A GEELONG-based publicist is supporting calls for the AFL to implement a stronger mental health plan for its players, following last month\u2019s incident involving Kangaroos star Majak Daw.<\/p>\n
According to a survey by the AFL Players\u2019 Association, mental health was the biggest\u00a0concern of players, with many highlighting the scrutiny levelled at them via social media.<\/p>\n
The AFL is now considering making it compulsory for clubs to allocate money in their football department cap towards hiring mental health experts.<\/p>\n
Publicist and founder of social media consultancy The Digital Athlete, Carly Post, has seen first-hand the way that social media has changed sporting culture, and said Daw\u2019s\u00a0incident was exactly why she had started the business.<\/p>\n
\u201cAthletes simply aren\u2019t being educated and empowered, or given the tools they need to adequately navigate the digital world we find ourselves in, and it is severely impacting their mental health.<\/p>\n
\u201cMisuse of social media in sport is rife but the vast majority of it isn\u2019t malicious; it\u2019s through a lack of understanding.<\/p>\n
\u201cAthletes need to better grasp the social media landscape from privacy and permanency to legality, the concept of \u2018the digital self\u2019, plus the potential impact on athlete performance and how to manage it.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said older generations of management and coaches who had not grown up with social media did not understand it or want to deal with it, but it was \u201cirresponsible and really quite foolish to instruct players to simply stay off social media\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the responsibility of major sporting organisations, clubs, coaches and even individual players to ensure that this base is covered, particularly for new draftees who go from virtually unknown to superstar overnight. More must be done.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Post has recently returned from a research tour of the US and is working closely with retired professional basketball player Chris Anstey, professional golfer Jack Wilson and track athlete Luke Mathews, as well as delivering sessions to a number of schools, sporting clubs and other athletes earmarked for potential draft.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A GEELONG-based publicist is supporting calls for the AFL to implement a stronger mental health plan for its players, following last month\u2019s incident involving Kangaroos star Majak Daw. According to a survey by the AFL Players\u2019 Association, mental health was the biggest\u00a0concern of players, with many highlighting the scrutiny levelled at them via social media. […]<\/p>\n