Some might think I’m going out on a limb but, again, let’s look at the research. If you want to lower anxiety levels, and at the same time, build your capacity to withstand stress (something we all need), decide for yourself.
In 1996, Yoo examined self-confidence and competition anxiety among various sport activities. Tennis was among the sports examined to study several psychological factors. Yoo found that the higher the sport orientation, the less competition anxiety and the more self-confidence one had. In his doctoral dissertation research, Ryska, in 1992, found that highly supported tennis players reported lower anxiety than lower-support athletes.
The physical, mental and emotion stress of tennis forces you to increase your capacity for dealing with stress. From a scientific perspective, stress is the stimulus for growth and recovery is when growth occurs. No sport mimics this natural stress-recovery mechanism like tennis. Stress goes up during the point, and then the player has the natural opportunity to learn recovery between points and on the changeover.
But, what do you think? What are your experiences in this arena? The ball’s in your court!