If you are a cheerleading coach and one of your cheerleaders develops a mental block, it is your job to try to figure out what happened.  Sometimes it’s clear and the solution is easy.  This is especially true when it is a technical issue and the fix is a matter of tweaking something the athlete is doing. 

Of course there are the other times when the cause and the fix are not clear. As I mentioned yesterday, high stress families, especially families where feelings are not expressed or allowed or where conflict is not addressed in a healthy way, can be breeding grounds for all sorts of medical and psychological symptoms including mental blocks. (And by the way – high stress is a significant factor associated with sport injuries.)  

You will have your own way of working with blocks and it’s good to follow through with what you usually do – especially if you have had success with other cheerleaders.  But if you find the problem is not resolving or if the athlete is especially emotional, then you might want to consider assessing for family stress. So how do you do this?   (more…)

As I have said before, there are many possible reasons why a cheerleader develops a tumbling mental block.  Good cheerleading coaches recognize that there is no one-size-fits-all mental block nor is there a one-size-fits-all remedy. 

It can be helpful to appreciate the psychological complexity of a block and so this article is devoted to exploring the impact of family stress on a cheerleader and how this might result in a block. (more…)

You might recall that a while back I wrote about how to manage conflicts that can arise in cheerleading.  I introduced a format called Transactional Analysis or TA which shows how different parts of your personality, also known as ego states (see diagram below), can get “hooked” in certain situations. (more…)

Last week you saw how an unpleasant interaction between a cheerleading coach and a cheerleader could be diffused using the Transactional Analysis (TA) paradigm. 

To refresh your memory, the series of interactions (or transactions as they are called in TA) were as follows: (more…)

Yesterday, you saw how a seemingly innocent question from a cheerleading coach led to a nasty interaction with a cheerleader (all hypothetical, of course). 

According to Transactional Analysis (TA), the way your Parent, Adult, and Child ego states or personality parts are constructed depends on your own history – the way you were treated by parents, siblings, and other people in your life plus your own life experiences. (more…)

Yesterday I showed a simple transaction between c cheerleading coach and a cheerleader.  The coach reminded the athlete about cheerleading practice time and the response was neutral. 

Today, as promised, I will show how a simple interaction can result in conflict. (more…)

The format I introduced yesterday can be helpful to cheerleading coaches and cheerleaders in understanding and resolving conflict which may pop up on a team.  Today’s post builds on that. (more…)

Yesterday I began to address a problem that exists in any group or organization (including cheerleading teams) – conflict. Let’s face it – discord is going to be present from time to time whenever two or more people get together.  Personalities, needs and egos can clash, differences of opinions emerge, and there might be a scramble for power and control. 

Lest I sound too pessimistic, let me reassure you that I also have infinite confidence in the ability of humans to work through discord and forge loving supportive relationships. (more…)

It can happen on any cheerleading team.  Sometimes there’s friction.  Sometimes there’s a cheerleader who is particularly difficult or it may be several who seem to disrupt the unity of a team. There are many variations on this kind of scenario. 

A few days ago, a cheerleader wrote to me asking for my help in dealing with a member of her team who “is a bragger and who puts people down.” Since I realize that this is not an isolated incident, I thought I would share with my readers what I told her. (more…)

Yep, that’s right.  Coaches can play a big role in fostering moral development in their cheerleaders.  How?  Well, it may be easier than you think and you’re probably doing it already! 

Performance excellence in cheerleading requires the consistent control of body, mind, and spirit.  This means developing good habits such as attending practices on time, listening attentively to the coach, attending to the rules, practicing diligently, and being a team player.  (more…)