Students in NMSU’s Athletic Training program specialize in “preventing, recognizing, managing, and rehabilitating injuries resulting from physical activity.” Part of their training includes understanding how medications commonly used to treat mental illness affect physical performance. 

Dale Menges, Pharm.D. and staff pharmacist for Aggie Health and Wellness Center, recently worked with Athletic Training students from the Kinesiology Department who are learning about those effects. In a lecture on “Drugs for Treating Psychiatric Disorders,”  Dr. Manges focused on substances that negatively affect an athlete’s physical performance. Students have clinical experiences that are part of the program, and many have already worked with athletes concerned about sleep disorders, anorexia nervosa, bulimia, ADHD, and depression.