By: Briana Galeazzi Caring For The Whole Athlete It is very important for me to care for the whole person rather than just the athlete or their physical injury. Student-athletes are humans first who play sports so we must care for them as such. One tactic I try to use is to simply check in with them first before directing our conversation to their injury or sport. It may seem plain, but just saying “Hey, what’s up?” or “How are you?” before you say “How’s the knee feeling?” i

Courtney O'Malley, a former Division I goalkeeper and now a Division I assistant coach at Ohio University, shares how learning to play free, lean on her teammates and ask for help shaped her mental health and her definition of success.