Anyone ever use a pharmaceutical prior to a dressage test with effective results? I’ve always heard of the “take a swig” approach, but I wonder if you lose a spark or if it gives the rider that relaxation they need for swing and confidence.
I know that musicians often use beta blockers for performance anxiety.
Thoughts? Experiences?
Honestly, if you’re that anxiety-ridden that you can’t get through a dressage test without benzos (ativan is a benzodiazapine like Xanax, valium, etc), there’s probably bigger problems than going to a horse show.
I disagree. Horse show nerves are a creature unto themselves and not necessarily related to anything else in someone’s life.
I’m lucky in that I get just nervous enough to give me a bit of an edge, but I know there are people whose horse show nerves are crippling. There are people who will strongly disagree, but I think if you have those kinds of nerves and there is something that can help you get through the day, why not? As long as you are able to stay focused and ride safely, I don’t have an issue with it.
I think there’s natural things, like herbal pills and sprays that will calm your nerves. I’m pretty sure, given personal experience, that antidepressant and anxiety meds do not work that fast. They take atleast a few days for you to feel anything. You won’t suddenly get settled down 20 minutes before a test from them. Maybe learn some meditation techniques?
Captain Morgan
As I recall, Atavan works pretty quickly. I was given Atavan before outpatient surgery once, and was pretty relaxed in short order. That said, I think learning relaxation techniques is a great idea. They are always available while a prescription drug might not be.
I have tremendous performance anxiety.
Listening to sports psychology tapes helped a great deal. Then attending a sports psychology seminar helped even more and listening to their audios.
The main thing for me was learning to do my homework thoroughly. Then at the competition focus on what we do well. Focus so much on what we do well that the ‘what ifs’ don’t present themselves so much.
The problem with ‘chemical’ means of relaxation is the strong possibility of forgetting your test. Not such a problem showing hunters (line, line, diagonal line) or cross country. Or fox hunting.
Barbara Schulte’s sports performance DVDs and support could be a huge help to you, if you haven’t considered the sports psychology approach.
I think for some coming down centerline is akin to presenting a speech to a huge audience. It’s a tough experience, I’m not going to belittle your anxiety.
Maybe rather than drugs, at least not yet, I’d pursue the Barbara Schulte DVDs. More concrete than the Jane Savoie book on the same topic.
If my horse had show nerves, I couldn’t medicate her to get her through the test. I would have to find a way, over however much time it would take, to teach her how to cope with her nerves and work through it.
So… why would I expect less from myself than I would from my horse?
And my show nerves are pretty bad. Not crippling, but bad enough that a joke that started because of my nerves is still alive and kicking at my old barn years later. The kids now have no idea where/how it originated, but I cracked up when I visited and realized it was still floating around. Of all the legacies to leave behind…
…But what I learned about dealing with my nerves then has stayed with me, so even after getting back into showing after a long break, I am doing better now than I ever did before.
I don’t care what others do, as long as it’s legal and they know in advance how their bodies will handle whatever they are using, so they can keep themselves and their horses safe. In the short term, they may have an advantage on me; in the long run, I think I will have the advantage on them.
I’ve wondered this myself and more power to you to address it head~on!
Like you I’ve thought about anxiolytics but wonder if they’d take too much of the edge off (forgetting test, etc).
Not very scientific at all, but I took half (??mg) of an Ativan once and slept for 15 hours! Maybe I’ll just lick a pill pre~horse show!
My heart rate increases even watching others’ tests on youtube. My anxiety at shows isn’t crippling, but with the headaches that usually results, I wonder if I wouldn’t have an overall much more enjoyable time.
I do think learning calming/coping techniques is needed and drugs/etoh is the easy way out, but I might be okay with the for the first couple of shows (my first recognized ever).
I would not take beta blockers.
Let us know what you decide!
I think it’s a great idea. I get flying nerves on airplanes and what i like about Atavan is that it’s really mild and just takes the edge off. Alot of people go the Captain Morgan route, but in my experience…hard alcohol+summer weather+exercise= yucky stuff. :lol:
I tend to be high strung and let “worry” run my mind amok. Ativan helps, and helps big. I was worried about how I would react since I also am super sensitive to any medications, so I took a test pill at home. It really did help.
It doesn’t leave me loopy or forgetful. Worries come in, and instead of hyper fixating and stressing, they float out.
I know that I don’t want to rely on it forever, but until I get to a place where I can fret less (by developing a comfort level) then I think its fine for me!
oh BTW-I only have taken it when I fly, and my Dr prescribed over the phone without a visit 
I will most certainly never have an issue taking it for a show if needed.
Sad to have to take drugs to be an effective rider. Just saying…
Flame away!
