How to Manage Anxious Thoughts After Games

It’s natural for us to spend a lot of time talking about the anxious thoughts you have leading into games. But what about the anxious thoughts you have after games?

Let’s say you’ve played a game and now you’re lying in bed at night. The game keeps racing through your mind. You keep thinking about what happened during the game, replaying those mistakes you made, and worrying about what will happen in the future.

It’s really important that we manage this type of anxious thinking, because when you have anxious thoughts postgame, that can lead to more anxiety moving forward and less confidence for your next competition.

An Athlete’s Example

I was on a coaching call earlier this morning with an athlete, and she and I were talking about this exact idea. After her competition last weekend, she started to feel more anxious once it was over.

The previous week, we had gone over a pre-competition routine that helped her feel calmer and less anxious as she went into the event. She did pretty well—but naturally, like every athlete, she made some mistakes during the competition.

Those mistakes were replaying in her mind afterwards.

The main reason we began talking about this is because her next competition is in two weeks, and it’s a multi-day event. She told me that during these multi-day competitions, she often struggles the second or third day because of the anxiety she feels from the previous day.

She struggles to fall asleep and has less confidence going into the next day.

So we began going over a post-performance routine or evaluation to help her sift through her thinking, and then use some tools before bed to calm her mind.

That’s what I want to share with you now.

Why You Feel Anxious After Games

When you’re experiencing a lot of anxious thoughts after a competition—feeling worried about what happened and replaying mistakes—you have to look at what’s really driving this type of thinking.

Number one, it’s you wishing you hadn’t made those mistakes. You’re going back over them, wishing you could change what happened.

But there’s also a part of you trying to figure out how not to make the same mistake again in the future.

That desire to fix it is what causes you to replay the event in your mind: “I need to fix that next time.”

But when you’re caught in that anxious loop, you don’t actually take the next step to figure out what needs to change. You just keep replaying what happened—hoping and wishing it won’t happen again—without making any progress.

The Power of a Post-Performance Evaluation

This is where a post-performance evaluation comes in.

When you’re stuck in that anxious loop of thinking, you need to get your thoughts out of your head and onto paper. This helps you take a break from emotional worry and start thinking more analytically.

A simple evaluation might look like this:

1. Write down positives from your performance. This is important because our natural tendency is to focus only on what went wrong. But focusing on the positives builds confidence and puts you in a better state to analyze mistakes productively.

2. List the mistakes or moments you’re anxious about. Write out exactly what you’re replaying in your mind and what you’re frustrated about.

3. Identify what you can learn from them. Ask yourself: “What do I need to change to make this not happen in the future?” or “What can I focus on differently next time?”

This process shifts you from dwelling on mistakes to learning from them.

When you write things down, it’s easier to sift through the noise and clearly see what adjustments you can make. If you just leave all those thoughts in your mind, they swirl around uncontrollably and feed your anxiety.

Using Mindfulness to Calm Your Mind

If you struggle with a racing mind at night after competitions, try doing 5–10 minutes of mindfulness meditation before bed.

This helps settle your thoughts, calm your body, and bring your focus back to the present moment.

The best counter for any sort of anxious thinking—before, during, or after games—is being present.

Anxious thinking means your mind isn’t present. You’re stuck worrying about what happened in the last game, how it will affect your stats, your playing time, or your ability to bounce back.

So once you’ve done your postgame reflection—written down your lessons and adjustments—remind yourself that you’ve already gathered the information you need.

Now it’s time to let it go and be present.

Putting It All Together

To manage anxious thoughts after games:

1. Write down what you’re anxious about. Focus on the mistakes or moments replaying in your head.

2. Learn from them. Identify one or two adjustments you’ll focus on for your next practice or competition.

3. Be present. Use mindfulness meditation to quiet your mind and help yourself sleep.

It’s very natural to be anxious after games—especially if you didn’t play your best, or if you’re worried about playing time or bouncing back next time.

But remember: that postgame anxiety affects your future performance. The more you can manage it now, the more confidence you’ll have moving forward.

This simple strategy—a post-performance evaluation and short mindfulness practice—is a great place to start.