Since the pandemic began, student athletes’ lives have changed exponentially and for some it’s caused a ton of unwanted stress to their already loaded plates.

Athletes had no idea what they were in for when the pandemic hit. At first, it wasn’t a big deal but later ended up creating numerous hurdles for athletes to jump over in order to remain competing throughout what seems to be a never ending nightmare.

Students at Morningside University had a variety of different experiences with the pandemic and all had different takes on how they tackled it. Whether it be from their sports schedule, online classes, or social interaction, it makes it difficult for student athletes to manage a healthy schedule on top of worrying about potentially getting Covid.

One student that plays on the baseball team at Morningside, Chris Weins, explains his experience with the pandemic and how it’s affected the way he practices. Weins stated that “I stress about am I getting enough reps” “I knew I was always getting everything out of practice before Covid and now it’s difficult because I don’t have as much time anymore” emphasizing how the quality of work in the practices throughout the week has decreased due to the pandemic affecting his time for quality reps.

Athletes at Morningside have seen a drastic change when it comes to practices and learning. The pandemic has made the majority of them reevaluate whether or not sports is worth the additional stress. For some, athletes see the pandemic as a huge stressor, but others try to view it as nothing more than a bump in the road.

Ethan Alfers, a basketball player at Morningside, explains his experience with the pandemic by stating that “I handle it pretty well, I know some people can get overwhelmed and amped up but it definitely does create health concerns, but you just gotta take a deep breath and go on with your day” noting how easy it is for him to go on through everyday life without the pandemic affecting how he lives.

Athletes like these just see it as another challenge to overcome. For them, it’s all about finding any way to get into the gym without having Covid control their schedule.

These two interactions are definitely at opposite spectrums in terms of their stress levels and everyday life during the pandemic. One thing that’s for certain though, both athletes have seen how it’s affected other people’s mental state with how much the pandemic has affected their everyday life.

Nobody’s experience with the pandemic is the same but everyone is definitely impacted by it one way or another.

On another note, the pandemic has implemented numerous changes in the way athletes go about their everyday life and how it’s affecting the way they comprehend information.

Owen Anderson, Men’s Volleyball player, says how “It’s affected the way I study and how I learn since it’s hard for me to learn online… the times for practice is hard to get used to since they are always changing which makes me stress out about getting my homework done” stating how he’s struggled adapting to life during the pandemic which has increased his stress levels. This seems to be some of the more prominent problems with student athletes throughout the pandemic.

Volleyball head coach, Addison Mertler, explains how “It is a lot more on the individual and what they’re doing, making sure they’re being smart with how they’re interacting” noting how much more athletes have to be aware of what they are doing by making sure they are being safe because one wrong move could potentially put your whole team at risk of getting sick or shutting down their season before it even starts.

Mertler also states that “Today might be your last day, you might never get to play again” implying that the pandemic could shut sports down whenever and for an unknown amount of time so don’t take your time in practice or games for granted.

The pandemic has changed the way athletes learn and how they tackle their sport. Whether it’s schoolwork or constantly running around for their sports, many student athletes are starting to realize that the amount of stress Covid is causing them on a daily basis should be addressed more .

From just taking a breath each day and pushing forward or taking days off of practice to find time to fit in school work the answer is unclear. The only thing that seems coherent is that student athletes have accumulated a ton of unneeded stress during the pandemic.