Diego Schwartzman opens up about mental health struggles, confirms working with psychologist

| by Sebastian Dahlman

Diego Schwartzman has joined the growing list of professional athletes who have disclosed that they see a psychologist.

The top player from Argentina has had a lengthy career and has consistently performed well, as seen by his longevity. He was ranked number 14 when the year began, and as of right now, he is ranked number 18, indicating that he has had another good year despite producing few notable results.

Even so, Schwartzman dealt with a lot of stress related to tennis admitting to fighting off a couple of anxiety attacks: "This year I had quite a few anxiety attacks. Tennis is a bit like that" said Schwartzman adding:

"The best thing is to aim for the short term and set goals Tour after Tour (after each season). If they told me at 17 that I was going to do what I have done, I would have signed, but when you enter in the vortex it is a rhythm that is difficult to stop."

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In the interview, he said that the moment he made it to the semifinal at Roland Garros, expectations began to rise. He had trouble distinguishing between desirable and undesirable outcomes:

"You reach the semi-finals at Roland Garros, but then you reach the quarter-finals at an ATP 500 and you wonder if it’s good or bad. This year I started 14th in the world. Today, I’m 18th and I say to myself: ‘What a shitty year.’ Then I think and it is not like that. One enters into that of listening to the other, both in the positive and in the criticism. When the bad comes, one loses the analysis of what is happening"

As many others, Schwartzman looked for preossional help admitting that he's been working with a psychologist:

“This year I started therapy for everything that happens to me. Not only on the court but in life, for fears, anxieties and things that are normal. For the first time I started that process because I felt that I needed a little outside help to have other tools to solve."

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