Which Events Highlighted Athlete Mental Health & Well-Being?

Super Bowl Week brings no shortage of star-studded events, from music performances and awards shows to high-profile panel discussions. However, this year marked a noticeable shift where discussions on athlete mental health and wellness emerged through interviews and events. While millions of dollars are invested in the physical conditioning of athletes to ensure top-tier performance, mental health support has often been sidelined due to cost and lack of prioritization. More brands and companies are highlighting the value of exceptional mental health, mental performance, and general well-being, which ultimately translates to better on-field performance. What’s different now? A growing number of brands, athletes, and organizations are understanding that peak performance isn’t just about physical skill, but also mental health and mental performance. Here is a look at some of the standout Super Bowl Week events that placed athlete mental health and well-being at the forefront.

More Than A Game Wellness Symposium

On Tuesday, February 4, the NFLPA, NFL Total Wellness, and Tulane University Center for Sport collaborated to host the More Than A Game Wellness Symposium. This symposium, hosted for student-athletes, teachers, and coaches, consisted of a full day of programming including athlete conversations, experiential rotations, and panel discussions. Doug Middleton, former NFL player and Founder of Dream Yoga & Wellness taught yoga during a few breakout sessions. The experiential rotations explored yoga, mental skills, identity exploration, and creative expression.

Sports Psychiatrist on NFL’s Radio Row

On Thursday, February 6, I had an incredible experience attending my first NFL Radio Row day. I was there on a mission to spotlight the importance of athlete mental health, well-being, and mental performance. I started the morning being interviewed on 103.7 ESPN Lafayette, Sports Philanthropy Network, 104.5 ESPN Baton Rouge, KBZE 105.9, and Real Deal Sports Show. On all of these radio shows, I discussed the value of teams investing in high-quality mental health services, such as certified Sports Psychiatrists who have experience working with professional athletes. We also touched on the mentality that goes into preparing for a big game day, like the Super Bowl. The most fascinating part of the whole experience was the fact that every single sports broadcaster who interviewed me on the radio said I was their first interview ever on radio row who focused on the mental part of the game, let alone a Sports Psychiatrist.

As I walked around the convention center during the day, I spoke with a few current and former athletes about transitioning out of the league and defining mental toughness. First, I caught up with Al Smith, former NFL All-Pro Linebacker, about how he was able to successfully transition, from a mindset standpoint, from playing in the league to living life after football. “One thing leading up to that is you have to know what your identity is and who you are outside of football,” said Smith. “Once you understand that and can focus on something other than just the game—it’s what you do, it’s not who you are—understanding that and doing things outside of football is important.”

Next, I spoke to Orlando Brown Jr, a Cincinnati Bengals Player, about his definition of mental toughness. “When I hear mental toughness, I think of trauma—how you’re able to mask your trauma and be able to compartmentalize your emotions and apply them when needed.” Lastly, I asked Jerome Bettis, former NFL running back who played in the NFL for 13 seasons, to defines mental toughness. “It’s the ability to be in a stressful situation and think clearly,” said Bettis.

NFL Players Association Be Well Event for Clinicians

On Friday, February 7, the NFL Players Association held an event with a focus on programming for clinicians and sports psychiatrists. Organized by Amber Cargill, Psy.D., Director of Player Wellness at the NFLPA, the program consisted of a panel discussion with two active and two former NFL players, as well as a player life cycle session and breath work for performance workshop. This year, the American Psychiatric Association Foundation collaborated with the NFLPA on this event where there were over 70 clinicians and sports psychiatrists in attendance. Collaborations like this are showing acceptance for the integration of Sports Psychiatry into the mix amongst other mental health clinicians working in sport. I was fortunate to have had the opportunity to moderate the discussion with the active and former NFL players, who opened up about their individual, unique lived experiences with mental health and supporting their well-being while playing in the league.

Leigh Steinberg’s Super Bowl Party: Brain Health Summit

Leigh Steinberg, a well-known sports agent, philanthropist, and author, holds an annual Super Bowl Party in the host city with the first hour of the event dedicated to the Brain Health Summit. This year, Steinberg’s Super Bowl Party was held at the Jazz Museum in New Orleans and focused on the impact music has on our brain and mental health. This year’s Brain Health Summit, hosted by Nicole Roberts, DrPH, included 5 panelists: Dr. Gregory W. Stewart, Al Smith, Dr. James Kelly, Katarina Maloney, and Rawle Andrews, Jr., Esq. Following this discussion was the Health Innovation Panel, moderated by, Brook Choulet, M.D. This second session featured 5 panelists: Dr. Stephen Shaya, Dr. Komal Ashraf, Derek Du Chesne, Jasmine Smith, and Dr. Ryan D’Arcy. Steinberg is truly leveraging his platform for good by highlighting the importance of mental health and well-being, not just in athletes, but in everyone.

Looking Ahead to Next Year

These are just a few of the many events that occurred during the week leading up to the big game. It’s my sincere hope that each year, there are more and more events and brand activations that set the stage for these crucial conversations. By normalizing the discussion around athlete mental health and wellness in professional sports, hopefully, more athletes will feel comfortable seeking services in the future. Not only is it important to educate athletes, teams, and brands about its importance, but it’s also necessary to provide specialized education to clinicians as well who are working with this population. My goal for next year is to share an event list double this size with mind health, wellness, and mental performance events and activations during Super Bowl Week in 2026.