Athletes and Depression: A Review of the Literature

Dong Hyun Yoon
St Johnsbury Academy Jeju

Abstract

Elite athletes are a group of people who appear to ‘have it all.’ They have talent that places them at the top of their respective fields, teams of people to support them in their endeavors, and literal teams of like-minded collaborators who share their drive, goals, and experiences. At the same time, data shows that all is not well with professional and elite athletes. Acat some point in their careers.cording to Athletes for Hope, 35% of elite athletes experience a mental health crisis (Athletes for Hope). Their crisis may present itself as stress, burnout, depression, anxiety, or an eating disorder. Put into context, where 1 in 5 adults experience a mental health condition at some point in their lives, athletes have a higher self-reported prevalence of mental health crises or symptoms (Athletes for Hope).

The following paper reviews the literature on the existence and prevalence of depression in the athlete community. It considers the rates of depression across student and professional athletes and highlights three prominent case studies of athletes impacted by depression during and after their careers.

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