Trauma and the mental health of elite athletes

This chapter examines UK-based elite athletes' experiences of trauma-related mental health problems (including depression and anxiety), suicidal ideation and actions, and psychological distress related to loneliness, weight management, and injury. I will reflect upon how conducting trauma-related research can impact the mental health and well-being of the researcher. I explore the ways in which sleeping memories of personal trauma histories were evoked and compounded by vicarious trauma encountered during the research process. The benefits of, and lessons learned from, using in-depth semi-structured interviews to enable elite athletes to share their lived experience of trauma and mental health are discussed. I conclude the chapter by outlining two trauma-informed research practices (safety and cultural, historical, and gender issues) which qualitative researchers might usefully deploy in future sports-related trauma research.