Comments for Youth Sports Psychology

Comment on What Hurts Young Athletes’ Confidence in Sports? by Gary

Gary — Fri, 11 May 2012 09:26:13 +0000

HELP! I am a father of a 9 year old boy who is at his whits end. My son is a gifted young baseball player who made the major leagues this yr, but is struggling immensely with his confidence at the plate. When coaches or myself pitch to him he hits fine, but when he gets in a game and another child is pitching to him, he backs out of the box before the pitch is even thrown. He has this debilitating fear of getting hit by the pitch, despite the fact that he never has gotten hit by a pitch! We are 7 games into the season, and anytime an opposing team has any type of pitcher that throws fast, he mentally shuts down and cannot think of anything else but failure. I have been trying to stay as positive as possible, and don’t dwell on negatives, but no matter what I say he shuts me and all the other coaches out as soon as he sees the other pitcher throwing fast. I am desperately seeking any guidance you could provide to help me help my son.

Comment on How to Deal With Difficult/Bully Coaches by Cathy

Cathy — Wed, 09 May 2012 03:56:21 +0000

My daughter is 13 years old and will be going into 8th grade in the fall of 2012. She just finished club volleyball this year and tonight had a preliminary practice for the CYO team of next year. The coach this year is known to us but this will be the first year she is coaching volleyball at our parish. My daughter came home tonight after the first practice saying that the coach must not “like” her. I asked why and she said that they were learning an exercise drill and my daughter followed the pattern. The coach then asked her if she had an attention problem. The coach had her run a lap and as my daughter turned to run the lap, she heard the coach ask her friends if my daughter did well in school, implying that she was not intelligent. I find this apprehensible and very much a bullying behavior, certainly not something I would expect from a CYO coach. My daughter wants me to ignore the situation but I am feel justified in my anger and want to report the coach. I don’t think she is building character, she’s attempting to break it!

Comment on Five Benefits for Kids Who Participate in Sports by Raymond R.

Raymond R. — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 15:52:52 +0000

hello
I am from greendale middle school in Milwaukee Wisconsin. I support Sports for youth and Your website. I personally think that there should be alot more sports programs for children of all ages. Are you aware of any studys the support youth sports.
Raymond R.

Comment on How Young Athletes Become Frustrated – A Model for Parents and Coaches by Patrick Cohn

Patrick Cohn — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 12:55:38 +0000

Please start here: http://www.youthsportspsychology.com/youth_sports_psychology_blog/?p=1649

Comment on How Young Athletes Become Frustrated – A Model for Parents and Coaches by Tiffany

Tiffany — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 02:36:37 +0000

I found this site while I was researching issues I’m having with my 10 year old daughter. She plays fastpith softball on a 10u travel team. She has the potential to be the best on the team but she’s not because of her attitude. If she messes up she automatically gets mad. This causes her to shut down and that leads to more errors. This behavior has her on the bench often. How can I handle this?

Comment on Are Your Athletes Searching For Answers by Traci Stanard

Traci Stanard — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 10:35:22 +0000

Dr. Patrick Cohn,
I am so happy to see you exposing the true potential and impact of mental training with children. As a gymnast, I used mental training techniques day in and day out- and I still use them daily as an adult – peak performance is important for living.
Thank you!

Comment on Are Your Athletes Searching For Answers by Patrick Cohn

Patrick Cohn — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 23:32:27 +0000

Yes, confidence can be fragile for some young athletes. A couple games of no hitting and the doubts can start to creep in to his head.

Comment on Are Your Athletes Searching For Answers by Edgar Dillon

Edgar Dillon — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 19:48:43 +0000

All of the above!! Have never seen my 8 year old let a game become bigger than him until he made the baseball travel team. Football all-star…but baseball is a game that can get to your head and his lack of confidence at the plate is something Ive never experienced with him.

Comment on The Problems with Favoritism in Youth Sports Athletes by ElderBill

ElderBill — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 18:02:41 +0000

Favoritism exists at all levels of our society, from the lowest level you can think of up to the president choosing cabinet members. That is one reason incompetence rears its ugly head. Why you ask yourself sometimes: how did that guy get there? He must have connections. And the children being favored? They will carry on the tradition because they have seen it work. So if you are a victim of favoritism, maybe you don’t even know it, then produce performance grades that can not be denied. And good luck with that.

Comment on Help us Fight Bullying in Sports by Lisa Cohn

Lisa Cohn — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 15:34:32 +0000

Travis,
Thanks for writing us and telling us about your experience. We hope you don’t give up sports altogether. You might talk to your parents about getting some of our programs. If you become a member of Kids’ Sports Psychology, you’ll have access to both our bullying and perfectionism programs.