How do you do it????

[LimbLover]

2009 was my first season of hunting. I hunt on the ground from natural cover and I had 3 or 4 encounters that left me in a frazzled state to say the least. My problem was growing the stones to capitalize on my opportunity.

The last thing I remember before I finally shot my deer was thinking "Nick... just draw your bow". Not "Nick...kill the deer", just "draw your bow."

That drawing motion signified my commitment to the shot and instantly gave me the confidence I needed to take the deer. My body took over after that. Since then I've tried to put myself in shooting situations that cause a bit of anxiety whenever possible so I can practice working through it.

Joining a scored 12-week 3D league and shooting with a partner has helped immensely.

Small game definitely helps too!

[LoweBow]

Having bow only hunted for 21 years (over 1/2 my life) I've lost track of the number of whitetails I taken with a bow.  Well over 100.  With that said I still catch myself on occasion falling completely apart, heart racing, short of breath.  To tell you truth it's a catch 22 w/ me as i don't want to become "mechanical" in nature as it did w/ a firearm or compound bow.  That feeling coming back to me is what I never forget about the 1st doe i shot w/ my recurve 7 years ago.  I dang near shook myself outta the tree that evening..LOL  The situation, not the animal seems to bring on my panic attacks.  Weather more than one deer is there, is it alert, etc.

That being said...the only thing that helps me in those times is talking to myself....I mean REALLY talking to myself...lips moving and all.LOL  I make it no diff than when I'm standing out front or in the basement shooting when I discuss my form, release, and how bad my shot was w/ myself.  I just say...breath, breath, now...look right there...there....she's gonna step...draw...pick...release...
Sounds like a funny thing to do, don't know when i started doing it, but it works for me.  

Typing this makes me want to call my sychiatrist.....

[Earthdog]

I can only consiously think about one thing at a time,so I deliberately think about three main points in my shot sequence,my stance,my anchour,my follow through.
That for me takes the onus away from the animal and places it on the shot.
The picking a spot thing,I simply know where I want to hit the animal and why,so that's where I aim.

[Roy Steele]

Peole can say thie and that but everyone has there own way of dealing with it[buck fever].Some people never get over it.I grew up with a guy we call hindquarter LEE he can't bow hunt becuce of it.He'd shot as soon as he saw brown in the scope.And he still dose it 25 years later.Not as bad he says but his boys just laugh and say right.My cousin PAT I must have put in in a dozzen stand that he missed buck out of.He finely quit bow hunting after about 10 years of misses.
  For me I look at the crease where the front leg mets the body.After 97 bucks 33 with selfbows I still get torned up now and then.I
  It's just something everyone has to deal with in there own way.I know I've shot at a few whole deer before.Just hope you can get a hand on it.

[Featherman]

Shooting 3-D helped a lot but when it comes to live game, especially something with bone on the head, I always look for the knee joint and follow it up to the shoulder blade and "find a spot" a few inches behind the blade and burn a hole in it followed by some sharp steel. It sounds like a lot to do when you have a critter within 20 yards I can do this pretty much within seconds.

It's something that takes my focus off the headgear and/or the whole animal and makes me concentrate where I'm supposed to be looking (in the boiler room).

What I do may sound silly to a lot of folks but it works for me and I've had great success harvesting critters with my tradtional gear.

Find something that works for you and practise.