Psychological Conditions Influencing Healthy Behavior and Sport

Running head: PSYCHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS INFLUENCING HEALTHY BEHAVIOR
AND SPORT
PSYCHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS INFLUENCING HEALTHY BEHAVIOR AND SPORT
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PSYCHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS INFLUENCING HEALTHY BEHAVIOR AND SPORT
Anxiety
Anxiety is refers to several mental disorders that result in fear, nervousness, uneasiness
and worrying. Anxiety has different forms and each form has different set of signs and
symptoms. Nonetheless, the common symptoms of anxiety may include perspiring, trembling,
feeling dizzy, back pain, fatigued and muscle tension. In addition, the symptoms may include an
increase in heartbeat, easily shocked or surprised, worrying consistently without reasons amongst
others.
The causes of anxiety are multifarious. Some of the most commonly known cause may
include stress, genetics, medical factors like medication side effects and using or withdrawing
from certain illicit substances. The adverse effects of anxiety on health are, it reduces
concentration, loss of appetite, increases headaches, causes panic attacks, breathing problems
amongst others. In the field of sport, anxiety hampers performance because it weakens the
central nervous system, the cardiovascular system and even negatively effects personality
(Ducrocq et al., 2017).
Stress management, exercises, relaxation techniques like meditation and deep breathing
are some basic treatments of anxiety. Apart from that, it could also be treated at home through
self-management. In extreme cases, counseling like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is
effective in treating anxiety. Medications could also be used to treat anxiety.
Bi-polar disease
Bi-polar disorder, previously known as maniac depression is a mental illness that
involves extreme mood swings. Some symptoms of bi-polar disorder during high moods include
spending sprees, abnormal drive for sex, restlessness, increased energy, least amount of sleep

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PSYCHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS INFLUENCING HEALTHY BEHAVIOR AND SPORT
and drug use. The symptoms that could be associated with severe low moods are sadness,
hopelessness, uncontrollable crying, and insomnia, loss of energy and lack of interest in
activities.
Bi-polar disorder has no single cause of occurrence and researches to identify factors that
cause this are ongoing (Whitton, Treadway & Pizzagalli, 2015). Nonetheless, genes, changes in
the brain and most commonly, stress. Many experts are of the view that bi-polar disorder occurs
mostly due to neurobiological disorder that is visible in a particular part of the brain. Bi-polar
disorder is detrimental to healthy living and especially for those in the field of sports. It affects a
person’s self-esteem and even leads to suicidal tendencies.
Treating bi-polar disorder is possible but it requires long-term care. The main treatment
for the disorder is medication mostly involving ‘mood stabilizers’. Psychotherapies and psycho
education are also effective ways to treat bi-polar disorder. Similar to anxiety, bi-polar disease
could also be treated through CBT.
Eating Disorders
Eating disorders could be defined as habits of unbalanced eating habits and relentless
anguish or worry about overweight or shape. It also includes insufficient or excessive
consumption of food, which can eventually harm the wellbeing of an individual. The symptoms
include chronic dieting despite being underweight, constant weight fluctuations, uncomfortable
eating with or around others (Golden et al., 2015). In addition, skipping meals, extreme mood
swings, food rituals and so on are also considered possible symptoms of eating disorders.
The causes of eating disorders too are multifaceted and the precise cause is still not
known. However, psychological, biological and environmental abnormalities may be attributed