One on One with Stay in the Game Ambassador, Samantha Livingstone
June 12, 2020
Stay in the Game Network Ambassador, Samantha Arsenault Livingstone is an Olympic Gold Medalist, high-performance consultant, speaker, educator and mental health advocate. She is the founder of Livingstone High Performance and the Whole Athlete Initiative (the WAI), providing support to athletes, coaches, parents and organizations to elevate mental health and improve performance.
In an excerpt from our Stay in the Game bulletin, Samantha gives her thoughts on athletes speaking out on mental health, her favorite sporting moments and tips on strengthening your "mindfulness muscle.
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Obviously sport has had a huge impact on your life. Are there any lessons that you’ve learned through sport that really stick out?
Life, like sport, will throw us curve balls - and some will even knock us down for a while. Our power isn’t in the not-falling down; it’s in our ability to respond and rise. We do that by asking for and allowing help; identifying what we can and cannot control; staying in our lane; surrounding ourselves with people who believe in us; and taking the next best step, one at a time.
While you do have teammates in the freestyle relay, swimming is more of an individual sport. How do you think being in an individual sport impacts an athlete’s mental health?
It feeds the illusion of control -- this idea that if we just get it right, we can control the outcome. In individual sports, when we fall short, or the result isn’t what we want it to be - we blame ourselves.
Just try harder. In some ways, it’s easier to blame ourselves than it is to accept the reality that there are certain things outside of our control, though the cost is high -- leaving us feeling like we’re never enough.
We know that perfectionism - the belief that if we just look, act, achieve in a certain way, then we’ll be protected from the pain of shame, judgement and blame - is correlated to mental illness. While perfectionism permeates all sports - individual sports provide an environment where that belief tends to be reinforced.
How has COVID-19 affected you? What are you doing to protect your mental health during these difficult times?
I’ve spent the better part of the past two decades working with therapists, coaches and mentors - learning how to positively cope with anxiety, depression and trauma, and I’ve recovered from an eating disorder. I’ve learned what tools and supports help me lean in to uncertainty with hope and awe and have learned how to release the grip of fear and the forward looping that pulls us from the present moment. So in some ways I feel like I've been preparing for this moment.
With that said, I’ve struggled too. The calls to stay home, isolate and move away from activities, even though for a cause, mimics the pulls of depression. I’ve felt the full range of emotions - and have had to bring my mind back from the negative what if looping.
We’re seeing more and more athletes speak out about their struggles with mental health now. Why do you think that is?
Because courage is contagious!! Struggle is a universal part of being human, though it’s often the last thing we want to reveal or talk about. There are still so many false, pervasive beliefs in sport and society about revealing struggle and asking for help. We’ve bought into this idea that asking for help is weakness; that success doesn’t count if we don’t go it alone; that we’ll be revealed as imposters if we don’t have it all together. I think what we’re seeing is a movement of athletes who are bravely standing up to declare their humanness. When you walk through the pain of mental illness and get to the other side, you know there’s a better way. And that’s what we’re doing - we’re tearing down the structures and systems that no longer serve us and leading a new generation of athletes into an arena where greatness and health coexist.
Mental health struggles can leave us feeling alone and broken. When someone shares their story, we hear it in first person. As they share, they bring light to these not-often-talked about experiences. In doing so, they help others who are struggling to feel seen. It’s powerful.
I also think we’ve reached a point where we can no longer push aside the conversation: suicide is the second leading cause of death in youth age 10-24. Every day in the U.S. more than 5,240 students in grades 7-12 attempt suicide; 4 out of 5 have clear warning signs. We must do better.
Mental health is something that impacts all of us - we all have mental health. Our mental health fluctuates in the same ways our physical health does - and some of us, myself included, need the help of professionals to return to a healthy state.
As a Stay In The Game Network Ambassador, how do you hope to use the combination of sport and collaboration in order to promote mental health?
We’re all born with a magic that lives inside of ourselves. Sport is simply a vehicle to tap into that magic. Sport lifts us and unites us, because for a moment in time, what usually stands between us fades away and we SEE each other. And in each other, we see ourselves. It offers us an opportunity to grow individually and collectively as we face the many challenges that are part of the game.
To effect positive change on the mental health front, it’s going to take work at all levels - from organizations and teams to the individual level. Athletes are often role models - showing us what’s possible. Coaches are part of our collective village; they are on the front lines, empowering + equipping athletes with the skills they need to thrive.
In many ways, our journey through sport is an accelerated masterclass on life. We learn how to set goals, do the work, face failure, navigate feedback, work together for a common purpose. We’re forced to face our humanness - what better place is there to become equipped with the skill to rise on all fronts?
What is the first thing you want to work on with an athlete who’s struggling with their mental health?
One of the hats I wear is an instructor of Mental Health First Aid. In the training, I teach a five-step action plan to support those who may be navigating mental health struggles: ALGEE. Assess for risk of suicide or harm; Listen non-judgementally; Give reassurance + information; Encourage appropriate professional help; Encourage self-help and other support strategies.
In my work as a high-performance consultant, I have the opportunity to work with athletes 1:1. When someone is struggling with mental health challenges, I implement ALGEE - though not necessarily in any particular order. The first skill we work on is self-awareness!!
What is your second favorite sporting moment? I’m assuming winning an Olympic Gold Medal is first.
This is always a tough one to answer because the high moments all brought something different to my life. If I were forced to pick one - it would be a tie (is this cheating?!!) -- standing atop the NCAA podium with my teammates, bringing the national championship back to Athens, GA AND standing atop the Olympic podium with my teammates.
Do you have any advice for athletes whose Olympic dreams have been affected by this pandemic and how to maintain a positive outlook?
I work with a few! What I’ve shared with them relates back to the greatest lesson I learned from sport: Control the controllables. We don’t have control over so many things, but we are not powerless. We do have control over our response. We get to choose what we focus on; what stories we tell ourselves; where we put our energy. As hard as this pandemic has been to endure, it’s also brought many gifts.
I think it’s extremely important - critical - to allow the emotion that comes up to move through us, including the grief. It’s also important to remember that lows don’t last when we move toward our tools. We cannot rise if we’re on the ground beating ourselves up.
Take the time to strengthen your mindfulness muscle - it’ll help to elevate your mental health and, come game time, increase your ability to access flow state (peak performance). It’s a win-win. Notice what’s coming up, especially the storytelling and mind traps. Breathe. Name it. Meet yourself with kindness + curiosity. Take the next best step.
The Stay in the Game Network is a collaboration of sport, healthcare and social change organizations using sport as a platform and catalyst to end stigmas and promote mental wellness.
Samantha will be speaking on Supporting Athletes Through Adversity on June 15 during Beyond Sport Workshop Week. Secure your place today!