My journey through target panic

[Draven]

Dan Jones, if you split the entire thing as I said what means for me the natural course of shooting, I don't see how target panic can happen. If I try to burn stages, yes. If i don't aim, or don't focus, or don't keep my damn bow hand still and don't continue to pull with my back muscles I will miss. I will get frustrated and I will become in time crippled as archer.
What is happening to you is horrible, but I think that the solution is in you. Have you tried to shoot at 100yards target? Since it is that far away, you can't reach the target without full draw. If your brain was educated that with less draw you can hit the target, give him a target that can't be easy to reach without full draw and all the goodies (aim, focus, form). Try to shoot and hit nothing below 60 yards for a month.

[hart2hart]

With Draven on the long shots.Fear of missing is gone or at least greatly diminished.
Blue sky has no target face..you can completely concentrate on form,,BT..anchor(s)mantra,followthrough..arrow flight etc. without the internal/infernal dragon whispering in your ear.140 yds. for my setup.

[Draven]

Actually it has to be meaningful shooting at that distance, not hitting the sky to produce rain. A good shot = the target was hit. The same meaning when he was shooting at 20yards.

[Dan Jones]

Shooting at 100 yards is an approach to target panic that I hadn't thought about! There are some 80 yard targets at my club, but no 100 yard targets. I'll give it a try! However, my experience has been that the inability to control the release increases with the distance to the target. I've also experienced a "freeze up" on longer targets - the draw will stop at around the 3/4 mark and my bow arm will start to shake.  I assume that this is the result of a conflict in my brain between the eye signaling "shoot" and the muscles striving to reach full draw. Target panic is truly a curse.

[Draven]

Don't think about what happened until now. Think that you have to hit 80yards target. You are a beginner and you learn to shoot the bow at 80 yards target. Your goal is to hit that target with a bow and arrow. Nothing counts but this, no matter how many times you will need to draw the bow and shot the arrow. In Kyudo (Japanese archery) they say to 'act in concordance with time and place'. Forget your failures, it counts just the present. That's why, especially the instinctive archery, is so appealing to us and so hard in same time. We have to be in the moment.

[Dan Jones]

Draven,

Thank you for the encouragement. It seems to me that your comment goes to the heart of what I think is a big question about target panic - Is it fundamentally mental or physical? One often hears, for example, that the panic is "all in your head." You say "forget your failures" and "be in the moment." You and the others who seem to view the problem as mental may very well be right for all I know. However, in my experience "positive thinking" has done nothing to alleviate the panic. Nor, for that matter, have draw and hold exercises, blind and blank bail shooting, clickers and all of the other standard remedies that one hears proposed. The crux of the matter is that when I draw an arrow I am simply unable to control when that arrow is released.  Since nothing that I've done mentally or physically has made any real difference, I lean toward the idea that my case of the panic is rooted in something physical. In the above mentioned article about target panic by Jim Ploen, he talks about muscle reactions that are independent of the brain. I believe he calls them "flexor reflexes" or "flexor responses."  This seems like a very promising line of inquiry. I've also read about something called a  "focal dystoma," which sounds very similar.

In any event, my hunch is that my "journey" with target panic began as a physical thing and then was compounded with the mental dimensions - i.e. loss of confidence, fear of missing etc..

My final response to the panic has been to switch hands from left to right. I'm still bothered by not being able to overcome the problem, but there undoubtedly is a time to "fold em."

[Draven]

Dan, it's not positive thinking. Actually positive thinking is bs from my point of view - at least in the way it is presented sometimes. You can think how much you want that you can win the lottery and you will not. But based on my experience, when you got stuck to something mentally, you have to go back to what some call it 'beginner's mind', when all was new, and you were experiencing things. Something you should know since you switched bow hands.
I don't buy the physical issue since you were capable to shoot the bow and I am pretty sure once you switched hands you are not much lower in poundage for your actual bow compared to the previous. Maybe it is a mix of both, but not in the way you see it. I am just assuming and assumption is the mother of all stupidities, but check this scenario:
Lets say you used a #55 bow for your practice/hunting. Since you used it for 20-30 yards, to reach the target was piece of cake, with great penetration. You were a snap shooter and the lack of anchor point reached from time to time was not interfering with the result. Coordination eye-hand covered for one shot training and your brain knew that the bow poundage was enough to cover the lack of form. During the years, you've seen that your accuracy started to go down, and I am 99.999% sure you didn't checked the anchor point and form. Your shooting in front of friends or family went south and this gave you a hit in confidence ... and the ball was rolling down the rabbit hole.
What I am telling you to change is the message the brain received all these years. And you can't trick the brain with mantras - these are for you to not rush, not for the brain. You have to put him in a situation where the poundage and the lack of good form will not stick the arrow in the target - a new beginning for him to learn. That's why I said you don't have to shoot at the sky, but like you always did before **** happened - with purpose at a target. Stick 10 arrows  in a target at 80 yards after one month and we'll see. You have nothing to lose.

