It has been talked about for a long time: How great is the psychological burden in the esports scene?
For a long time this happened much too casually.
That changed last spring at the latest when two star players of the Counter-Strike scene had to take a break due to stress.
Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander and Andreas “Xyp9x” Højsleth had raced from title to title with the Astralis team, now both of them hit the emergency brake.
It wasn't until months later that they were both able to return to the team.
They are not isolated cases - and others do not make the way back.
Your job demands a lot from professional esporters.
In competition and training, they achieve top cognitive and mental performance over many hours.
They sit a lot and often move too little.
The stress can also be enormous next to the stage.
At an early age, the talents move to gaming houses with a lot of training and sometimes little privacy.
You have to work hard because the pressure of competition is enormous.
Not many players can make a living from esports and every day new talents are crowding into the rare places in the professional teams.
It is a constant struggle so that the hard-earned career does not come to an early end.
There are offers of help, but they are expensive
Many professional organizations have long recognized the problem of mental stress.
They have created an environment for their professionals in which they can get professional help in various areas of life.
Whole staff take care of issues such as nutrition, sleep, exercise and psychological support.
But such an offer is expensive and not all teams can afford so many and so qualified employees.
In our podcast “Game Changer” we talk to the former “League of Legends” professional Maurice “Amazing” Stückenschneider.
The 26-year-old has celebrated great successes in esports, but also went through many low points, including burnout.
We learn from Mia Stellberg how, as a sports psychologist, she helps young esporters to cope better with the challenges of competition and everyday life.
We are also talking to Dr.
Christopher Grieben, under whose direction the Sport University Cologne regularly conducts studies on the training and health behavior of gamers.
Both give helpful tips on what amateur gamers can learn from professionals.
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