Mental Health Coaching Begins On the Soccer Field

A soccer field may be an unlikely place to find a mental wellness program directed at school-aged athletes, but along with passing, dribbling, and ball skills, youngsters in the Philadelphia region are learning coping strategies that will help them build resilience long after the final whistle is blown.

HeadFirst is an innovative mental health initiative launched by the Philadelphia Union Foundation in partnership with Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM) and with the support of Independence Blue Cross (IBX). The wellness program gives young athletes access to mental health tools they can use now and into the future.

For the athletes who have participated in the program, talking about personal struggles such as grief, anxiety, depression, bullying, or the effects of social media on their self-esteem is as standard as lacing up their cleats.

Meeting People Where They Are

“One of the really important principles of healthcare is meeting people where they are,” explains Dr. Rodrigo Cerdá, Senior Vice President of Health Services and Chief Medical Officer at IBX.

“Many of our youth are on the soccer pitch every week. The HeadFirst program creates a safe place where they feel comfortable. We wanted to get involved because it seemed like a perfect collaboration based on a shared mission of serving the community and addressing behavioral health.”

“This program is another place young people can get more tools to succeed in life and deal with adversity.”

HeadFirst is one more way to treat the whole person, an approach IBX prioritizes, according to Dr. Cerdá. “The more tools and resources we can give kids and adolescents and integrate into activities they are already engaged in, the better.”

Working with the Philadelphia Union Foundation has made it easier to address mental health in younger people. Players get access to in-person seminars conducted by professionals from PCOM and a digital tool kit that they and their parents and coaches can use. Each athlete receives a bag tag with a QR code that allows them to check out the online resources, created by PCOM School of Professional and Applied Psychology faculty members Dr. Lisa Corbin and Dr. Jessica Kendorski, any time.

“During the in-person seminars, players express themselves, share experiences and are taught mental exercises to use on and off the field,” says Dr. Scott Glassman, Director of the Master of Applied Positive Psychology Program at PCOM, who originally developed the curriculum, “A Happier You” at PCOM to improve patient well-being in PCOM’s Healthcare Centers.

Some studies have found mental health challenges affect athletes at higher rates than non-athletes. (1) “About 30% of college athletes struggle with depression and 20% deal with anxiety,” Dr. Glassman says.

One study found that 50% of elite athletes experience mental health challenges at some point in their lifetimes, he adds. “Why wait for problems to develop? We’ve designed our curriculum for younger players to help them be proactive about well-being before it gets to that stage.”

“Athletes are often perfectionists, and when things don’t go right, they need coping skills,” adds Dr. Glassman. “So, whether it’s how to deal with getting down on yourself, or having anxiety or depression, at some point the skills they learn here will help them throughout their lives.

“One big theme is how to address the negative voice in your head,” he says, “especially what to tell yourself when things don’t go well. They learn to be more present and appreciate the process of playing their sport rather than focusing solely on the outcome.”

Post-Pandemic, Young People In Crisis

Even before the pandemic, mental health issues were growing among young people, and rates of depression, anxiety, and self-destructive behavior have significantly increased since the post-pandemic period. (2)

Since the pandemic, the rate of mental health conditions among young people aged 8 to 20 has risen sharply, studies have shown. (3) Researchers at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center found that almost all racial and gender subgroups had significantly higher rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts during the pandemic and in the post-pandemic period, but this is especially true among Black, Asian and Hispanic females.

“One study showed that 50% of elite athletes experience some mental health challenge in their lifetime.”

“Athletes are under an immense amount of stress, and especially student athletes who have the added pressure to perform at school and on the field,” says Julia Schumacher, A Happier You Program Coordinator. “These athletes are often involved in other things, making their whole performance-based life a pressure cooker.”

Mental Health Does Not Discriminate

“Mental health does not discriminate. It affects everyone,” says Alyssa Radu, the Philadelphia Union Foundation’s Director of Charitable Operations. “Whether experiencing anxiety, depression, grief, bullying, the ill effects of social media, or behavioral issues like substance abuse, the HeadFirst program is designed to recognize that mental health is just as important as physical health.”

Tragically, a suicide impacted one of the Philadelphia Union Foundation’s board member’s family back in 2021, and it galvanized the organization to explore a mental health initiative, leading to the launch of HeadFirst in the fall of 2023.

