College Athletes in New Jersey: Managing Eating Disorders in Athletes During the Season
College athletes are under unique pressures. This includes performance, scholarships and roster spots, as well as keeping up with grades and friendships. The competitive season increases vulnerability to mental health illnesses, including eating disorders. Having the proper support and care for athletes in eating disorder recovery is possible. They do not need to end their athletic career. Here will will review how, and where to look for eating disorder therapy for athletes in New Jersey.
The Unique Pressures Facing College Athletes in New Jersey
Balancing academics, along with travel, training and recovery is a handful. Pressure from coaches, teammates and internal high expectations, leave athletes in a vulnerable place of trying to control every aspect possible to perform their best. When athletic programs try to control body composition and weighs, it adds more pressure to control their intake and body. New Jersey has every level of competitiveness from club to D1, D2, and D3. Pressure is felt at every level of competitiveness and, increasing the likelyhood of eating disorders.
How Eating Disorders Show Up During the Season
Disordered behaviors around food and bodies are often seen as dedication and determination in the sports world. This can make it difficult to identify if an athlete is struggling with an eating disorder, unless you are familiar with the signs. So here are some common signs you may see in college athletes:
Under-fueling, whether it is from a lack of time, stress or trying to change their body.
Loss of appetitie masked as being “too busy”.
Increased rigidity around food timing or types of food.
Exercise compulsion outside of required training.
Declined performance, increased injures or fatigue.
Psychological red flags may look a little different. This may include:
Fear of losing performance edge.
Perfectionism and all-or-nothing thinking.
Heightened anxiety around rest days or missed workouts.
Increased irritability or anxiety around food, practices or competitions.
Isolation from teammates, social events or any events around food.
Why Athletes Struggle to Ask for Help During the Season
Athletes often fear being benched, pulled from competition or losing a scholarship. There is a common belief that treatment means forced time off. Don’t worry, we will touch more on this topic later. Disordered behaviors such as eliminating certain foods, eating clean or reducing intake to try and improve performance is normalized in sports culture. This adds pressure to do the same as those around you, leading to an increased risk of eating disorders. Unfortunately, there are also a lack of eating disorder trained providers for athletes specifically.
Managing an Eating Disorder While Competing: What Actually Helps
The first step in recovery is finding eating disorder treatment that understands what it is like to be an athlete. This is incredible important in building a trusting relationship between a provider and athlete. The treatment team will understand the importance and specifics of an athletes life and the challenges that come with it. The difference between general eating disorder treatment and athlete-specific care is that there are unique dangers to being an athlete in recovery, as well as different approaches with movement. These differences shine during everything from medical appointments, lab results, nutritional care, and therapy approaches.
Fueling as Performance Protection
As much as I am in support of intuitive eating and learning to trust your own body in recovery, there are also aspects of sports nutrition that go beyond hunger and fullness cues. This includes learning to eat around practice times, competitions, post workout refueling and much more. Managing appetite suppression during high training loads is also a barrier for many. Using structure when hunger cues are unreliable and learning to shift from “earning food” to fueling recovery and performance are all parts of eating disorder treatment as an athlete.
Flexibility With Training (Without Losing Identity)
Learning to be flexible is again a big part of eating disorder recovery. There many need to be temporary adjustments to training, but stopping your sport completely is not always nesessary. Of course, medical stability is number one. However, learning how to impliment strategic rest and recovery while training is also a big part of recovery. Learning to be flexbile with training also means addressing the fear of weight or fitness changes and how that impacts internal thoughts and self confidence.
What Coaches and Athletic Departments Get Wrong (and Right)
Common unhelpful messages that athletes may internalize can depend on the sport. However, a few common ones are see are the following:
Lighter = Faster
Less food = less stomach issues
Seeing more muscles means being stronger
Restrictive means willpower and disciplined
Lower body composition = faster
More training means stronger
Supportive coaches does not mean any of these things. It means listening to your athletes, building trusting relationships, and having proper trusted support available when things do arise.
When a Higher Level of Care is Needed
If an athlete tried outpatient eating disorder therapy, but appears to still be struggling, they may need more support. Assessing medical and psychological risk mid-season is an important part of this process. If an athletes has gone through half the season, still unable to fuel their body for the amount of energy they are exerting, it is important to make sure they are properly assessed. Pausing a sport is not always necessary, but can be. Reframing a higher care as career-protective, not career-ending is important. Putting a pause on performance can help build their strength, endurance, and mindset to be stronger than ever once they are back at it.
Support for Parents of College Athletes in New Jersey
Monitoring your child in college from a distance can be difficult. Staying in contact with their support team, such as coaches, eating disorder therapist, sports dietitian and doctor can help make sure nothing falls through the cracks. Virtual therapy can be helpful for when they are traveling back and forth from home. Most eating disorder therapists and dietitians offer virtual options these days, making it much easier for athletes in school.
Recovery Does Not Mean the End of Your Athletic Career
Eating disorder recovery improves longevity in your sport. Proper nourishment supports performance. When bodies are properly fuel, it increase opportunity, reduce anxiety and expant your identity. No matter how much you are struggling, recovery is possible.
Finding Eating Disorder Therapy for College Athletes in New Jersey
Serendipity Counseling offers virtual and in-person therapy in New Jersey. If you are not in New Jersey, do not worry! We are also able to see athletes virtually in PA, MD, FL, VT, and AZ! Working with athletes in eating disorder treatment is our specialty. We understand how competitive sports adds a different layer and complexity to recovery and we are here for it! To get started, check out these steps:
Schedule a free consultation to see if we are a good fit!
Get to know our eating disorder therapist and see if you are a good fit.
Start your journey to food and body freedom!
About the Author: An Eating Disorder Therapist in New Jersey
Kate Ringwood is an eating disorder specialist that focuses on helping athletes through recovery. She competed as a high school and collegiate runner, while navigating her own recovery. This led Kate to find her passion in guiding others towards the same freedom she has found herself.
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