35% of elite athletes have mental health issues. Their top concerns include:
- Sleep disorders and sleep concerns
- Major depressive disorder and depression symptoms
- Suicide
- Anxiety and related disorders
- Post-traumatic stress disorder and other trauma-related disorders
- Eating disorders
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- Bipolar and psychotic disorders
- Sport-related concussion
- Substance use and substance abuse disorders
- Gambling disorder and other behavioral addictions