[hart2hart]

Definitely put some kind of target even at those longer distances. Got to have some feedback on speed,trajectory,alignment. A reward for doing things consistently equates to confidence and that's always a good thing.
A foam pool noodle with a balloon on top is our favorite.

[BMSOL]

Thanks for you post McDave. I am not struggling with Target Panic and can't seem to beak it. Like you, I have done about as much research on target panic as one could possibly do, and haven't found much more than Joel Turner and a few other fixes. None, however, have worked for me. I am actually going to try the technique you described tomorrow morning.  

I have had the worst time getting to full draw! If I get anywhere close to an anchor point my fingers just let go of the string. It is possibly the most frustrating thing I have ever had to deal with. I even stopped shooting for a few months based on the recommendation of another method. Prior to that I blank bale shot every day for a month and when I went back to my target I still couldn't get to full draw after about 5 arrows.

Hopefully we'll see some progress soon.

[oldrubline]

One method that has helped me a lot is to pull back the bow on a target that is relatively close (depends on your degree of target panic). Now, begin to aim and as you do, the anxiety that makes you want to release the arrow will start to build. Keep aiming, but now bring your attention in a mindful way to the anxiety itself. Explore it in your body. Observe the sensations of anxiety and mental tension until it vanishes....now you expand and make the shot. This has really helped a lot for me. Has not CURED it, but gives me a much better control. Really 'bare down' with your aiming!! Build up the tension that has plagued you and made you release with a frustrating short draw!  Then turn the attention to the mental or psychological tension that is behind those early releases. Watch it in your body and mind until it relaxes...then pull until you release the shot.  Once you can do this at 5 yards or whatever, move out by another yard and continue...

That...and Joel Turner...have made the most difference for me in control.

Hope this helps some folks!

Dan

[McDave]

Originally posted by oldrubline:
One method that has helped me a lot is to pull back the bow on a target that is relatively close (depends on your degree of target panic). Now, begin to aim and as you do, the anxiety that makes you want to release the arrow will start to build. Keep aiming, but now bring your attention in a mindful way to the anxiety itself. Explore it in your body. Observe the sensations of anxiety and mental tension until it vanishes....now you expand and make the shot. This has really helped a lot for me. Has not CURED it, but gives me a much better control. Really 'bare down' with your aiming!! Build up the tension that has plagued you and made you release with a frustrating short draw!  Then turn the attention to the mental or psychological tension that is behind those early releases. Watch it in your body and mind until it relaxes...then pull until you release the shot.

What you describe was phase two of my journey.  Phase one was getting to full draw.  I would feel the anxiety you describe as I was drawing the bow.  I would freeze up at about 3/4 draw, and couldn't draw any further.  Once I got past that, as I describe in other posts above, then I could start dealing with the anxiety of aiming.  The technique you describe of accepting the anxiety, observing it, owning it, proved very useful to me.  The anxiety would dissipate after a few moments, allowing me to aim and complete the shot.

The natural tendency is to attempt to ignore the anxiety rather than accept it, because we don't want to accept it.  Accepting it means letting the whole camel into the tent once it sticks its nose in.  Only it doesn't work that way; accepting the anxiety actually helps to get rid of it.  Trying to ignore or repress the anxiety makes it linger.

Once we have moved through the anxiety and are standing there fully relaxed at full draw, then we can really begin to work on our shot.  We can begin to feel the subtleties in our release that cause us to jerk the shot offline, the small pressures in our string or bow hands that cause us to torque the bow, and subtle head movements we shouldn't be making.  Release from anxiety also seems to help me to focus on the target, or at least to know when I've slipped up and focused on something else, or perhaps on nothing at all.

