How does anxiety affects sport performance?

Answer 1

Understanding how anxiety affects sports performance requires first an understanding of the physiological nature of anxiety.

Anxiety, or feeling physically and mentally anxious can present in different ways, such as fear and nervousness, but it has an underlying cause; stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system is exactly that, a system of nerves sympathetic to both our mood and our environment. When something triggers this nervous system, it is commonly referred to as the "fight or flight" response. However, this does not mean that our sympathetic nervous system is only triggered in situations of personal danger. Our minds are complex, and "danger' might translate psychologically as 'making a speech in front of an audience' or 'playing in the big game'.

Often times an over-anxious person might suffer from an anxiety disorder, frequently experiencing 'panic attacks'. The increase in both respiration and adrenaline can cause physiological changes that serve to heighten the fear of the situation (i.e numbness of the skin, heart palpitations or 'skipped beats', feeling as though one cannot breathe, etc).

Calming down from an anxiety attack is the job of the parasympathetic nervous system. In some people, especially when they are over-stimulated for long periods (as with playing sports) calming down may become increasingly difficult. In these cases, calming down may take practice.

It is generally agreed among neuroscientists that the effect of long-term anxiety on human cognition is detrimental. It can therefore be argued that short-term anxiety might also have a negative effect on cognition, for example by making it more difficult to focus mentally on playing a sport.

If someone is constantly anxious before, during, and after playing a sport, they may find this detrimental to their personal lives. When this occurs, it is important to seek the assistance of a qualified professional (psychologist, medical doctor, etc) who can advise them on the best course of action to decrease stress and anxiety. This course of action differs from person to person, but often includes anti-anxiety medication such as beta blockers. For less bothersome, short-term anxiety, less prolonged medical treatment will most likely be recommended, such as 'take-as-needed' doses of Triazolam or Alprazolam.

Answer 2

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