Sidelined USA
Supporting, resourcing, and advocating for permanently-sidelined student-athletes

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Insightful articles for helping permanently-sidelined athletes find a meaningful way forward.

Posts tagged identity crisis
Guilt, Shame, and the Sidelined Athlete
Guilt, Shame, and the Sidelined Athlete

As a former sidelined athlete I can tell you that guilt and shame were very specific feelings I experienced when I medically-retired. At the time, I really didn’t feel like I had the right to grieve and I was ashamed of how depressed I had become. I didn’t realize that it was normal - more importantly - that it was OKAY to be mourning the end of my athletic career. Changing the narrative starts with understanding where the guilt and shame behind medical retirement comes from.

An athlete’s natural mindset in performing is to overcome and defeat opponents. To win. But what happens when you can’t even compete?

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Becoming SidelinedChristine Pinaltoretired athletes, grief loss of sport, grief athletes, guilt loss sport, struggling loss of sport, struggling injury sport, sidelined athlete, sidelined, medical retirement, medically disqualified athlete, support medically disqualified athlete, Help Athletes Career Ending Injuries, help medically disqualified athlete, helping sidelined athletes, medical disqualification, helping an athlete medical retirement, how to help an athlete with medical disqualification, loss of sport, identity crisis, guilt athlete
Creating a Healthy Identity Beyond the Game
Creating a Healthy Identity Beyond the Game

“You’re only as good as your last game . . . match . . . race.” Sound familiar? 

As a competitor, it is common to tie your athletic identity to your performance in your sport. What can happen though it you aren’t careful is that your performance can become the key indicator of how you measure your worth and subsequently, can greatly impact how happy you are overall in life.

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Beyond The GameChristine Pinaltosidelined athletes, sidelined athlete, parents sidelined athletes, helping sidelined athletes, coaches sidelined athletes, permanently sidelined, career ending injury, Career Ending Injuries, end to sports career, transition sports, sidelined, repeat concussions, identity crisis, athletic identity, athletic injury
Adjusting Your Gameplan:  Transitioning from One Dream to Your Next Play
Adjusting Your Gameplan:  Transitioning from One Dream to Your Next Play

As a child, you never expect your biggest dreams to come to an end so suddenly. As an athlete, you hope that you’re able to control your own destiny. Unfortunately, the reality is that for many of us, these hopes and expectations take a U-turn when we’re least expecting it, and force our hand in life a bit earlier than we had planned for. 

Grasping the reality of an early end to your athletic career is certainly a tough pill to swallow.

For some it may be all they have ever known and loved.

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Beyond The GameChristine PinaltoSidelined athletes, sidelined athlete, sidelined athletes, sidelined, coaches sidelined athletes, sport retirement, permanently sidelined, helping sidelined athletes, post-retirement, post sports days, career ending injury, Career Ending Injuries, career ending injuries, end to sports career, athlete for life, athlete transition, athletes, gameplan, grit, mental health athletes, mental vigilance, early retirement sports, sports psychologist, sports psychology, loss of sport, competitive spirit, sports coping strategies, transition sports, sport retirement concussion, coping mechanisms sports, athlete, athletic identity, athletic injury, athletic trainers, Athletes Forced Retirement, medical disqualification, medically disqualified athlete, coping strategies, rebuilding, competitive edge, MDQ athlete, emotional recovery, identity crisis, Help Athletes Career Ending Injuries, retired athletes, Recommendations Permanently Sidelined Athletes, life beyond the game
Becoming Sidelined: The Loss of Athletic Identity
Becoming Sidelined: The Loss of Athletic Identity

For athletes forced to discontinue their sport due to injury or health condition, the mental journey towards acceptance and internal healing can be confusing, complicated, and flat out brutal.  

Permanently-sidelined athletes have described their grief as feeling as though a part of them has died. Sports psychologists refer to this as “losing the athletic identity”. One of the hardest parts of processing the loss of ability to compete in sport is feeling like you don’t know who you are without your sport. 

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Becoming Sidelined, Meaningful SupportChristine PinaltoSidelined athletes, sidelined athlete, parents sidelined athletes, coaches sidelined athletes, athletic trainers sidelined athletes, athletic identity, loss of sport, sports psychology, end to sports career, career ending injury, Career Ending Injuries, identity crisis, athletes identity