I lost my confidence riding after a bad fall?

Question

I was riding a horse for the first time and i LOVED him. My normal trainer was away so the barn owner was teaching us and she said we could have one last canter around the ring. so gladly, i got right to it. then this one girl got WAY to close to me and my horse bucked, which ended up throwing me against the wall and leaving me with a scar. i was able to get back on, but i was SO scared! ever since then, i will be riding a horse and i will love it and then he bucks and goes insane or just runs like crazy and i can hardly control them no matter what i do. i was on a new horse again last week ((i fell off months ago)) and i loved him. while everybody else was having trouble keeping their horses going, i was cantering around in ease. then we went his bad direction and everything fell apart. my horse started bucking and throwing himself all over the place. then he spooked and took off running and bucking. i can't seem to get my confidence back and its killing me. what should i do?

Answer 1

being an ex saddle bronk rider i have taken my lumps,bumps,breaks,concussions and kicks but i got back on and said to my self "what did i learn from the last time"and "what clues did i get from the horse when this happened" part of learning yourself is knowing that you need to learn from mistakes.i have seen the most confident and experianced riders get thrown but you cant let it scare you from doing something you love to do.i am also a pro rodeo bullfighter and barrelman and i have had my hookings and been thrown beyond the limits of the human body but i get back up everytime.some call it stupidity but i call it "resolve"

Answer 2

I think you need to find a new place to ride. Lesson horses should not buck, spook or run away! No wonder you have no confidence! You need to find a place with safe horses so you can learn the basics without being afraid of what the horse might do.

Good luck!

Answer 3

You just need more training in how to handle horses.

Horses are large powerful (and wonderful) animals, but don't assume just because you are riding on it's back that he/she is going to like everything that is going on.

You are basically losing control of the horse.

Answer 4

well i think that you could still ride. what i do to gain confidence with things is going to an easier level, like just walking around and not running, or just sit on the horse and then when you think is a good time, start walking.

Answer 5

Same thing happened with me..

I just sucked it up and got back on..

make sure if the horse starts kicking again not to squize your butt cheeks

i know that sounds weird, but he can sence fear and that will only make him to continue bucking...

Answer 6

well i would try riding some more tame horses for starters.  i remember when i was real little i was taking some riding lessons and my trainer wanted to put me on a green horse.  well you should probably know what happened next lol.  the same thing as you.  i got back on and was scared too death.  i still havent gotten all of my confidence back and its been almost 10 years.  but i remember i went to a diff. trainer and she put me on this dead broke horse. i started to get my confidence back slowly.  then i got my own horse, and we formed a bond which helped.  i got to know how he handled certain things and what and what not to do.  so i guess my advice to you is to find a calmer more tame horse to help with your confidence and then bond with the same horse or a diff horse that is more of a challenge.  it should help.  im not gonna lie, getting bucked off can be pretty scary.  that buck from that one horse screwed up my back for the rest of my life.  i will always have back problems.  just dont let your memories stop you from having fun.

Answer 7

try going on an older horse where you can gain your confidence back. i had a fall on the road and  was nearly hit by a bus after hitting my leg off a sign, which caused my horse to spook and run into the road. this scared me alot and then my friend put her onto her ploddy cob and i was fine after a few weeks of riding him.

you could also have some one lead you around for a while and regain your confidence slowly. :)

Answer 8

you need to find a bombproof horse to get your confidence back, a horse that anyone can ride that doesn't spook buck or rear.  ask your trainer is you could ride a horse like this for a while just to get your confidence back

Answer 9

work up from the bottom. a week of walking, a week of trotting, a week with turns ect.

Dont give up!

Answer 10

Take a month off from riding horses.

Then try again.

Hope this helps :)

Answer 11

that happened to me a long time ago. At first the horse bucked and then reared up (I was a beginner rider at the time) so it shattered any confidence I had. So I worked with a bombproof steady mare and she built up my confidence. Then when I bought my first horse, he tripped and I lost my ballance and tell off...and that also shattered my confidence.

So I worked with him at a walk, trot pace only...and then worked with the same mare to rebuild my confidence.

Ride a steady older horse that has the been-there-done-that attitude. One that beginners learn on. Now whether or not your a beginner doens't really matter...a beginner leveled horse will help you gain confidence and then slowly work your way up to a higher leveled horse.

Answer 12

you should get back on a bomb proof horse and just wait until you want  to ride so badly. than you'll start gaining your confidence back but when you're nervous, the horse is nervous and doesn't know what to do. you have to go with the horse and be strong, and so will he.