[QUOTE=allison finch;5503632]
Sad to have to take drugs to be an effective rider. Just saying…
Flame away![/QUOTE] It’s not about being an effective rider. Anxiety can be crippling. Some people need help. Don’t make it sound like taking a tranquilizer makes you a drug addict.
I think you should talk to your doctor about it. I have had students who took it to deal with anxiety/fear about riding and it was a tremendously successful tool for them, in conjunction with working on developing skills so they could learn to truly ride through their fear.
Show nerves are part of the territory. But if your talking about walking into a grocery store and getting a panic attack then you probably need medication.
I wonder are there drug rules for competing riders? Are athletes in other sports allowed to take medication for anxiety?
OK, I have taken lots of benzos over the years. Before you think I’m a drug addict, everything was prescribed, and one was prescribed by a doctor who told me just to take as much as I needed without actually telling me anything about the drug. That was one of the worst experiences ever, once I realized how much he was giving me and had to withdraw.
Benzos aren’t without risk. They are very very addictive. Of course not everyone will get physically addicted to them, but if taken on any sort of regular basis, it is a very real possibility. and withdrawl can cause seizures and other odd neurological conditions.
That said, they can work very very well if taken responsibly and in the appropriate dose. Of the ones I have taken, I prefer Xanax personally. It gives better relaxation for me, without the loopy side effects I’ve had from Valium or ativan. Klonipin never did a very good job at relaxing me, but then again it was prescribed for dizziness and sleep. That’s the one I ended up addicted to though, so it might have worked better had I not been told to just take it whenever I felt dizzy or needed to sleep and couldn’t.
You do have to play around with the dose some, and start small. With the Xanax, I had the smallest dose available, and I was cutting them in 1/4. You can’t drink with them either, as you can kill yourself combining CNS depressants.
I too have show nerves, and with a hot-headed mare, my nerves can ruin our day quickly. Even though I am OK on horses who are not so sensitive, with her anything I can do to relax is good for us. Showing is so expensive that I also put some pressure on myself to do well so I don’t feel that I’ve wasted the money, and that can also lead to more nerves. I’ve not used benzos for show nerves myself, as I’ve not had access at the same times as I was showing. But I absolutely would consider a tiny dose of something I had used in the past. Just like some people teach a horse to clip using a mild sedative to take the edge off, I think that if taken as a short-term thing to get over the show nerves, it could be very helpful. You just have to know which one works for you and at what dose.
FWIW, I’ve not had any issues with the tiny dose of Xanax affecting my memory. I was very very functional when I did take it. Valium and ativan, not so much though. Valium made me hallucinate, and ativan just knocked me out in enough dose to do anything.
I would not take a benzo, nor would I recommend or prescribe one for horse show nerves. Benzos are for temporary use in people who have severe debilitation by acute anxiety that interferes with their normal life functions- holding a job, doing their daily activities, etc, not for making their hobby more tolerable. They make you drowsy, slow to react, and it’s not probably the safest thing to take while riding a horse when you need to be quick thinking and in control.
As others have stated they are addictive, and horse showing is optional, something we do for fun. Most people experience some sort of anxiety prior to competition, especially equestrian competition. I think you are so much better off in the long run dealing with the nerves and learning to cope with them. Go for a jog (get the edge off so you’re a little tired), meditation, breathing and relaxation techniques, etc. Like most things, some desensitization really helps, so the more you expose yourself to that anxiety and the more you ride/show/compete, the less anxiety you should have.
As to the beta blocker comment, I wouldn’t think that would be a good idea either since they slow your heart rate and prevent it from raising normally. That would interfere with any athlete’s exercise tolerence, even an equestrian.
Not appropriate. Just my opinion.
Take the benzos. Take a low dose. Try it out at home once or twice to see how it will affect you before you take it for a show.
[QUOTE=Samigator;5503696]
I would not take a benzo, nor would I recommend or prescribe one for horse show nerves. Benzos are for temporary use in people who have severe debilitation by acute anxiety that interferes with their normal life functions- holding a job, doing their daily activities, etc, not for making their hobby more tolerable. They make you drowsy, slow to react, and it’s not probably the safest thing to take while riding a horse when you need to be quick thinking and in control.
As others have stated they are addictive, and horse showing is optional, something we do for fun. Most people experience some sort of anxiety prior to competition, especially equestrian competition. I think you are so much better off in the long run dealing with the nerves and learning to cope with them. Go for a jog (get the edge off so you’re a little tired), meditation, breathing and relaxation techniques, etc. Like most things, some desensitization really helps, so the more you expose yourself to that anxiety and the more you ride/show/compete, the less anxiety you should have.
As to the beta blocker comment, I wouldn’t think that would be a good idea either since they slow your heart rate and prevent it from raising normally. That would interfere with any athlete’s exercise tolerence, even an equestrian.
Not appropriate. Just my opinion.[/QUOTE]
:yes:
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