At 13:12:08 on 18.06.09, CarolineP wrote:
Hi Everyone What really bugs you about riding nerves? What burning confidence question would you like me to answer? When I get some feedback, I'll start posting some discussions/tips/ideas. Look forward to being part of trontontv! Caroline
http://www.enjoyriding.com

At 20:14:13 on 20.06.09, Tabi wrote:
Hi ya. I used to be scared of cantering on my horse as his a rig and would have broncho bucking fits and where i now do endurance cantering is a must so i tried touch therapy and i have to admit it works as i now canter and gallop without thinking about it. My only fear left to conquer is jumping as i cracked a rib over a year ago doing that. I have been and had Henry sorted with his behaviour by a specialist but now its me holding him back. When we was at the horse behaviourists i would go over all sorts of jumps but at home i get a mental block. Have you any suggestions as this is my last fear that i need to conquer.

At 21:33:54 on 21.06.09, CarolineP wrote:
Hi Tabi Welcome to the group! It's good to hear that you and your horse have made such good progress together. I have two suggestions to help you: ~ Mental rehearsal. This is a very powerful technique used by all the top sportsmen. Sit somewhere quiet and turn your phone off. Imagine watching a film of yourself jumping in the setting you want to master, making sure that you're doing everything as you would want to and that your film looks really good to you. Adjust it as you go along if you need to. When you're really happy with it, step into the starring role and actually imagine riding over jumps, again making sure that everything feels right to you. When you are completely happy, you can bring in how you would cope if something went less than perfectly (eg the horse ran out or stopped). If you practise this every day for a couple of weeks, it will become second nature to you and you will do it in the real life situation. ~ Bach Flower Remedies will help you. Take Star of Bethlehem for the shock of your accident (no matter how long ago it was) and Mimulus for the fear of falling again. The remedies can be bought from good health food shops, or you can get a mixture made specially for you from me. Additional remedies might be indicated, depending on your feelings about this. I'd be happy to help you with a telephone consultation if you'd like a prescription made up for you. More info on Bach Flower Remedies at www.carolineputus.co.uk (click on the Bach Flower link) and more info on confidence tips at www.enjoyriding.com Hope this helps and you're soon jumping again. Best wishes Caroline
http://www.enjoyriding.com

At 12:05:11 on 26.06.09, Kilota wrote:
Hi there, For me it is a fear of hitting the ground no matter what I do. I used to do a lot of jumping on my lad, but had a few bad jumping falls. Of course this has resulted in my confidence ebbing away each tiem I hit thr ground. I rarely ride now as I have also had a few falls hacking out around the farm I am stabled at. Of course my horse senses how I feel and takes full advantage. Would love to have confidenace to ride my lad without fear of him jogging or popping in a crafy buck. Kim

At 23:13:02 on 26.06.09, CarolineP wrote:
Hi Kim Sorry to hear you've had some falls and have stopped riding. That's a real shame. Bach Flower Remedies Star of Bethlehem and Mimulus would help you. Recall some nice riding memories and make those mental pictures really powerful by making them big and intensely coloured. Play them often in your head. This will help to remake the mental connection between riding and enjoying yourself. There are also techniques that you can learn to control those "what if" thoughts by squashing them and replacing them with something nice. Don't think about or talk about your falls - the more you give them space in your head, the more powerful they become. You might also benefit from some lessons with a sympathetic instructor to get you going again. Horses do feel uncomfortable when the rider is nervous and I always find that when the rider changes their thoughts and feelings, the horse changes too. I'm running a two day confidence clinic with riding 15/16 September - www.enjoyriding.com - where people join a small, supportive group to learn a wide range of self-help confidence skills and put them into practice by riding steady riding school cobs in the forest and heath of the Suffolk coast.
http://www.enjoyriding.com/calendar.php?month=06

At 09:58:39 on 27.06.09, Flicka wrote:
Thanks for your wonderful advice. As I'm suffering a big lack of confidence at the moment you've given me some great ideas to try out. Interesting what you say about not talking about your fall.

At 10:16:43 on 27.06.09, Flicka wrote:
There is one thing that's particularly bugging me at the moment. It would seem I can get on other peoples horses and ride them quite confidently but with my own horse I seem to have more problems. I sometimes think this is because I put a lot of pressure on our partnership to be successful and I have a fear of "being" the horses problem. My husband says I'm too much of a perfectionist but what I would like most of all is just for my horse and I to really enjoy our riding experiences together. Does that make any sense? And do you have any suggestions.

At 13:43:35 on 27.06.09, CarolineP wrote:
Hi there. Yes, what you say makes sense. I think it's much more important to you to "get it right" with your own horse than with other people's and so you're over-rationalising everything in your dealings with your own horse. Let your intuition get a look in! If you're happy with how you ride other people's horses, just copy how you do that with your own horse. When riding another horse, what are you thinking? What are you saying to yourself? What are your motivations? If something goes a bit wrong, how do you handle it? How do you feel physically and emotionally when you're riding someone else's horse? If you're not happy with how you do this, find someone you think is doing it how you'd like to do it, and copy them. Imagine what they're thinking etc etc. It's fun to play with these things. Hope these ideas help. Let me know how you get on! Caroline
http://www.enjoyriding.com

At 18:16:53 on 27.06.09, Tabi wrote:
Thank you for your advice i really appreciate it. It makes alot of sense x

At 18:11:31 on 01.07.09, Flicka wrote:
Thanks Caroline, you gave me lots of things to think about and practice and it seems to be working!