Northern Ireland senior women’s team manager Tanya Oxtoby has spoken about the importance of having positive mental health.
She provided her thoughts on mental health to promote Mental Health Awareness Week, which is co-ordinated by the Mental Health Foundation each year.
Oxtoby said: “The biggest thing for me is making sure that I am very aware of when I am feeling low in terms of energy and if stress is high.
“I also make sure I have self care. If I can do that as regularly as possible, on a daily basis, whether that’s through exercise or doing something with my son or my partner, perhaps going to the park for half an hour after work or whatever it is, just to try to switch the mind off and recalibrate, then that helps.
“If I feel myself getting really low I make sure I block time out for myself. If my battery’s not full then I will not be in a position to do the job that I need to do.
“Being aware of when you are getting to that point, and obviously in this job there are peak times with that, I try to be as vigilant as I can around where I sit within that and continuing on with self care. I often need a little quiet time to recharge and be ready to go again.”
The senior women’s team boss also said managers, coaches and players don’t need to be going at 100 miles per hour all the time.
“It’s about the quality of what you do and not the quantity of what you do. That kind of education piece is really, really important. It’s something we talk a lot about in camp. We try to give the players a break if we can,” she said.
And she added: “It’s a really intense environment, so if we can give them a couple of hours to go and decompress and switch off, and recharge their batteries doing whatever that may be for them, I think those types of situations is how we change the way people perceive high pressure environments.
“Something that is massively important to me is trying to change the way people think about what the expectations should be. I would much rather have high quality work from players and staff than just average work across a longer period.”
Since 2001 the Mental Health Foundation has been leading Mental Health Awareness Week, bringing the UK together to focus on getting good mental health. This year the week, which runs until18 May, has 'community' as its theme.
The Foundation points out: “Being part of a safe, positive community is vital for our mental health and wellbeing.
“We thrive when we have strong connections with other people and supportive communities that remind us we are not alone. Communities can provide a sense of belonging, safety, support in hard times and give us a sense of purpose.”
Oxtoby believes football can provide a sense of belonging, especially for those who might struggle with their mental health.
She pointed out: “Everybody wants to feel like they have a purpose. Whether that’s through coaching, whether that’s through volunteering, administrative, playing, whatever it may be, I think football gives you that.
“We want football to be the most inclusive place around, where everybody feels like they have a role to play within that and a purpose and a sense of belonging. I think when you are around your team-mates, when you are around your organisation, your club, whatever it may be, a lot of the time all your worries go away for that 90 minutes or 60 minutes or whatever it is.
“Essentially we want to make sure that everybody feels they are welcome, that everybody adds something and contributes something. That’s the beauty of football. It gives you that real sense of purpose and belonging.”
The Northern Ireland senior women’s team manager also offered some advice to those struggling with mental health issues.
She said: “First and foremost I would say hang in there. It does get better. I think every single person goes through a difficult time. I think the level of difficulty might change but everybody goes through tough periods.
“I would say reach out to those who understand you and that you feel comfortable and confident sharing how you are feeling with, but also what can you do for yourself in terms of self care that might make you feel a little bit better.
“It might be a 30-minute walk, it might be a phone call with someone you know who is going to make you laugh or it might just be going and being part of, say, football or basketball for an hour.
“There’s no quick fix but it’s about consistency and little bits every single day. There are people around you who care and want to see you do well. Reach out and continue on your journey because you never know where you are going to end up.”