[TSP]

I think the true secret to avoiding/defeating target panic is to keep the shooting process productive but as uncomplicated as possible...which is why it's also my opinion that the the recent and rampant fascination with formal target archery approaches has done more to promote target panic for 'normal' archers than all other causes combined.  A controversial statement perhaps, but IMO one that is absolutely true.  

Target archery is what it is...a tedious process of reviewing/ assessing/ adopting/ applying/ executing/ reprogramming and cyclic repetition of a myriad of mental and physical 'truths', for the purpose of drilling the same hole repeatedly into infinity. An interesting concept but certainly not for everyone.  By design it is a process based on never allowing one's natural tendencies or personal preferences to interfere with applied science  in reaching for the never-attainable goal of shot perfection.  In most cases our self-interpretation of what 'seems' to be the proper way to execute a perfect target shot results in failure, thereby triggering another cycle of reprogramming and self-assessment...and with more imperfect results further honing an unrelenting feeling of self-doubt somewhere during the shot...i.e. target panic.  Perfection for it's own sake becomes an obsession.  We know it isn't realistically attainable yet we pressure our inner self to force exactly that.  Impractical and Self-defeating?  Yes, especially when what most of us actually want/need is reasonable effectiveness (after all, it is a 'stickbow') with a reasonable degree of success and satisfaction.  Put simply, robotic shooting perfection is not what most of us truely seek, yet is is what many preach as the correct pursuit.  It is a tail chasing itself, a monster constantly feeding but never filling it's belly.  

Think about what you want from your archery and decide what is more important for your needs and purposes.  From there, apply common sense to your equipment, form choices and practice regimes.  Above all, recognize that target archery and it's objectives are maybe not the best approach for enjoying a bowhunting or simple recreational lifestyle.  Resist the temptation to overcomplicate what has been, for thousands of years, a relatively simple execution of hand, eye and brain coordination using a relatively simple tool.  Have fun with your shooting and take pride in your archery  accomplishments, whatever they may be.  For most people, clearing one's head of textbook geometry and adopting a simplified approach will lay the path for beating target panic.

[McDave]

I enjoyed reading your thoughtful post, TSP.  While I have not tried your approach, it makes logical sense to me that avoiding repetitive practice and avoiding a thought process that demands repetitive accuracy may well avoid target panic.  In your last sentence, you state:

 

For most people, clearing one's head of textbook geometry and adopting a simplified approach will lay the path for beating target panic.

I would agree with what you said if you substituted   avoiding for beating.  I'm not sure that a person with full blown target panic, where they freeze and are unable to draw the bow to full draw, could beat it simply by abandoning the quest for repetitive accuracy.  Or maybe they could.  Have you had target panic and have you beat it by using the suggestions you outline in your post?

I guess my problem, and the problem of many people who have target panic, is that we are unwilling to give up our quest for repetitive accuracy.  We know there are people who have achieved repetitive accuracy who have never gotten target panic, and others who are still working on achieving repetitive accuracy who have defeated target panic (at least are managing to hold it at bay, in my case).

[TSP]

Dave, in my view it's not a matter of differentiating between 'beating' and 'avoiding' TP since it either exists or is likely to show up at some point and either way it's a problem for the shooter.  Yes, I've certainly had TP (few with many years with a bow don't experience it) and I do still need to be aware of it's lurking habits, but since abandoning a quest to always make 'the perfect shot' and learning to accept the practical limitations which I CHOSE to impose on myself when I chose the stick bow I've learned that it's much easier to enjoy archery and still achieve success without constantly needing or expecting perfection... something that many of us tend to forget or ignore in our 'joy of shooting'.

BTW Dave, you mentioned or referenced 'repetitive accuracy' many times in your post, suggesting that it might remain (perhaps subconciously) an objective for your shooting.  Some of us really are more suited to a target style of archery and to those folks I say fine  and to consider making adjustments towards target-oriented gear and methods...we all have our own natural predispositions.  I guess my point re TP is that IF one accepts and practices a less formalized/microscoped style of archery they'll be less prone to getting TP and will have an easier time ridding themselves of it.  Staying simple with a simple stickbow will help ease the pressure on themselves to always be exact.  Relaxing, not overthinking shots, avoiding excessive detail in form and simply enjoying arrows rather than constantly worrying about measuring their trajectories and impact points can do wonders for body and soul.  With regard to TP, think of it as sort of a vacation for the mind.  I take them alot these days.  

