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Taking Sports Psychology Into The Future By
Marilyn Michael
It is now an exciting time of evolution in the field of psychology, and
specifically, sports psychology. The theories underlying how people are
helped to improve their lives are changing. Since the 1940s
psychological methods, especially sports psychology, have reflected the
theories of behaviorism (based on the primary belief we are as we are
because of our behavior). The neurological sciences are now reshaping
psychological methods. NeuroTherapy Training reflects a new model for
psychology called the neurological model (based on the primary belief we
are as we are because of the inner working of the brain and body).
NeuroTherapy Training is the most modern approach to aid athletes in
improving their performances. Beyond that, though, it is a process
designed to improve people physically, chemically and mentally enabling
them to have self control over any
aspect of their lives; any weakness, be it physical, chemical or mental
in nature. The
focus of NeuroTherapy Training is
on teaching people to improve the activity of the brain, actually train
the brain in order to gain self control. It is known that the
activity of the brain, thoughts and emotions, are electrical and
chemical eruptions. NeuroTherapy Training actually incorporates a
modern mental training process called SUBVERBAL SHIFTING® that dramatically reduces the damaging
electrical-chemical basis of negative emotions such as fear, frustration
or anger. It directly reduces the physiology
of negative emotions. Training
the brain to actually diminish the thought-emotions onslaught that gets
in the way of effective athletic performance is a brand new approach.
The majority of sports psychology approaches used today still involve
older methods that try to modify specific golfing behavior. Even
hypnotherapy programs used with athletes that are said to involve mental
reprogramming or “subliminal programming” are outdated with what is
now known about effective psychological improvement. NeuroTherapy Training is a mental training approach that improves the physical,
chemical and mental aspects of a person. The question asked by those
concerned with helping themselves or others improve athletic performance
may be, "What do you mean
physical, chemical and metal weaknesses? I've got good physical ability
it is the mental level that needs improvement.” NeuroTherapy Training gives the athlete a more realistic understanding of things that
impair athletic performance. It teaches them that the activity of their
mental level, their physical level and
their chemical level affects all aspects of their lives including,
and very importantly, athletic performance. NeuroTherapy Training is, a
very intense training program in disciplining the mind to make
improvements in all three levels. To
understand the impact of all three levels on athletic performance, let's
take a hypothetical example. J.R. is a professional golfer playing the
PGA tour. He had a great rookie year, won two tournaments, and now he's
struggling. He's had to requalify six times and faces losing his card.
He is thirty-two years old, married with two small children. His wife is
divorcing him. He faces regular bouts with an ulcer. He's had trouble
with consistency and has dropped out of the top thirty in hitting greens
and fairways in regulation. He's complaining to the sponsor that the
clubs just don't feel right, he's messed around from titanium shafts to
steel shafts to graphite shafts. His teacher says his swing is fine,
that he just needs to relax, take his time and focus more on where the
ball is going. Traditionally,
athletes like J.R. or serious non-professionals, have worked extensively
on their physical game. The real problem may not be their stance, swing
or technique or, if it is, that is easier to address. They are not
maintaining a consistency in the good techniques they know, and tend to
blame it on the mental level, lack of concentration. It
is true, the real problem lies with things the mind is doing or not
doing, but better management of mental processes demands improvement of
physical and chemical, as well as mental levels. NeuroTherapy Training
offers athletes a more sophisticated understanding of how the mind works
and how that affects the body. It also gives them a powerful mental
training program to improve the functioning of all three levels. NeuroTherapy Training teaches that what the mind does emotionally lies at the root of
one's problems. A more sophisticated understanding of emotion, though,
shows that emotional responses are made up of physical, chemical and
mental factors. Back
to J. R. He has undoubtedly much emotion being stimulated with a failing
career, a failing marriage and money pressure. What is this continual
emotional bombardment doing to him? At the physical level he has high
levels of stress. Emotions trigger stress in the body. The more
electrical impulses continually being stimulated in the brain, the more
stress. In the fine muscle responses demanded in the game of golf, this
physical stress will make
changes in his swing and other physical aspects of his game, even his
stamina. Further, emotion is made up of neurochemicals produced by the
brain that flood the cells of the body. This constant dumping of
neurochemicals has been proven to play a role in conditions like ulcers.
When his ulcer is hurting he will not play as well. With
the more sophisticated understanding of the mind taught in NeuroTherapy Training, J.R. would learn that his chemical level is undoubtedly out of
balance. Internal chemical balance is essential for effective
performance. More obvious chemical imbalances may exist in the areas of
blood sugar (or with women, hormonal imbalances). J.R.’s constant
emotional bombardment is causing the pressure of stress on the physical
body, which is known to create or aggravate chemical imbalances. Let's
say he eats inconsistently, eats a lot of sugar, smokes or struggles
with an alcohol problem. In order to effectively perform, the brain
requires an effective chemical balance, especially in the area of blood
sugar, which is the brain’s fuel. His lack of concentration or
inconsistent performance could be significantly triggered by a constant
fluctuation of the brain’s fuel. As part of NeuroTherapy Training
J.R.
would learn about the effects of chemical imbalances on the mind. He
would be taught an uncomplicated way to improve basic chemical
imbalances that may be getting in the way of performance. Now
to J.R.'s mental level. Examination of the mental aspect of athletic
performance is currently in vogue. Most approaches to sports psychology
talk about the need to concentrate, or advise the athlete to emulate
the 10 traits of a winner and even try to help people rate
themselves as more left or right hemisphere dominant. Certainly
the mental aspect of athletic performance is key. In fact it is key to
responses to all aspects of life. The core concept of NeuroTherapy Training is that our responses to emotions are the basis of most all of
our physical, chemical and mental weaknesses. At the mental level J.R.
may worry, "If only I could
concentrate better and hold that concentration for 18 holes,” But
he can't. That is because constant bombardment by the physical and
chemical effects of emotion, which he doesn't know how to stop, causes
his mental level to work less efficiently. When
the brain is sensitized by emotion it
cannot do other functions effectively, functions that are required
for effective athletic performance. Yes, J.R. must manage emotion and
concentrate better but the mind has to be disciplined to do that,
disciplined daily and disciplined effectively just as the body is
disciplined. NeuroTherapy Training instructs and trains J.R. in a daily
disciplining of his mental level. Through
effective mental training, J.R. would find that when he is standing on
the tee he would not be as vulnerable to his mind wandering or to the
responses of rising fear. As he walks between holes he can mentally "let
go" of the bad shot he just made. He will find his ability to
visually practice his game or see the shot ahead is much more powerful
and intense with the regular mental discipline he learns to use as part
of NeuroTherapy Training. NeuroTherapy Training is not about having an athlete visualize the ball going into
the hole or visualize the perfect shot. It takes a step back; it teaches
the athlete that the mental level must be disciplined daily just as they
have disciplined the physical level. It shows how there is a much more
important reason for mental discipline than the act of visualizing an
effective shot. I have been proven that mental responses, especially
emotional responses, affect how we function physically and chemically.
Also there are physical, chemical and mental weaknesses behind any
symptom from which we may suffer, be it a phobia, an ulcer or an
ineffective golf swing. NeuroTherapy Training is a modern and realistic approach for athletes desiring to
improve their performance. It focuses on training their brains in ways
that improve the weaknesses causing their inability to concentrate,
their inconsistent play, their frustration and other problems that keep
them reaching their full athletic potential.
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