Rooting responsibly
Being the ultimate sports fan doesn’t come with a warning label, but maybe it should. Cheering on your favorite team can cause severe mood swings, violent outbursts, and even, at times, tightness in your chest. It’s why I’m a fair-weather fan.
There’s a backstory: I used to have a team. As a Baltimore native, when the Ravens came to our city in 1996, I was all in. After buying tons of black and purple, winning two Super Bowls, and then white knuckling through the lackluster seasons that followed, I decided to set a boundary for my own sanity.
For me, and the bold, ambiguous fans like me, being a fair-weather fan isn’t about disloyalty; it’s a form of self-care. It’s choosing which stressors I’m letting get to me — and football was no longer one of them.
Gloria Chan Packer, who helps ambitious professionals manage stress and burnout in the workplace, writes in an essay for BI that “we can’t eradicate stress entirely,” but advises that we should aim “to establish a healthier and more sustainable relationship with your stress.”
So yes, I’ve decided to protect my peace while still respecting the game and showing up when it matters most. It won’t be this Sunday when the Seattle Seahawks face off against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX, but guess who’s not stressed about that? Me.
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