Girls of all ages and backgrounds run the gauntlet of sports every day, but does anyone notice when the line of physical activity blurs into life-threatening behavior? A study found that women have 1.32 greater odds for risk of depression and anxiety than their male counterparts. In a study of Division 1 NCAA athletes, over one-third of female athletes reported attitudes and symptoms placing them at risk for anorexia nervosa.

Disordered eating and mental health issues are not reserved to D1 athletes and Olympians; your neighbor who plays recreational basketball, a teammate on the swim team who trains every day, even your friend who runs on the school’s track team for fun all could struggle. Having negative body image and unhealthy training choices has become concerningly normalized in the female sports community. It’s becoming prevalent that an emphasis on physical health is resulting in abuse to mental health.

“It’s not about what I’m eating, it’s about what’s in my head” says Braedyn Kistler, a former high school and collegiate level rower. She explained the pressures of trying to slim down to fit into a minimum for the lightweight boat in high school. Kistler says girls on her team normalized unhealthy choices to lose weight quickly; they told her they would run three miles in a trash bag the night before to sweat off extra pounds, or fast all food and water before a weigh in and binge as soon as they were done. With this mindset in place and the pressure to succeed, Braedyn unfortunately developed anorexia and had to recover all her senior year of high school, thus ending her high school crew career.

Braedyn came back to college her freshman year with newfound strength and started crew again, by the end of her sophomore season she was leading the varsity team to victory and was on track to become captain of the team her junior year. But with immense pressure to get better she over-trained herself and sustained an injury before that could come to fruition. “I don’t know if I’d ever have fully recovered if I stayed rowing”, Braedyn reflects. Deciding that her history of anorexia and the physical energy were too much to balance with the intensity of her college crew, Braedyn quit the team after her sophomore season. A choice that was impertinent for a healthy life.

Injury puts athletes at an even higher risk for disordered eating and mental illness. When one has to stop or slow their normal amount of physical exertion due to injury, they feel lost. All the attention towards their physique is now heightened due to the lack of exercise they are not used to. Girls already feel pressured by society and social media to be supermodel skinny; having a muscular toned body may already lead to insecurities, but when one feels they cannot properly keep in shape they may resort to unhealthy eating patterns or fall back into old patterns from their past. Athletes who have to quit their activities or stopped due to underlying issues or mental health needs need to have support. It’s key that ex competitors know they do not need to be involved within a sport to be an athlete.

Mary Arnold, an ultra-runner, who nowadays traverses the tracks of the concrete jungle of New York, wasn’t always a physical beast. Growing up, she wasn’t heavily involved in sports but loved to run. “When I told my track coach I wanted to run, he looked at me and told me I was too big, and I had to throw things”, recollects Mary. Running became a lifestyle for her post college, where she found herself the only girl in the running clubs she joined. Mary explains she’s struggled with her tall stature all throughout high school and even in her adult life. Even though she is physically fit and lean nowadays, body image issues are not unbeknownst in her world. A lady who can run 100 miles still feels insecure in her body, even if to the average person she seems super human.

Lack of representation for girls of all body types makes it difficult for any woman to feel confident if she doesn’t see herself ever represented. Female athletes struggle with this constantly, there are body expectations in many sports. Being healthy and being skinny are not synonyms, but to any girl who does not fit the ideal image of a jock looking in the mirror will lead to self doubts. This precedent is one that needs to change. Skinny, medium height, white women often get more representation than those who do not fit this Eurocentric beauty standard. Every girl wants to feel confident and beautiful in their skin, with society bringing body types in and out of fashion like clothes, it’s always arduous for women to not compare themselves to the models plastered all over her Instagram. Girl athletes often see smaller girls and feel their muscles make them feel too boyish looking and will want to look slimmer. All sports women though are powerful and strong, but powerful and strong comes in all shapes and sizes of bodies. This should be celebrated as beauty has no rules, a six-foot tall basketball player is just as beauteous as the plus size tennis player next to her.

How can we support female athletes? Stephenie Cooper, a therapist who specializes her counsel in former and current athletes, says “Seek out support, whether that’s talking to someone who you feel supported/safe with or seek counseling”. Implementing communication among teammates, coaches, families, doctors, etc. will help stop the root of many mental health and body image issues.  Making sure if girls have to be weighed for their sport that they’re not starving themselves, or if a teammate appears to be struggling with depression, a coach can give her a break, or an athlete is referred to a therapist to help combat game day anxieties. Groups like Mary Arnold’s Run 4 All Women, or positive Instagram pages like Braedyn Kistler’s @braeofsunshine, help empower and support women in all their athletic endeavors. It’s okay for girl athletes to not be okay all the time that doesn’t mean they’re weak. Mental health and eating disorders are scary, but one doesn’t have to struggle alone. A girl with bulimia is no less strong than her teammate that doesn’t struggle with disordered eating. Breaking the stigmas on mental health and supporting the inflicted will make it easier for girls to seek help and feel better about their appearances. Women athletes are Herculean, as a society we need to make sure we do not let their podiums crumble underneath the toes.