Answer 13

You should try riding a bombproof horse. The same situation had happened to me i went flying into the wall and indented my leg and had a hhuge scar but i didn't wanna give up riding. I love riding so much and i wanted to push on so after that horse having to take a break i tried this bombproof horse and i love her to death and i have all the confidence in the world. Now that my story is over =], what we have to realize as riders is that a horse has the right to be scared and they never really mean to hurt us. Although it may be scary getting back on you have to try and push that accident out of your mind or else it might happen again. I suggest if your horse spooks that you try to stay calm and support him or her because your horse will realize "oh ok so she said im fine i must be fine phew" that's how i've learned to cope so far. So about your confidence i suggest you try to carry on and forget about the accident while your on and take it as a learning experience. If you know he has a bad direction try to keep that in the back of your mind so you're aware he might act up but at the same time just stay calm and don't assume that he will spook because that will make the chance of him spooking higher. Maybe try doing a few lessons on a lunge line aswell so you can focus on being calm and not worrying as much. So in conclusion i guess im trying to say have confidence in you, have confidence in your horse, and be sure to have fun and just take these accidents as learning experiences. Hope this helps=] best wishes and stay strong!

By the way try to squeeze with your knees and thighs, sit up tall for leverage, and push your heals down as much as possible especially if he spooks because it will help anchor you on! =] ALso you can try a one rein stop... ask your trainer to correctly show you how to do it, it's a life saver =]

Answer 14

You've got to go back and ride beginner, bombproof horses for a while.  Stick to what you know you can do well.

Answer 15

all riding has a danger. I fell off plenty of times. Get back on and forget about it. If you are scared your horse feels it and will spook just to gain control over you. Get over the drama and ride.

Answer 16

You just need to remeber that everyone takes spills, its a part of horseback riding ! Heres a funny fall I had about a week ago. I was at a show in the warm up ring and me and my coach were working on oxers. my horse already jumps about 2 feet over everything ( even if its big... ) and he decided that hey! I can do that and then some! so he went for it and ohhhh man did I get left behind lol I lost my stirrups while he jumped then compleatly missed the saddle ! and landed on his butt! hahaha he wasnt impressed and I ate dirt pretty hard. But the best thing you can do is take a deep breath and just do it ! Get back on , sit up. you know how to ride so show the world that a little bump in the road isnt gonna shake you :) and if the horse starts bucking dont get timid or scared get angry! make them stop get there head up and circle them to prevent any bolting.

Answer 17

getting back on and "cowboying up" is not the answer - I don't know how old you are, but I'm 41 now and have had issues with my mare spooking and either bucking or running off.  If I were younger when I thought I was indestructible, getting back on was done without a second thought - but things hurt more and longer the older you get.

Staying off is not going to increase your confidence either.

Here's what you must do - you must learn why the horses did these things.  You must learn how to watch for the proper signs to expect these things to happen, then you must learn how to avoid them.  I'm not saying you must learn when you should avoid riding, I'm saying you must learn how to keep out of the situations that have caused problems in the past.

Horses buck or run off or spook because they haven't been trained properly to instill in them confidence in themselves and their riders to keep them safe.  You, as a rider, must learn to ride well enough to stay safely on and get out of trouble as quickly as possible.

I would suggest doing what is most comfortable to you - go back a few steps to a horse that's comfortable and safe for you.  Also, when you find you have problems at the canter, but not at a walk or trot, it's because you haven't the right foundation at the walk and trot.  

I suggest you get some books or DVDs or something to teach you proper riding and control techniques.

At the same time, do get back on, but back your goals down and practice getting into similar situations and out of them at slower gaits.  You said that both times something bad happened it's because another horse got too close - so weret he horses you were on prone to always acting up when another got too close?  The horses may not be responding to the other horses being too close, but rather your reaction.  If you tense up when another horse gets to close and think "oh my god, he's going to dump me" the horse feels this tension.  He thinks "well if my rider is afraid, I ought to be VERY afraid" and the problem becomes compounded.

So you must become comfortable in these situations.  Find another rider you respect and trust - plan a session together where at the walk the two of you work around the arena and practice passing each other very closely.  The other rider should be able to pass you, even touching your horse, at the walk successfully from anywhere at any time before moving on to the trot.  Then do the same thing trotting - until it's just another thing that happens and neither you nor the horse react adversely to it.

If at any point, the horse reacts poorly, consider what just happened.  What were you doing with your body when the bad thing occurred?  What did you do to the horse?  If you got after him for being bad - what he heard was "well, I got scared, then I got yelled at or hit, which is not good - so being that close to another horse is simply not good at all, I must avoid it at all costs".  You must impart trust and confidence in your horse and show him by your own reactions that there's nothing to worry about.

