A Pickleball Pick-Me-Up During the Holidays

The holidays are usually a joyful time when many get to share special moments with their families and celebrate the lives they share together. There are circumstances, however, where either tangible or hidden troubles can prevent people from getting to enjoy this season as they should.

We read an article about Cathy Sykes earlier this month, a player in Durango, CO who was able to better manage her depression and ADHD thanks to pickleball and the increased social interaction surrounding it.

At PickleballCentral we always hear people say they love this sport not only because of its simplicity, but because it truly does support a caring, friendly community.

The social aspect of the game is often the part players love the most, with doubles being extremely popular and the low barrier to entry allowing people to start playing almost immediately. In Cathy's case, this meant traveling with her mother to the local rec center to meet pickleball ambassador Paul Toppenberg.

During her time there, she grew more comfortable with meeting new people, gained self confidence and learned more about the game.

Now she's not only become a pickleball fanatic, but challenged herself to compete in a 5 km race in July and her first triathlon in August. She is planning to enter her first pickleball tournament next year.

There are many ways to battle back against health problems both physical and mental. We truly believe that pickleball provides a special mix of both, allowing people to start moving in an environment that's often full of friendly faces eager to welcome newcomers to the game.

This game allows athletes and beginners, young and old, men and women all to find a sense of enjoyment with each other. That's a special thing, and we thank you all for being part of this wonderful sport and helping the game grow over the years, whether it's through spreading the word among friends or advocating for pickleball as an official ambassador.

We hope our readers have had a fantastic year full of wins and losses that have all taught them how to pick themselves up, learn a bit more about themselves and keep on having fun.

For those that have been going through rough times, our thoughts are with you and we hope you'll find strength among caring arms to bounce back even stronger.

Happy holidays from everyone at PickleballCentral! It's been a pleasure for us to serve, support and inform all our customers these past 12 months.

We look forward to spreading the fun and community of pickleball even farther next year and hope you'll continue to join us on the ride!