About the Guest
Audrey Grunst is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and founder of Simply Bee Counseling, a therapy practice focused on age 5+ through the lifespan, including therapy, dietician, medication management, and neuropsychological testing, located in Vernon Hills, IL, with a specialization in athletes. She is also a former Division I athlete and youth 3-sport athlete (softball, volleyball, and track), giving her a firsthand perspective on the unique pressures young athletes face.

Episode Overview
In this episode, Audrey digs into the intersection of mental health and athletic performance for female athletes. She shares her framework for understanding the difference between mental health and mental performance, explores her copyright Growth & Resiliency Model(C), and unpacks the realities of disordered eating and RED-S in sport.

Key Topics Discussed
Mental Health vs. Mental Performance

Self-awareness of “The Big 4” is the foundation of Audrey’s model — thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, and urges.

Mental performance is the hardware (brain) and software (mind).

Skills are something we already have; tools are what we learn and build.

Growth & Resiliency Model
Built around self-awareness

Key emotional states to watch: Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired (HALT)

Daniel LaGrange, reference: “soft, warm, gentle little bird — sweet little bird; scary spider lays on the bird”

REDs: Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport

Eating Disorders vs. Disordered Eating
Eating disorder = diagnosed, impacting school schedule, sleep, eating with friends
Disordered eating = slower symptom train, part of abnormal development

When to Seek Help:
More bad days than good days
Is the duration going on too long, or is it happening quickly?
Subjective experience matters; a setback is still a setback

For Coaches & Parents:
Values → Non-judgment, thoughtful inventory
Tips for athletes to help parents/caretakers understand: they need a parent, not a coach
Unconditional love.
Letting parents off the hook; stay in your role

Key Quotes
On parents who want to play the role of coach:

“Don’t. Talk to them about everything except performance. Athletes don’t need another coach — they need a parent.”

On what to tell an athlete who thinks they are experiencing anxiety:

“Take a step back. Ask yourself — has this been going on a long time, or is this a hot minute?”

Questions Explored in This Episode

What percentage of athletes at Simply Bee are already experiencing symptoms when they arrive?

What is an eating disorder, how does it differ from disordered eating, and when is it time to seek professional help?

How can we understand harmful patterns of exercise — is there a term like compulsive exercise or exercise addiction?

Sport often supports mental health — so what are the effects when it instead triggers problems?
How do we step back and assess: has this been going on all the time, or is it a hot moment (catastrophizing)?

Coach or athlete: who takes the lead?

Connect with Audrey & Simply Bee Counseling
https://www.simplybeecounseling.net/