Dr. Ramel Kweku Smith has worked in sports psychology for ten years. He served as the Milwaukee Bucks’ full-time team Psychologist, providing clinical services to the players and coaching staff. He has also contracted with NFL teams and served on the NFL clinical advisory team. In his current position with the USOPC, Dr. Smith supports our US athletes in pursuing Olympic gold. The 2024 Olympics ended last month, but the season for sports psychologists and the athletes they serve is a year-long game. Following the conclusion of the Olympics, I spoke with him about the importance of mental health and sports therapy on the playing field and in life.
An athlete’s skills are often associated with their physical attributes. How fast they can run, how high they can jump, and how much weight they can lift are the usual measuring sticks for assessing their effectiveness on the field or court. However, what often gets undersold is the importance of an athlete’s mental health because their state of mind is crucial in their decisions on the field.
Sports psychologists are appointed to help athletes improve their performance. However, there are several negative stigmas surrounding therapy. One is that if a person seeks help, something is “wrong” with them, or they are “weak.” This is particularly true with athletes because they are often perceived as once-in-a-generation prototypes with superhuman capabilities.
However, Dr. Smith says that is not the case at all. He notes that when it comes to the struggles that lead athletes to seek therapy, they are no different from the average Joe.
“I don’t care who you are. Every person has anxiety. Every person has self-doubt. It doesn’t have to be something traumatic that happened in childhood. You know, everybody has a family member that may die. You know, everybody has a person that may go through some difficult situations. You know, every person wants to have things that will make them better,” he said.
“It’s always good to have a coach to sharpen the saw. Give you ideas that you never thought about. Or help refine the ideas that you did employ and maybe are going well and can be better, or maybe have gotten a little dull over the years. You need a little insight to be a little better.”
However, whether you are an athlete or an average Joe, the goal of therapy remains the same: achieving rehabilitation. The main indicator that therapy is working for a person is their performance, whether in the field of play or life.
“It’s different for everybody, but when you start looking at it, the proof is how a person performs. How they are before and after the performance, how they actually perform, and how they feel,” Dr. Smith added.
“So, depending on what area the individual is having certain issues in, sometimes people have anxiety before a big match. And so if we work together and they say, hey, you know what, my anxiety is still there, but it’s, you know, it’s at a healthy point, I’m using it to be able to propel me to go further. It’s not paralyzing me. It’s propelling me.
That’s a good sign when you have that self-report back. When you see performance, whether it’s a team or an individual, where you see a team doing everything from a camaraderie standpoint that you look for to help them have dividends on the court, that’s a great thing.”
Whether you are an athlete or an accountant, life throws curveballs at you. And as people, we all have to face that turbulence. Therapy is an effective vehicle to help us navigate life’s trials. However, Dr. Smith says the key to having the most effective outcome is to seek help before trouble arises.
“If you already have an established relationship, talking to someone in critical times is easier than trying to find somebody, as most people do, even within the general population. Most people treat psychology, you know, kind of as a spare tire. They don’t use it until something happens, and then they want to see someone,” Dr. Smith added.
“I always like to tell people, let’s be proactive about our mental health. If you’re doing good, that person can serve as a performance coach and help you improve in every area of your life.”