If possible to get a good trainer that will help you learn natural horsemanship skills and how the horse thinks and perceives your commands and everything about you, get some time with that person.

Good luck!

Answer 18

take it back to basics on a really safe bombproof horse to get ur confidence back

hppe i helped

Answer 19

I would advise taking some time off riding and working on establishing leadership with your horses. Do this by spending time doing groundwork. I know it seems tedious doing that, but groundwork is a vital element of horsemanship and if you're not doing it then you're never really going to be safe in the saddle.

Groundwork not only helps train the horse, it builds a communication line between you and your horse, and more importantly it will help you regain your confidence around horses without risking being in the saddle. If you aren't sure what to do, talk to your trainer about it and have him/her come up with some exercises for you to practice.

Also are you relaxed in the saddle? Sometimes people canter around but they are clamping the horse with their thighs. With some horses clamping down on them can cause them to buck.

When you get back into riding, don't just go off and canter. If you want to get your confidence back, try just walking and trotting for awhile. Take deep breaths and relax up there so your horse isn't sensing that you are tense. Maybe when the girl got near you or when you went in the bad direction, you got really tense and the horse picked up on it. Next time something makes you uncomfortable in the saddle like someone getting near you, take a deep breath in and out and let your body loose. Our tendency in a situation like that is to tense up our muscles and pull back on the reins, making the horse feel tense too. That can lead to a wreck.

Cheers,

David

http://gentlenaturalhorseman.blogspot.co...

Answer 20

you need to go back to well-behaved bombproof lesson horses.... and take it easy on the new horses!  spend a while gaining back confidence with a horse that will not buck.

also... no offense, but maybe you should spend a little more time learning about a new horse (ex. you say his bad direction) and spend more time walking/trotting to overcome the horse's "bad direction"... then work your way back up to canter.  a fall from a canter is going to be much scarier and confidence-bursting than from a walk/trot.

so... keep the horses and your riding simple to gain back confidence.  work your way back up to cantering and 'new' horses.

Answer 21

I am not sure how old you are or what your temperment is, but it sounds to me like maybe you need to find a horse that is less energetic and maybe a little older until you get your confidence built back up.  My step-daughter rides, and started at a very young age.  She had a very old, calm horse for the first 5 years or so.  She recently graduated to a fast, barrel racing/contesting horse.  Starting her up slow really built up her confidence.  Also, she just had an accident with her horse leaving her with a broken pelvis bone--but that hasn't discouraged her.   She knows accidents sometimes happens, and doesn't blame her horse.  By September, she hopes to be riding in her horse show.  You have to prepare yourself for the possibility that you COULD get hurt, but also be prepared to handle what ever situation may come your way.

Answer 22

Hun, I would seriously change barns if all these riding ponies are bucking like that.. what you need is a nice older quiet pony who will give you your confidence back.

Also, horses are hyper-sensitive and will know if they have a frightened, scared rider up on their backs. The horse will think 'do I need to be scared aswell if my rider is scared?' and this will make the horse uneasy too.

If you have no other choice of barns, talk to your instructor and tell him/her you want the quietest pony of the lot and need to get your confidence back asap. Change lesson times if needs be.

But yes, dont run away yet, get back riding and enjoy it!

We've all fallen off lots of times..... well... I have anyway :-P

Answer 23

Okay, I rode for about 10 years (since I was eight) and about four years ago I was jumping over a fence but we timed it wrong and he kinda reared up and then continued to try and go over the jump-unfortunately that flipped me over his neck and i fell to the ground-knocked the wind outta me and i sprained my wrist.  The best thing I ever did was get back on the horse (after getting my wrist checked out, of course.) You have to know its not YOUR fault that the other girl got to close, it was not in your control.  Im sure your good at riding, just try to keep it up or you will probably regret it.

Answer 24

You've got to move on and keep doing it. I had that happen after showing a horse I trusted.  It has taken a long time to get my confidence back.  Keep getting on and riding.  You know you have the skill and are able to do it.  Don't let your brain over ride your ability.

Answer 25

I have horses and used to ride also...u can't let the horse know that you are not confident otherwise they WILL take advantage of you. maybe u should try going on some beginner horses until u gain back your confidence that you can control them, or just really tell yourself that you can do it and if the horse bucks and starts going crazy just hold on, pull the reigns tight, right to his withers and don't move them! it will be very uncomfortable for the horse and he'll have to listen to u.