[McDave]

Relaxing, not overthinking shots, avoiding excessive detail in form and simply enjoying arrows rather than constantly worrying about measuring their trajectories and impact points can do wonders for body and soul. With regard to TP, think of it as sort of a vacation for the mind. I take them a lot these days.  

Reading your quote above rang a bell with me, and it came to me after a while that it could have been a quote from my mentor, Rick Welch.  At least it paraphrases his approach to archery and advice he gives to his students.  Rick has never had target panic, and the reason could be that he really lives the advice you give above.  He will almost always move to a different spot after shooting an arrow before shooting the next one; I would say 99% of the time.  He never measures trajectories and impact points; in fact, his motto is "How far was that shot?  Don't know; don't care."  He doesn't enter tournaments where he would have to shoot more than one arrow at a target.  And most important, he is able to get into a mind set where the winning shot in the world's championship is no more important to him than a shot at a plastic milk jug in his backyard.  I could do all the rest of the things I mentioned about Rick's style, if I wanted to, and maybe I should, but I don't know how he manages to do the last one.

But I think his example does illustrate that a casual approach and excellence do not have to be mutually exclusive.

[TSP]

I think you're right on, Dave.  It's clear that folks like Rick are naturally gifted when it comes to shooting and their practice simply hones their innate talent, but even folks like him understand that for MOST people good shooting is more about letting the mind be free to make adjustments than it is about force-feeding it a scripted list of do's and don'ts and then expecting smooth sailing.  TP is the perfect example of what happens when we stubbornly insist on making something harder/more complicated than we actually need it to be.

Have fun with your shooting Dave, and Happy Holidays!

[crazynate]

Hello. There is hope out there if anyone has target panic. I've had it my whole life and have tried everything. In my opinion what helped me the best was reading archery insights by jay kidwell. That's the best 11. Bucks I've ever spent and I wish every new person shooting would read that. Also anyone that's like me and struggles with target panic. It's a serious problem and a lot of guys trash talk it like it's no biggie but it is. And there is hope. Nothing against Joel turner, I've been to his seminars and he's a nice person but I didn't understand his teachings about this as well as jay kidwell I his book. I highly recommend it. Good luck

Let's stake a pretend scenario.  You get a Hill style longbow. You follow John Schulz teaching to the letter and end up shooting with the same one second tempo that he does.  You are having excellent success. Someone calls you a 'snap shooter' and you need to hold longer.  You say, "No, I don't want to." and you don't try to do anything different. Do you have TP?  If you find that you are having difficulty one day with your anchor at a target event, John would ask if you are a hunter or a target shooter.  'Stay away from things that make you nervous, and work on just your anchor, always work on only one part of your form at a time.  If in hunting and stump shooting and private 3d practice, there are no issues, as long as you stick to exactly what John demonstrates, is it TP?  I think when the brain gets lots of mixed messages and shooting tendencies don't get treated on time or properly, the long term mental reprogramming is more difficult to correct.  I don't know of anyone that had TP as bad as I did.  The eye closing routine got me back to anchor, shooting net length arrows that mimic the effect of a clicker for draw length control and focussing on only deliberate actions until it became automatic, restored my confidences.  Now when someone says, "You don't hold long enough, or you shoot too fast."   I tell them, "Glad you know everything there is to know, now go away."    Some people need to be able to aim for a long time, others can be on target quickly, with very little to gain by holding extra long.  Even though when playing the target game with a fully equipped target bow I will hold for as long as need to get all the pieces and parts in place, that does not mean I want to need to do that when hunting.   I have seen a number of times that people can draw, hold, and  aim with the intent to not shoot and then they completely cave in when they go to shooting at a deer.  They maybe even could shoot at targets with the slower target target tempo, but the pressures of the shooting game or public shooting complicates things and doing a mentally mechanical override becomes impossible.   A hunter's philosophy does not need to be the standard philosophy of a competitive target shooter, although most target shooters believe that their way is the only way.  A common condition that all people have when they try to limit there existence to something that is small enough for them to cope with.  The Kidwell advice and the eye closing routines are mental rewiring methods that will achieve a draw completion, but objective single focussed determination to be able to decide what you are going to do and do exactly that, is the  reward that pushes TP out of the way and replaces it with personal confidence.