Radu says, “At the Philadelphia Union Foundation, we recognize the powerful platform we possess and feel a profound responsibility to harness it for the greater good. Soccer is not just our passion—it’s our catalyst for change. Through our HeadFirst initiative, we aim to transcend the boundaries of the sport, leveraging the universal language of soccer to touch lives, open minds, and advocate for mental wellness in our community and beyond.”

Getting involved with mental health was a natural way to give back for the Philadelphia Union Foundation, explains Radu, since giving back to the community is their mission.

“Soccer makes it easier to talk about mental health.”

“Soccer makes it easier to talk about mental health,” says Radu. “Bringing professionals in to meet with athletes makes it easier. We don’t lead with mental health. We use videos and players to introduce concepts and start conversations.”

Pro Athletes Get In On The Action

Philadelphia Union captain and HeadFirst spokesperson Alejandro Bedoya addresses how the conversation around mental health has changed since he first started playing. “Men’s sports is so much about machismo. Growing up and in college, vulnerability was seen as a sign of weakness. Maybe you were worried the kids would say you were soft,” he says.

“But now others have brought more attention to it. Vulnerability is seen as a strength. It shows you are dealing with things other people deal with on a regular basis. It’s been helpful for other athletes to come forward,” he adds. “It’s helpful when kids see that you can struggle too, just like anybody else.”

Athletes like Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, gymnast Simone Biles and tennis star Naomi Osaka have each made their struggles with mental health public, bringing much-needed attention to the fact that no matter how fit, athletic, and competitive you are, you can have mental health challenges that need addressing.

The Philadelphia Union Foundation has already given out nearly 8,500 bag tags, each with a QR code that makes it easy to find the online resources. Radu says she now sees hundreds of visits to the website a day and she expects traffic to grow. The goal is to give out 250,000 bag tags so players can access resources whenever they need it.

Giving Back to the Community, One Team at a Time

“The players enjoy the sessions,” says Mary Grace Levis, the U19 Chester Union Head Coach, who is studying for her masters in sports psychology. She sees the program paying big dividends for the players, especially kids who are dealing with issues at home.

“It makes talking about your struggles matter of fact. They talk about everything. It also allows coaches and parents to feel like they have what they need to approach a youngster who appears to be struggling.”

The Players Apply What They Learn

During the seminars, players first meet off the field, then take their new tools onto the field. “That’s when they get to implement the types of things they’ve been working on,” Levis says. Lastly, they come back inside and talk about how it went. “That’s a moment where you really see how this impacts the players. It’s a real advantage for them.”

A surprise benefit Levis saw was an improved level of play. By practicing empathy toward teammates and learning how to bounce back from mistakes, the players’ soccer improved. “We would go back to the field and implement different ways to deal with frustration, and instead of getting down on themselves, the players played better.”

Treating the Whole Person: A Win-Win

“HeadFirst is just one of the ways that we’re helping raise awareness of the type of support that young people have access to in their communities,” Dr. Cerdá explains. “The program is aligned with everything else we’re doing as part of our mission at IBX.”

This approach to “whole person health” is yielding results, Dr. Cerdá says, not just in behavioral health outcomes such as anxiety and depression, but in the management of other chronic health conditions for people of all ages.

“When people have access to behavioral health care, we see improvements in their physical health,” Dr. Cerdá explains. “They manage their hypertension and diabetes better. They spend less time in the hospital, less time in the ER,” he adds. “So that’s a win for everybody.”

It takes a village, or in this case, partners like a soccer foundation and an osteopathic medical school that educates health professionals to care for the whole person. “When we think about our mission, we’re dedicated to enhancing the health and wellbeing of the people and the communities we serve,” Dr. Cerdá adds. “Engaging community partners like the Union Foundation and PCOM to find new ways to do that makes a lot of sense.”

“We are approaching care in a different way by looking at all the factors that can affect a person’s well-being,” says Dr. Cerdá. “This approach, where we look at the whole person, is fundamental to our overall strategy. We strongly believe that physical health and mental health are inseparable.”

For teens: If you are struggling or you are in danger of hurting yourself or someone else, you need to reach out for help right now.

For parents: If you think your child is exhibiting signs of depression, talk to your child’s primary care provider, or call the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at 215-590-7555. IBX members can also call the number on the back of their ID card.

LUCY DANZIGER is a journalist, author and the former editor-in-chief of Self magazine, Women Sports & Fitness, and The Beet.

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