About this episode

Dr. Karolina Shander discusses the intersection of mental health, identity, and performance for injured athletes.

When Performance Becomes Personal: Mental Health, Identity, and the Injured Athlete with Dr. Karolina Shander In this episode of the FAKTR Podcast, we begin our conversation with Dr. Karolina Shander, licensed psychologist and Certified Mental Performance Consultant specializing in sport and performance psychology. Dr. Shander shares how mental health, identity, recovery, relationships, rest, and performance all intersect for athletes and high-achieving individuals. We discuss her work with athletes and teams, including her connection with USA Gymnastics, and how sport psychology can support the whole human behind the performer. This conversation explores why trust matters when integrating mental health professionals into sports medicine and performance settings, how coaches and providers can better support athletes, and what healthcare professionals should pay attention to when pain, injury, or performance challenges may be connected to identity, worth, stress, or emotional health. Key Themes in Today’s Episode: How mental health professionals fit into the sports medicine team How team culture can impact mental health and performance Why “just push harder” is not always the…

People in this episode

Hosts: Jessica Riddle, Todd Riddle

Guest: Dr. Karolina Shander

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: USA Gymnastics, The Chrysalis Center

More episodes of The FAKTR Podcast

• #132 - When Performance Becomes Personal: Mental Health, Identity, and the Injured Athlete with Dr. Karolina Shander, Part 2 · July 17, 2026 · 34 min
• #130 - When your Clinical Documentation Ends up In Court: What Healthcare Providers Need to Know with Dr. Pankti Fadia, Part 3 · June 12, 2026 · 41 min

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