Mental health in sports is receiving more attention than ever before.
Much of that shift began when world–class athletes like Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles openly shared their struggles with anxiety, burnout and the pressure that comes with performing on the world’s biggest stages.
Their stories sparked a global conversation about athlete mental health and highlighted the need for treatment approaches that support the brain as much as the body.
At Neurotherapeutix in New York City, our team uses advanced, neuroscience-driven and brain-based mental health interventions to help individuals understand how anxiety affects their brains and explore personalized, noninvasive treatment options.
To learn how brain-based interventions may support recovery, contact our team or continue reading below.
Why athlete mental health is in the spotlight today
Mental health in sports is no longer a quiet conversation.
Over the last several years, elite athletes have begun openly discussing the emotional challenges of competing at the highest level.
Their honesty has shifted public expectations, encouraged more athletes to seek support and revealed the vital role mental well-being plays in long-term performance, safety and overall health.
Rising awareness through public athlete disclosures
For years, athletes were expected to stay silent about mental health challenges. That changed when global icons began speaking honestly about their experiences.
Naomi Osaka’s withdrawal from major tournaments to protect her mental health and Simone Biles stepping back during the Olympics opened a new conversation about what anxiety looks like, even for the most decorated competitors in the world.
Their openness helped reduce stigma, showing fans, coaches and fellow athletes that prioritizing mental health is a sign of strength, not weakness.
The mental health cost of elite performance
High-level sports are both physically demanding and mentally taxing.
Behind every competition are years of training, strict routines, travel and constant evaluation from coaches, fans and the media. Over time, that level of scrutiny and pressure can push even the most resilient athletes toward anxiety, exhaustion and emotional strain.
According to a 2016 narrative systematic review in Sports Medicine by Rice and colleagues, elite athletes face a unique range of stressors, including injury, overtraining, burnout, intense public scrutiny and ongoing competitive pressure, that may increase their vulnerability to mental health problems.
For many athletes, these challenges build slowly. What begins as “normal nerves” before a big event can evolve into persistent worry, sleep disruption, physical tension or loss of enjoyment in the sport. When that happens, anxiety is no longer just part of competing—it becomes a barrier to both performance and quality of life.
Naomi Osaka’s experience with anxiety
Naomi Osaka has been clear about how public pressure, expectations and constant visibility affected her mental health.
Her decision to withdraw from the 2021 French Open to protect her emotional well-being revealed how anxiety can build behind the scenes, even when an athlete appears calm and composed on the court.
What her story reveals about athlete pressure
Osaka’s honesty highlights a truth many athletes share: anxiety isn’t just about stress.
It can affect sleep, focus, appetite, confidence and the ability to perform under pressure.
For athletes who are always “on,” anxiety often comes from both internal expectations and external demands, creating a cycle that can be difficult to break without support.
Simone Biles and the reality of performance anxiety
Simone Biles has spoken openly about experiencing anxiety, including moments where her stress levels were so high that she felt unsafe competing.
During the Tokyo Olympics, she described experiencing symptoms that disrupted her mind-body awareness — a reminder that anxiety can have very real physical effects.
What her anxiety attack revealed about athlete stress
For gymnasts, divers, skaters and others who depend on timing and spatial awareness, even a brief lapse in concentration can increase the risk of injury.
Biles’ experience showed the world that anxiety isn’t only emotional, it can directly affect coordination, focus and the ability to perform complex movements safely.
Why athletes struggle with anxiety differently
Athletes experience anxiety in ways that can be more intense or more complex than in the general population.
High-performance expectations and public scrutiny
Competitions, media commentary, sponsorships and national expectations all compound stress. Athletes carry both personal and public pressure.
Athlete burnout and chronic stress load
Years of training without sufficient mental recovery can lead to emotional exhaustion, decreased motivation and physical tension — all factors that increase anxiety risk.
Impact on confidence, focus and identity
Many athletes tie their identity to performance. When anxiety affects their sport, it may also impact their self-esteem and sense of purpose.
How anxiety impacts athletic performance
Anxiety affects much more than how an athlete feels — it influences how the brain processes information, controls movement and responds to stress.
