Today we’d like to introduce you to Blakely Low-Sampson.
Hi Blakely, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My journey to becoming a sport psychologist was fairly direct in retrospect, but I didn’t always know I would end up in this career. I started playing soccer at age 5 and played high school and club soccer in San Antonio. I committed to Davidson College to play DI soccer, and began my education as a pre-med biology major, thinking I wanted to become a physician. I took a psychology course in my second semester that completely changed my career aspirations. I shifted my major to psychology and began exploring graduate education that would allow me to work directly with people. I was very intrigued by the reasons people think, feel, and behave in different ways, and I knew I wanted to work alongside them to explore how we could make things work better.
I had no intention of working in athletics when I graduated from Davidson and ended my playing career. I began my graduate education in the doctoral counseling psychology program at Texas Tech University. While I was there, I had the opportunity to work in the athletic department as a clinician due to my knowledge of sport culture and to serve some of their student-athletes. This was a unique opportunity at the time, because it predated when many college athletic departments had in-house providers on staff, so even as a clinician in training, I had the opportunity to work with student-athletes individually, collaborate with coaches, work with some teams, and even provide a group-based program in conjunction with a scholarship from the NCAA for my dissertation.
I fell in love with working with athletes – the work is incredibly fulfilling, diverse, and impactful. I so enjoy getting to collaborate with people who may otherwise never choose to meet with a therapist. It is rewarding to work with a client who agrees to see me for sport reasons, and who ultimately chooses to do work that supports them being happier and healthier, and not just high-performing.
Once I decided I wanted to specialize in working with athletes, my next career steps solidified. I completed a doctoral internship at Penn State University, a postdoctoral residency specializing in sport psychology at Lehigh University, and then I became the Assistant Director of Clinical and Sport Psychology at the University of Arkansas, followed by a year as the peak performance specialist at the University of South Carolina. I absolutely loved my jobs working as an embedded provider in athletic departments – the work is so rich and it is so rewarding to work within a department to make the whole system healthier. However, after becoming a mother, I wanted to maximize my professional impact and my time freedom, and I decided to open my own private practice. Dr. Blakely Sport Psychology and Therapy has now been in business for a little over three years. My practice specializes in working with athletes, coaches, and organizations, and I am fortunate to consult with several local universities in addition to seeing clients in my private practice.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My career path up to this point has been such a fulfilling journey, but it has not been without obstacles! The field of sport psychology is growing, but even early on, I knew that I wanted to be a provider who specialized both in mental health and performance. The path I chose – a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology – was a path that took seven years before I was eligible to apply for licensure and to practice independently. Although it was quite a time commitment, I’m so glad I chose this path because I feel very well equipped to create the impact I hope to make. Elite performers deserve to work with a provider who can fully understand and support their needs as both a person and a performer, and I am proud to say we have the expertise to serve in this way.
I also experienced some challenges that came with moving frequently earlier in my career; I have held psychology licenses in Arkansas, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Texas since 2017. Although it was a challenge to begin new positions and establish myself at new jobs (and get licensed in each new state!), I am grateful that I served in unique environments and worked alongside some really wonderful people. I am so fortunate to have ongoing relationships with many people I met along the way.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I opened my private practice, Dr. Blakely Sport Psychology and Therapy, a little over three years ago. My practice serves elite junior athletes, college student-athletes, professional athletes, coaches, and organizations. We also offer general therapy services to the athletic population and to working professionals, who are performers too! While my practice is based in San Antonio, we offer services both in-person and remotely to Texas residents and to prospective clients in PSYPACT states (which means that we can serve most people across the US, which is wonderful). I also recently hired an associate, Lauren Wall, who is a wonderful clinician and a former collegiate athlete herself, so that we can expand our impact even further.
We offer sport psychology and therapy services that are warm, direct, and comprehensive. When you work with one of our providers, it is absolutely our mission that you will feel deeply seen and understood. We also commit to doing the hard work with you, because we want you to feel challenged and supported to make the changes that are important to you.
Our approach, our formal training, and our lived experiences as athletes set us apart. We use our expertise as licensed mental health clinicians to understand the full context of what brings our client in the door so that we can partner alongside them to do the most impactful, meaningful, and transformative work together.
One of my proudest accomplishments is how often former clients and coaches refer new clients to our practice. There is no greater compliment! I am also proud of the partnerships I have cultivated in San Antonio. Dr. Blakely has been asked to provide services for several local universities, including Trinity University, University of Incarnate Word, St. Mary’s University, and UTSA.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Actively seeking out peer support and mentorship is crucial in this field. I had wonderful formal supervisors throughout my training, and informal mentors as well. Relationships with other providers can make a world of difference. I’m so grateful for my own consultation group, which emerged from relationships I formed with peers as an early career professional while attending a sport psychology conference. While we have known one another for years, we recently decided to start a monthly consultation group to consult, talk about our businesses, and support one another. Each of these 4 women opened their own businesses over the last few years, and we all worked in Power 5 (now Power 4) conferences previously. Connecting with them has been such a wonderful experience, and we are presenting at the next Clinical/Counseling Sport Psychology Association (CCSPA) conference about owning sport psychology businesses and how our consultation group has supported us in that endeavor.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dr-blakely.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.blakely/
