Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 12 No. 5 | May 2020

inside.hokiesports.com 15 99 Bradley Drive Christiansburg NRV Mall 540-381-8100 www.holidayinn.com/cburgnorth Full Service Restaurant Bar & Grill Game Day Catering. Dine in or Room Service Looking for a “HOKIE HOME” away from HOME? into consideration. We’ll start these athletes at the appropriate point, whatever level that is. This is another example of how closely our sports science team (sports medicine, nutrition, psychology and strength and conditioning) will have to work together to make sure all this goes smoothly. Luckily, that structure is in place.” Overall, the sports medicine staff has adapted, and fortunately, the current number of injured athletes is relatively small. “I feel as good about it as I can,” Goforth said. “For the most part, we’re in really, really good shape.” COUNSELING SESSIONS ONGOING More than 550 student-athletes represent Virginia Tech in competition each year, and last year, more than half of them met at least once with one of the athletics department’s three psychologists. So Dr. Gary Bennett, associate athletics director for sport psychology, and his staff moved quickly to adjust how they provided their services remotely. “We reached out to everyone, sort of triaged in terms of severity and made sure that we had immediate contact with the people that might be at the highest risk,” Bennett said of the initial plan. “Then eventually we reached out to everyone the week after spring break to make sure that they were aware that we were still going to be available. We’ll continue to do that as long as this thing plays out to make sure folks are doing OK.” Fortunately, technology enables conversations to continue even though the majority of those student-athletes are at home. Bennett wants Tech’s student-athletes to reach out to him and his staff if they need any type of counseling, using social media posts and the coaches to hammer that message home. “We haven’t had as many new student-athlete contacts of late,” Bennett said. “Most of the ones we’re talking to are ones who were already in therapy. There are a few of them whom their conditions are severe enough that we got them connected with someone wherever they’re at. But we don’t have many that are at that level of severity, so we’re just doing telehealth and doing follow-ups and checking in and making sure that people are doing OK. “We have a lot of student-athletes who are onmedication for different things, too. Some of those medications, they don’t need to abruptly discontinue. We stay in touch with those folks to make sure they have prescription refills and continue to monitor how they’re doing.” It has helped Bennett and his staff—and all counselors throughout the country—that most states loosened regulations concerning telehealth during this crisis. Previously, counselors needed to get permission from the licensing agencies in other states to practice telehealth across state lines. That usually took some time, but now that isn’t an issue. As of May 1, none of Tech’s student-athletes had contracted the coronavirus, and Bennett found that few student-athletes worried about contracting it. But many student-athletes are worried about the future, and they ask questions to which no one knows the answer. “Personally, I haven’t talked to a lot of people who are fearing contracting the virus, but there is a lot of anxiety around the whole situation,” Bennett admitted. “The uncertainty of the of the immediate future. I get questions like, ‘Will I be back in Blacksburg this fall? Will we be playing our sport this fall?’ … I think the uncertainty around the whole situation triggers the anxiety and exacerbates it.” Looking ahead, Bennett expressed concerns about student-athletes being away from their teammates for such a long period of time. Teammates often provide a source of strength and comfort for those struggling with loneliness, depression, or anxiety. “One of the most rewarding parts of being a student-athlete is being part of a team and just the bonds and the comradery and the fellowship that you get from being a part of a team,” Bennett said. “That’s such a huge source of support for so many of our athletes. Right now, that’s been cut off. “I know that they’re able to stay in contact in some ways, but it’s just not the same as getting together five or six times a week and working toward a common goal and going through the struggle together. Right now, it feels that the struggle that they’re going through is unimaginable. A lot of times, it feels like they’re going through it by themselves. We’re emphasizing to them to find ways to stay connected. Make sure your teammates are doing OK, make sure your family is doing OK, and take care of yourself.” Bennett and his staff are basically available at any time to meet any of the student-athletes’ needs. He puts contact information in each of the sport psychology group’s social media posts (Instagram: Continued on page 16 IHS extra