Lavoie and men’s volleyball putting mental health first through pandemic

The value of sport in third-year libero Mathieu Lavoie’s life cannot be understated.

Since the seventh grade, he’s been involved in athletics at a high level, including multiple organized team sports. In a given year, his schedule typically includes five days a week of training. In the summer, he’d play on provincial teams or go to camps. He loves interacting with his teammates and other athletes and thrives in the busyness, because it’s “all I’ve ever known.”

“I love the sport. I love showing up to the gym and just working hard,” he says with his trademark smile and enthusiasm. “That’s what I love doing. I like bringing that energy and just making that small difference, whether I play like crap or play awesome.”

In 2019-2020, the former U SPORTS All-Rookie member, like the rest of his Bisons teammates, were locked in and ready to host nationals. It was intended to be the final send-off for long time head coach Garth Pischke, and an opportunity for the group to play in front of their home crowd on a massive stage. But in the blink of an eye, everything changed as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic forced abrupt and unexpected cancellations of sporting events across the nation, including in Manitoba.

The news was deflating for the group as a whole, who attempted to process what was going on. After taking everything in, and experiencing a whirlwind of emotions, they rallied as a group to try and make the best of the situation.

“Everyone was obviously crushed, and we were all sad,” recalled Lavoie.

“The next day we were supposed to have an 8:30 practice anyways, so we went in the gym with our jerseys on, and we just played. Everyone played whatever positions they wanted to, and we just went out there and had fun with the stage set pretty much. It was consolation – I wouldn’t say it was good consolation — but we did what we could, and at the end of the day we just wanted to experience it.”

When their time on the court was done, the immediate question that came to Lavoie’s mind, was what’s next? There was still so much the public didn’t know about the virus at the time, making it nearly impossible in the early stages to figure out next steps. The spring felt long and arduous due to an extended lockdown, but by the summer, it appeared there was light at the end of the tunnel.

Members of the team were able to get back into gyms across the city for pick-up games with alumni and friends. It was an important time for coming together and was recalled fondly by all. That fall, questions still arose about whether there would be a season. Ultimately, it didn’t happen and for many on the roster, the 2020-21 campaign felt light a blur despite practices still occurring.

There were some silver linings though. For some of the veterans, the cancelled season was beneficial, because it provided an opportunity to stay active. For the rookies, it was a chance to become integrated with the team culture and expectations, and the same could be said for former women’s national team head coach Arnd ‘Lupo’ Ludwig, who was hired that August and was able to develop relationships with the group.

But the stop and start flow took its toll. In November of 2020, gyms were once again forced to close. This continued on and off throughout the spring of 2021. For Lavoie, the situation was immensely frustrating, not only because he was isolated from his teammates but also because of a lingering injury that wouldn’t go away. He wanted to be there for the team and train, but it just wasn’t an option.

Finding a new perspective

Around February of 2021, everything came to a head, and the engineering student was “just down.”

“Obviously my mind was wandering in quite a few different directions. There was frustration and anger, and it wasn’t good for me,” he noted.

“I knew that I wasn’t in the greatest headspace. I’m away from friends, I’m away from family. I’m not really doing much. I’m just sitting in my basement. What am I doing? I’m doing math, playing video games, rinse and repeat. Sure, you could say that I enjoy playing my video games, but after a good while, it gets really dry and boring and I don’t know what to do anymore.”

Facing an inner battle, Lavoie turned to the clinical sport psychology services offered by the university. Specifically, he met with Kevin Kristjanson, UM’s psych lead who offers support to athletes in both individual and group settings. The pair met every week until the end of the summer, where they worked together to help Lavoie “find a new perspective, understand his situation better and learn how to be stronger teammate.”

They talked about everything from volleyball to school, to Lavoie’s co-op position in engineering and how to handle the pressures of being a student-athlete. Kristjanson asked the hard questions, and Lavoie answered them.

“I would tell him exactly how I felt. Let’s see how you respond if you think about this for the next week? How are you going to respond to thinking in this perspective when you’re working on group projects, when you’re talking with your teammates, when you’re going to practice or working out? Let’s see how you respond when you’re thinking this way. We did that for about two months.”

It took a little while for Lavoie to see a difference, but over time and with patience, he started putting the pieces together.

“That was a really important piece in what was my bounce back into competitive training and competition and whatnot. The psych services are something that I would recommend to any athlete, even an athlete that thinks they’re mentally healthy,” he mentioned.

“It’s a huge advantage to be able to talk to somebody that knows exactly what it’s like for an athlete to be going through any type of struggle. Whether you’re mentally healthy or unhealthy off the court, there’s always things that you can improve on when you’re in competition or even if you’re in training. Those little things can make a really big difference.”

“Take a step back”

This fall, the 2021-22 season was approved, with teams split into three divisions based on proximity. Manitoba’s bracket included Winnipeg, Saskatchewan and Brandon, all of whom they’d face three times. More importantly, the program was given the news that they’d be hosting the national championship, providing an opportunity to run things back and capture a moment that was taken from them two years ago.

In Lavoie’s case, he still wasn’t at 100 percent. He “hit the reset button” and was transparent with Ludwig about his situation. The head coach understood, while still giving Lavoie the chance to engage both at practice and in games, as well as film study where open communication amongst the roster has been encouraged.

“I feel like I have a good understanding of what our team is capable of and what team strategy looks like. As pretty much a defensive specialist, I see every single offensive play a team runs, and I know what needs to happen in order for those plays to be defended. Being able to have that voice, and making my comments known, I feel like it’s been really important in those sessions. Being able to be part of that dialogue has been a huge way that I’ve been able to contribute.”

Lavoie credits Kristjanson for helping him understand and appreciate his current role, given the circumstances. At the end of the day, it was all about a shift in mindset, which he discovered through the psych resources offered.

“Sometimes when you play, you’re just not good and you’re not contributing to the winning formula, and I think sometimes you just have to take a step back and understand where your place is,” he says.

“Whether you’re in one position one day and another the next, it doesn’t matter. Wherever you are on that particular day, what can I do to help my team win? If I’m not practicing on a particular day, well, what can I do? I can help guys out, I can be a seeing eye. I’m not going to sit on the bench and sulk about it. How about I help my team get better? Those are my friends, that’s what I want. If I’m in practice, then I do the same thing to make myself and my team around me better.”

As the second half of the season continues, Manitoba is locked in. They recently knocked off Winnipeg, a victory that secured the Duckworth Challenge trophy and a tie atop the standings with the Wesmen at 5-4. They’ve preached the mantra of “one heartbeat,” which includes open dialogue and operating as one unit, whether that’s with a coach, a starter or anyone who’s on the bench, something that’ll only get better as nationals approach.

“We have a really hard-working group. We have a lot of character, and I think that definitely doesn’t go unnoticed. You have 16, 17, 18 other guys fighting with you and for you. Everyone is doing it together,” says Lavoie.

“Losing the opportunity to play and host nationals, that was a really tough blow, but once we got that back, we were back and fighting. We want it as bad as we did two years ago, and we want to put on a show and perform.

I think we’re in a better position now than we were two years ago, and I think part of it is Lupo’s leadership, and the differences we’ve made on our team with the culture and the mental aspect of it. We’re just in a much better place. You can’t stress the value of mental health enough. Without those aspects being present, you can fall apart quite quickly.”