Virginia Tech Athletics held its second annual THRIVE Summit on Monday, March 27 inside the Student-Athlete Performance Center, giving student-athletes the opportunity to talk about how to manage their mental health while competing at the highest level.
THRIVE was created by Virginia Tech's Student-Athlete Development office in conjunction with the Counseling & Mental Performance (CAMP) department to break the stigma surrounding mental health. The initiative is led by CAMP's Lauren Naldo and Student-Athlete Development's Natalie Wimmer, in addition to the THRIVE Tribe, a small group of student-athletes from each athletic program. This group assists in the planning and execution of THRIVE events.
"The goal of this year's Hokies THRIVE Summit was to provide our student-athletes with a space to reflect on their own mental health journey, connect with other student-athletes and develop strategies to manage anxiety," Wimmer said following the event.
"Many of our student-athletes are juggling numerous commitments between academics, athletics, personal and social life, and it can feel overwhelming to manage it all. If we can help them to direct their focus and energy to what is right in front of them and tackle one thing at a time, they may find that life becomes more manageable.
"Our hope is that our student-athletes walked away knowing that they can do anything, but not all at once, that they are not alone in their journey, and that mental health matters."
The event consisted of a pair of presentations from current Tech student-athletes who were willing to describe how they deal with mental health surrounding competition, including the likes of redshirt junior wrestler Sam Latona and junior member of the swimming and diving team, Emma Atkinson.
"It's important to be the best athletes we can be to have events like this," said Latona, a two-time All-American on the mat during his time with the Hokies. "We're all on different teams, but we're all kind of one community. … You've seen mental health [awareness] increase as the years have gone on. It's obviously a huge deal.
"Being able to deal with it and channel it the right way is super important, especially nowadays."
Latona specifically discussed finding mottos to live by when stepping foot onto the podium talking about mental health. Being an Alabama native, the 133-pounder specifically cited Alabama head football coach Nick Saban's discussions about trusting the process, and how to focus on the process rather than the outcome before suiting up night in and night out.
Atkinson made sure to point out her struggles with performance anxiety before jumping into the pool, and added how the 2023 All-American Honorable Mention has learned to ease off the stress prior to an upcoming meet.
The event also featured a presentation from Naldo, a sports psychologist that works with Tech student-athletes on-campus.
The fifth-year member of Tech's CAMP staff talked about finding the sweet spot between being nervous and calm prior to competition, made sure each student-athlete was aware that they are bigger than their respective sport and created an interactive discussion with a collection of student-athletes to describe the struggles of mental health that surround competition.
"[Mental health] is literally the biggest part of what the sport is," sophomore lacrosse player Elizabeth Labbe said. "Whether it's mental health from being a starter, to mental health from sitting on the bench. I think waking up everyday and having to do academics and then also putting your body and your mental state on the line is extremely hard.
"I think having a positive attitude and a positive environment is the most important thing. That's what's going to help you pursue what you love. Whether it is in the books or on the field, I think mental health just has such a big impact on what we do everyday."
Gallery: (3-27-2023) DEV: 2023 THRIVE Summit
Events like these remain meant to also bring a sense of community to the multitude of Tech student-athletes in attendance on a late-March Monday evening. It's also meant to serve as an opportunity for the Hokies that have gathered to take their minds off the day-to-day stresses that occur in their everyday lives.
Labbie recognized that.
"This is just such a big reset," she said. "I think an event like this just helps remind everyone so much of why we do what we do and why we love it. … It's just a reminder that 'this is why I'm here,' and that everyone else is in [this situation], not just myself. I'm never alone.
"It just encourages us to keep going. [We] get to hear other girls' and boys' stories from their sport and what they have to do, and it just encourages us to continue to do what we do."
