In a recent blog series, we discussed the benefits of negative emotions. However, even armed with the knowledge that there are many benefits to these pesky negative emotions, we still frequently try to avoid them. When a situation becomes stressful we often attempt to avoid…

It is becoming more and more commonplace for athletes and performers to tout the benefits of mindfulness meditation. Legendary coach, Phil Jackson, likely played a key role in popularizing mindfulness as a method of performance enhancement when he hired George Mumford to teach mindfulness to…

Most of us have heard of obsessive compulsive disorder? However, what is obsessive compulsive personality disorder (OCPD)? Stuart Ralph, host of The OCD Stories podcast, interviewed clinical psychologist Dr. Steven Phillipson about the difference between OCD and OCPD. Phillipson explained that OCD is a disorder…

Why do some people pull out their hair? Why do some people continue to pull out their hair even when they create large bald spots that leave them feeling embarrassed and ashamed? The TLC Foundation for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors defined trichotillomania as the repetitive pulling…

Experiencing negative emotions is not fun. Most people do not typically enjoy them and make great efforts to avoid them. However, negative emotions give us invaluable information that helps us to guide our lives. In this 4-part series, we are reviewing the value of negative…

Guilt and shame are usually viewed as negative emotions. They make us feel uncomfortable and remind of us of our shortcomings. However, like other negative emotions, they provide us with valuable information. It is only when the severity of our guilt or shame becomes extreme…

Negative emotions, such as anxiety and anger, are usually viewed as experiences to be minimized or avoided. At times, the experience of these emotions can even be viewed by society as character defects or as a lack of resiliency. However, negative emotions such as these…

Often times, positive emotions are viewed as good and negative emotions are viewed as bad. This leads people to resist or avoid experiencing negative emotions. This idea seems to make sense intuitively. However, negative emotions are not necessarily things to be avoided, as they provide…

On occasion, athletes find themselves in a “flow state” or in “the zone.” During these moments, they effortlessly perform at their best. They lose all sense of time and perform without thinking. If someone can string enough of these moments together it is often referred…

What keeps ballplayers, or athletes of any sport, from playing at their best? At times, they get stuck thinking of past mistakes. Other times, they are worried about what will happen after the next pitch is thrown. In other words, they are not focused on…

When I was a sport psychology intern at the Major League Baseball Youth Academy (MLBYA) in Compton, I had the amazing opportunity to work with high school and college baseball players from all across the country. Some of the athletes were high performers, who went…

In the worlds of baseball and softball, the words sport psychology are synonymous with the name Ken Ravizza. Ravizza was a long-time professor at California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) and sport psychology consultant to the Chicago Cubs, the Los Angeles Angels, the Long Beach State…