How we helped Jade
I was truly broken when I found Alex from panic attacks to crying for days. I just wasn't in any frame of mind to help myself or my horses. I was too scared to trailer (which stemmed from a very bad experience) my horses and would either have a panic attack or have someone be with me when taking the trailer out. Which in reality I only left my yard in emergencies. I was being instructed by toxic personalities and people around me whom made me feel like I was the worst rider and owner in the world and the best thing to do was to put down my heart horse all while having to deal with a heart breaking diagnosis of my horse having 9 kissing spines and battling a broken ankle from a riding accident. Which was my second as the first happened when jumping so I lost all my confidence in myself and my riding capabilities. As you can imagine I was overwhelmed an did not have any tools to help me cope.
"It has given me a new lease of life and enjoyment back into horse ownership."
Our Approach
Step 1: Informal Telephone Chat
The process began with an informal telephone chat to establish rapport and understand Jade's unique situation. During this conversation, I observed signs of desperation and overwhelm in Jade, stemming from her deep love and dedication to her horses. She expressed her struggles in finding joy in her riding journey, particularly due to her horse's recent diagnosis of kissing spines, which put her at a crossroads regarding important decisions.
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Step 2: First Coaching Session - Gaining Clarity
After the initial conversation, we scheduled Jade's first coaching session with the primary objective of gaining clarity on the decisions she needed to make. The focus was on finding a resolution for her heart horse, Locki, who was recovering from the kissing spines diagnosis. I recognised that this decision was significantly draining her mental energy, hindering her progress as a rider. Therefore, our coaching work began by helping Jade gain the necessary clarity and confidence to move forward with Lockie's rehabilitation.
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Step 3: Identifying the Next Step
In our coaching approach, drawing on my qualifications and experience as an eventing coach before embarking on the psychological journey, we emphasise taking practical and sequential steps towards achieving one's goals. Furthermore, we believe in fostering a supportive environment that complements the rider's growth and aspirations. While Jade had several aspirations, such as gaining confidence in jumping with her new horse, Jasper, and confidently loading horses into trailers, we identified that her immediate need was to trust herself as a horse owner. This process allowed Jade to move forward on decisions over her horses re-hab lifting a significant weight off her shoulders, setting a strong foundation for further improvements in her riding journey. During our sessions, I guided Jade in evaluating her support network, encouraging her to make mindful decisions about the coaches and individuals she surrounds herself with, ensuring they positively contribute to her riding journey. By empowering Jade to make these crucial choices, she not only gained confidence as a horse owner but also created a supportive network that nurtured her progress and growth. This involved assessing others' opinions objectively without negatively impacting her self-esteem. By addressing this issue, Jade experienced a profound positive change, providing her with the clarity and confidence to move forward in her riding journey.
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Step 4: Addressing Jumping Confidence and Trailer Loading
With newfound trust in herself, Jade was now in a more receptive state to address her jumping confidence and trailer loading concerns. Using a combination of NLP, Hypnosis, and Sport Psychology techniques, we worked on building her self-belief, managing performance anxiety, and instilling positive mental imagery for successful riding experiences.
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How did we do this?
The first goal was to reduce overwhelm and gain clarity over decision with horses rehab. We firstly got all thoughts down on paper during which we noticed various contradictions! We use an NLP technique can parts integration during which Jade saw that all the contradictions actually had the same intention - to do the best for Locki!
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This clarity allowed Jade to feel like a ‘weight had been lifted’ and stopped the mental exhaustion of running through scenarios in her mind.
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Next we Look at the underlying causes of her not trusting herself despite lots of evidence she is in fact an excellent horse owner! Identified changes that needed to be made to her ‘inner circle’ - Used NLP and Sports Psychology Techniques whilst incorporating the support through practical goals so Jade had the confidence to make changes.
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Jade felt empowered to ultimately trust her own opinions - to be able to seek out ‘her people’ and built an incredible ‘family’ of support as a result.
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Then we changed her memories of past negative events by changing both the interpretation of that event and loosening up connections to that event in the subconscious mind using NLP techniques which are effective for phobias and fears. We combined this with accountability to practical steps.
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Jade had some good trips out with her horse. However she also had an occasion since our work when the travelling did not go to plan. Jade was able to hold resilience and be proactive in finding solutions instead of feeling scared and deflated by the experience.
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Finally we used a variety of techniques from hypnosis to visualisation to accountability with a practical plan to give Jade she needed to boss her jumping. Jade is now jumping at home and loving it! More than this she is able to take setbacks well and keep progressing. We even have hick stead on the cards for next year.
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The Results
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As a result of the coaching process, Jade experienced significant positive changes that profoundly impacted her riding journey and overall confidence. The transformative outcomes can be summarised as follows:
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Increased Positivity and Perception: Jade gained a heightened ability to see the positives in her riding experiences. This shift in perception allowed her to focus on her strengths, achievements, and progress rather than dwelling on any perceived shortcomings.
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Discerning Support Network: With the guidance provided during our coaching sessions, Jade learned to identify more quickly whether a coach or individual was truly helpful to her riding journey. Importantly, she no longer viewed it as a personal rejection if a coach was not the right fit for her needs. Instead, she understood that everyone's coaching style and approach may not align with her goals, and that was perfectly acceptable.
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Enhanced Resilience: The increased self-esteem and self-assurance Jade gained through the coaching process significantly bolstered her resilience. She became better equipped to face challenges and setbacks with a positive mindset, allowing her to bounce back more swiftly and confidently.
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Joyful Jumping and Independence: One of Jade's aspirations was to gain confidence in jumping with her new horse, Jasper. Through the coaching journey, she accomplished this goal and even surpassed expectations. With her newfound confidence, Jade began jumping at home without a coach and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. This independent approach to jumping further fueled her passion for riding and opened up exciting opportunities, including plans to participate in events such as Hickstead next year
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Would you like a chat?
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If you would like to book a free breakthrough strategy call to see what the process would look like for you we will be extremely exited to walk you through.