When I was first approached
by Your Horse, to take on 2 case studies, and then follow their progress back at their yard, with a photographer and a journalist,
I was a little apprehensive. Hypnotherapy does not work for everyone, and there can be more going on underneath the surface
for a rider than just their nerves, lots of personal circumstances can sabotage the most determined rider, but in the interest
of testing out what I already knew to be a very helpful method of combating anxiety, tension and fear, I was prepared to put
my reservations to one side, put my reputation on the line, and throw myself into the project.
From a personal point of view it was going
to be a first for me to actually see the results of my work first hand. I get lots of lovely emails with positive feedback,
but I never actually see the riders in their home territory, trying out what they have learnt in my therapy room whilst in
a state of hypnosis.
The
process started with seeing the 2 case study clients at my practice.
1) Amanda had owned her horse for 2 years,
newly backed, and to begin with all went well. Then her horse Tyler had to have some time off work, and
Amanda changed yards. Things started to go downhill when Tyler’s personality began to change. He had become quite dominant
in the field with his new companions. Even though Amanda moved Tyler back to his old yard, things didn’t improve, and
one day Tyler barged past Amanda whilst she was bringing him through a gate, dragging the lead rope so hard through her hands
she suffered rope burns.
Once Tyler knew he was boss, he argued about where he would go on a hack, spooked and napped, and the more dominant
he became, the more reluctant Amanda was to argue her point, the more nervous she became, so that eventually she wasn’t
hacking out at all.
2)
Julia already had one horse that her son had taken over, and she was then offered the opportunity to take on a young ex-race
horse. Unlike a lot of thoroughbreds that have undergone race training, Mabon was a quiet, laid back individual, but still
quite green when it came to working on anything other than straight lines, and his lack of muscle development and outline
caused him to become unbalanced at times especially on corners. Julia started with some Parelli groundwork, hacking out, doing
some basic schooling and then popped him over a couple of fences, and this was when Mabon scared himself, and Julia; he reacted
badly on landing, bolted around the arena, and Julia fell off. This made Julia lose her confidence and
she found herself making all manner of excuses not to ride. I discovered an underlying problem for Julia; she
was very aware of her responsibilities as the sole provider for her children.
This was a very different scenario from when she didn’t have children, and
rode many different types of horses as part of her career, with no fear at all. I explained to her that this was very normal.
The realisation that we are mortal can have a real impact on how comfortable we are with taking part in potentially dangerous
sports and hobbies when we are a parents. Mother nature encourages us to stay safe to provide the best possible outcome for
our offspring. This is something to bear in mind if you find that now you have children, you seem to feel more nervous and
anxious about situations that before you wouldn’t have given a second thought to.
The outcome of both these case studies I’m
glad to say, was really positive.
Amanda actually hacked out whilst we were filming; taking Tyler somewhere she hadn’t been for many months,
feeling really relaxed and positive, and as a result, Tyler didn’t spook or nap, he looked at things but took the lead
from Amanda, and responded to her instructions, and Amanda informed me this was how things had been since seeing me. Her whole
manner had changed and so had Tyler’s.
Julia worked Mabon in the school whilst we watched, she had been doing this since our sessions together; this was
so different from before, as she had not even attempted to ride for many weeks. Julia felt so positive about her long-term
relationship with Mabon, she was looking for someone to help her with the flatwork schooling so she could realise Mabon’s
potential as an all round horse that she could enjoy for many years.
If you want to read the whole article, you can probably get a back copy of the
magazine, issue number 325.
There is every chance that hypnotherapy will work for you just as it did for these two case studies, and
all those thousands of other riders all over the world that have used my Hypnotherapy sessions. Give it
a try and free yourself from all those negative feelings and thoughts that can hold you back, creating nervous tension and
fear that spoils your enjoyment.
You can purchase my sessions on a CD from this website, through Amazon, or
as a download from www.selfhypnosisuk.com
Good Luck
