{"id":30279,"date":"2026-04-24T16:05:42","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T16:05:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/?page_id=30279"},"modified":"2026-06-18T16:21:53","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T16:21:53","slug":"adult-elite-program-directory","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/adult-elite-program-directory\/","title":{"rendered":"Adult Elite Program Directory"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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ELITE ATHLETE WELL-BEING<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Youth to Adulthood<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The normal BMS Project’s treatment of a topic is to first provide brief, cursory orientation information, then to suggest possible next-step resources.\u00a0 Regarding Elite subject matters a more in depth examination is provided.\u00a0 Dr. Nickson is a professional mental health service provider who has himself experienced the highest elite levels of competition, as well as having suffered serious injuries during his athletic career.\u00a0 It is our hope that his valuable knowledge, expertise and experience will assist coaches, athletes and their families to better be able to manage and understand the triumphs and trials associated with adult and\/or Elite (all ages) sports’ competition.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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INTRODUCTION<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Elite athletes face a myriad of stresses and challenges over the course of their sports participation.\u00a0 Often the stresses and pressures are self-imposed.\u00a0 Injuries and criticisms can also contribute to undermine self-confidence and self-esteem.<\/p>

The young to adult elite athlete journey is fraught with both elation and disappointments.\u00a0 Dr. Nickson has traveled that journey and now counsels those that travel similar paths.\u00a0 He shares his insights and life lessons learned.\u00a0 ABC proclaimed, “The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.”\u00a0 Less dramatic is living the dream or suffering the grind, toil & toll of adult\/elite sports participation… and sometimes the loss of the thrill.\u00a0 The insights provided herein are intended to assist less than elite, as well as elite athletes to enjoy the best that sports participation has to offer to be able to withstand and navigate the inevitable setbacks.<\/p>

In this elite athlete module, Dr. Nickson comments and advises athletes and athlete counselors\/mentors regarding the journey of an elite athlete from an early age to maturity.\u00a0 Whether your experience in sports is\/has been a sprint of a marathon, the goal is to finish standing and able to relish the friendships made and events experienced over the course of the race.\u00a0 After reviewing the provided topic articles below, a bibliography and next-step suggestions are provided to allow advisors and\/or elite athletes to continue and enjoy their individual, unique, personal journeys in sports and life.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Christopher Nickson, Ph.D<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Christopher Nickson is a Master\u2019s level mental health professional and former elite athlete that has been committed to working within the mental health field for over the last decade. As a former quarterback for Vanderbilt University and player in the Canadian Football League, Christopher has dedicated his life\u2019s work to enhancing strategies of sustainability for individuals, families, and organizations.<\/p>

Christopher received his Master\u2019s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling in 2015 from Argosy University. While providing therapeutic treatment to youth and families across Middle Tennessee, Christopher coordinated his learnings and the development of his unique skill set with his passion for engaging athletes along a path of psychosocial and spiritual development. As a result, he pursued a niche of sports-based therapeutic services to respond to the holistic developmental needs of elite athletes. In 2017, Christopher founded LifeSkills Sports Academy (LSSA) as an organizational effort to provide individuals and sport-related communities with life skill development tools and therapeutic experiences that contribute to mental health wellness. Christopher later authored the book\u00a0Trauma vs. Self: An Experiential Guide to Self\u00a0<\/i>to assist others in reshaping and redefining traumatic experiences (Mill City Press, 2019).\u00a0<\/i>In 2021, Christopher completed his Doctorate in Education and Organizational Leadership with a specific emphasis on athlete mental health and sport organizational strategies and interventions. Christopher currently practices as a licensed mental health therapist\/counselor in Nashville, Tennessee.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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PERFORMANCE<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPART 1 - CLICK HERE<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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MENTAL HEALTH<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPART 2 - CLICK HERE<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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CHALLENGES & NEEDS<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPART 3 - CLICK HERE<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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BIBLOGRAPHY<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCLICK HERE<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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NEXT STEP RESOURCES<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCLICK HERE<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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ELITE ATHLETE WELL-BEING Youth to Adulthood The normal BMS Project’s treatment of a topic is to first provide brief, cursory orientation information, then to suggest possible next-step resources.\u00a0 Regarding Elite subject matters a more in depth examination is provided.\u00a0 Dr. Nickson is a professional mental health service provider who has himself experienced the highest elite […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"page-builder","ast-site-content-layout":"full-width-container","site-content-style":"unboxed","site-sidebar-style":"unboxed","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"disabled","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"disabled","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"disabled","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-30279","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/30279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30279"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/30279\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30718,"href":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/30279\/revisions\/30718"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thebmsproject.org\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}