I fell from a horse when I was very young and since I was hospitalized I was unable to get back on right away which is generally the best thing to do when you fall off to prevent the person from developing a fear of riding. When I got out ot the hospital my concerned parents had already sold my pony so it was many years before I was to ride again and by the time the opportunity arose, I was petrified. Literally phobic of horses. I only had to be withing viewing distance of a horse and my mouth became bone dry and I could almost hear my heart pounding in my chest. But the one thing that never left me, despite all the fear I had developed of the big beasts, was a love of their beauty and grace. I did get back on years later and over came my phobia. I thought I’d share some of what I learned to cope and eventually win over my fear.
1. Take lessons from a qualified instructor. Explain honestly your fears and concerns. If the instructor constantly pushes you to go far beyond your comfort level then find another riding school or at the very least make it very clear to your instructor that you are not ready to do what they are asking.
2. Take it slow.
3. Make sure that you are riding what they call a “confidence builder” this is a horse that doesn’t bolt, is very very quite and possibly even too lazy to move fast.
4. Don’t worry about appearing stupid or people making fun of you because you’re “a work in progress” and when your fear subsides then you may even surpass anyone stupid enough to make fun of your fear.
5. Work on doing things the right and safe way. Feeling secure in the saddle will be the quickest and best way to overcome your fear. Make this clear to your instructor. Ask him or her about the three points of contact that makes your seat most secure. These are the pubic bone and your two seat bones and if these three are in contact with the saddle it gives you better balance and security.
6. Try to relax. If you tense up your body will be tense and you will lose your 3 points of contact. Perhaps try some breathing exercises where you breathe deeply through your diaphram.
7. Try to just focus on your position and with the horse at walk for awhile even the first 3 or 4 lessons. NEVER let anyone bully you into anything you aren’t ready for. When you are comfortable and not as nervous you can then take a “leap of faith” and try trotting a few steps. Go slow though – you’ll get there.
8. When you’re riding try not to think about falling off – rather concentrate on the technical aspects of riding. eg. Are my feet in the stirrups in line with my ears? Is my posture correct? Are my reins held correctly in my hands? Are my arms holding the reins at the correct angle? Am I leaning too far forward or too far back?
9. A good way to gain confidence is to have a friend use a lunge line and make the horse go in circles so that you only have to focus on a few things at one.
10. Try closing your eyes for short periods while you ride to just feel the rythm of the horse and to work on balancing from just the feel of it’s movements
11. Try some exercises to improve your balance like holding your arms straight out and touching your shoulders. Reach back and try and touch the horses tail and then his ears from the saddle without raising yourself from your saddle. This also increases your flexibility as well.
12. Spend a lot of time grooming your horse. Talk to it when you’re riding or grooming because if you’re talking to it you’re focusing on what you’re saying to it rather than on the fear you’re feeling.
13. Become comfortable with your horse on the ground, leading it, grooming it and putting it’s tack on. These all help increase your confidence.
14. Research horse riding and handling. There are books, videos. Youtube – you can get books and videos at your local library about riding, grooming and handling horses as well as caring for them, first aid and training as well. Knowledge is another key element to reducing fear.
15. Most of all breath and be patient with both yourself and the horse. As the expression goes: “Rome wasn’t built in a day” and it’s better to get your riding right and correct so both you and your horse are safe than to race ahead blindly.
16. Some good links on Youtube for improving your riding seat are:
Excellent Link for getting a good seat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhr7h0TExAI&feature=related
how to improve you classical seat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Sl6SeJEzOo
Good Thigh contact:: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8qMg4Lh24Y&feature=related
Piano Hands: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4euwFV75f0&feature=related
Ankle Position: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMUzBO03Emc&feature=related
Stop Pulling on your horses mouth: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8J4yjVQDvac&feature=related
