Facing The Music And Conquering Fear In The Saddle
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596 – September/October, 2024
By Laura Boynton Jobson
No matter how well we ride, or how well our horses are trained, sometimes all it takes is a nervous spook, a playful buck, an energic bolt, a stressful ride, or a moment of anxiety, and riders can easily fall prey to setbacks.
When fear takes the reins and keeps riders out of the saddle, a sports psychologist perspective may be just what’s needed. Christina Wessel, M.S., CMPC at Champion’s Advantage, LLC, in McKinney, Texas points out that sports psychology is very individualized. “We all have different strengths and weaknesses, as well as differing reactions to situations,” she says. “Some riders are naturally more resilient, while others need to be taught resiliency.”
Wessel explains that everything starts with a thought. “Learning to replace any negative or harmful thoughts with positive and helpful thoughts is called reframing. If you keep feeding the fear or replaying the incident in your mind, you won’t be able to move forward. As humans, we tend to magnify the one thing that went wrong and forget about everything we did right or to the best of our ability. An easy way to start reframing is to keep a list of three good things that you and your horse did after every ride. Over time, you’ll see that focusing on the good progress becomes easier and easier.”
Moving Forward
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596 – September/October, 2024
