Sport Parenting Is the Mirror: Why This Feels So Personal
By Isabel Prystawik – Motionally Counselling and Facilitation
Somatic Counselling in Vernon, British Columbia | Okanagan Valley
There’s a moment that surprises almost every parent.
You sign your child up for sport because it feels like a good thing.
Healthy. Social. Character-building. Fun.
And then one day you realize your nervous system lives at the rink, pitch or pool.
Your stomach drops before games.
Your mood follows the score.
You replay conversations with coaches in your head.
You lie awake thinking about tryouts, injuries, cuts, rankings, next season.
And you find yourself wondering:
Why is this affecting me so much?
Because it’s not just sport.
Sport is not the work. It’s the mirror.
Parenting, sport, and sport-parenting are not the subject of my work.
They are the lens.
They reveal how we relate to:
fear
connection
responsibility
control
hope
disappointment
success
failure
worth
Sport just turns up the volume.
It places us in a high-stakes environment where outcomes matter, identities form, futures feel uncertain, and love is deeply invested. Of course it activates us. Of course it gets under our skin. Of course it touches places we didn’t know were so tender.
This isn’t a parenting problem.
It’s a human one.
The emotional load no one talks about
Sport parents carry an invisible emotional load.
You’re holding your child’s dreams, disappointments, confidence, identity, your family’s schedule, your finances, and your future fears — all while trying to stay positive, steady, and supportive.
But you’re human.
You get attached.
You get invested.
You get scared.
You get tired.
And when you don’t have a place to put all of that, it spills out — in the car, in the stands, at the dinner table, in your sleep.
Not because you’re doing it wrong.
But because you care.
This isn’t about being a better parent
This isn’t about fixing your reactions or becoming more detached.
It’s about getting curious about them.
It’s about asking:
What am I afraid of here?
What do I believe about success?
What does failure mean to me?
Where does my sense of worth live?
Sport just happens to be one of the clearest places life shows us who we are when the stakes feel high.
A different kind of support
At Motionally, I offer grounded, body-based counselling and facilitation for people who carry a lot.
My work isn’t about quick fixes or doing more.
It’s about slowing down, listening to your body, and building a more honest, compassionate relationship with yourself.
Not so you can become a “better” parent.
But so you can stay connected to yourself in the places life feels most tender.
Because when you have a relationship with yourself, everything else becomes steadier too.
If you’re curious about what it might feel like to have a space that’s just for you, you’re welcome to reach out.
You don’t have to hold it all alone.