During high-stakes moments, these changes can disrupt timing, coordination, decision-making and confidence, making it harder for athletes to perform consistently.
Understanding these effects helps athletes recognize when anxiety becomes more than everyday nerves and when specialized support may be needed.
Effects on motor control, timing and concentration
Anxiety activates the body’s stress response, which can affect reaction time, focus, fine motor skills and overall coordination. In precision-based sports, this can quickly disrupt performance.
How brain-body stress responses affect competition
Stress hormones influence muscle tension, breathing patterns and cognitive processing.
For high-performance athletes, even a slight shift in these systems can alter execution, affecting everything from speed and accuracy to form and decision-making.
New brain-based interventions for athlete anxiety
Advances in neuroscience have expanded the range of treatments available for anxiety, giving athletes new, evidence-based options that address not only symptoms but also the underlying neural circuits involved.
What brain-based mental health interventions involve
These approaches focus on understanding how different parts of the brain communicate and how stress affects those connections. They use tools that support neural regulation and help strengthen healthier pathways.
Neuroscience-based anxiety therapy explained
For some individuals, functional MRI–based computational brain mapping can reveal patterns of overactivity or underactivity in regions associated with emotional regulation, stress response and cognitive control.
Identifying these patterns can guide targeted, noninvasive treatments that support healthier communication between brain regions.
Advanced brain-based treatments used today
At Neurotherapeutix, fMRI-guided transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) therapy uses this imaging data to personalize treatment for each patient.
Unlike traditional TMS, which uses a standard coil placement, fMRI-guided TMS identifies the specific circuits involved in a patient’s symptoms, allowing clinicians to tailor stimulation with millimeter-level precision.
This approach supports neuroplasticity — the brain’s natural ability to form new connections — and may help many individuals experience improvement in anxiety symptoms.
How neuroscience helps athletes recover from anxiety
Brain-based treatments focus on strengthening the networks responsible for emotional regulation, focus and stress resilience.
By targeting the circuits involved in anxiety, these interventions can help restore balance in the brain’s communication pathways, giving athletes a clearer ability to manage high-pressure situations.
For many individuals, this means better emotional stability, improved concentration and greater confidence during both training and competition.
When athletes should seek anxiety support
An athlete may benefit from professional support when anxiety begins to:
- • Affect performance
- • Disrupt sleep or appetite
- • Create physical symptoms such as muscle tension or dizziness
- • Lead to panic or overwhelming worry
- • Interfere with focus, timing or coordination
Early help can prevent symptoms from escalating and provide athletes with tools to navigate future stressors more effectively.
Anxiety treatment for athletes in NYC
Located on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, Neurotherapeutix offers advanced, noninvasive treatment options for individuals navigating performance-related anxiety.
Our patented fMRI-based computational brain mapping and precision-guided TMS therapy allow us to personalize anxiety care in ways that reflect each patient’s unique brain function.
If you or a loved one is exploring anxiety treatment options, contact our team to learn more about how neuroscience-based care may support your goals.
Frequently asked questions
Athletes and their families often have questions about how neuroscience-based treatments work, what they involve and whether they are safe for competitive training schedules.
Below are answers to some of the questions we hear most often about anxiety care, performance stress and brain-based interventions.
Can brain-based treatments help athletes manage performance anxiety?
Brain-based treatments can support emotional regulation and improve communication in neural circuits involved in anxiety. Many athletes find these approaches helpful in managing high-pressure situations.
How long do neuroscience-based anxiety therapies take to work?
Treatment timelines vary, but many patients complete a series of sessions over several weeks. Each plan is personalized based on imaging data and clinical needs.
Are these treatments safe for professional and competitive athletes?
Yes. fMRI-guided TMS therapy is noninvasive and does not require medication or recovery time, allowing athletes to continue their normal routines.
Can athletes continue training while receiving anxiety treatment?
Most individuals can continue training as usual. The Neurotherapeutix team can coordinate care around practice and competition schedules.
What makes athlete anxiety different from general anxiety disorders?
Athlete anxiety is shaped by performance pressure, public visibility and physical demands. These factors can affect both emotional well-being and the cognitive-motor skills required for competition.
