My 13 yr old daughter is a keen runner and competes at County Level. Unfortunately, my daughter has experienced difficulties coping with the mental side of public competition.
We found it so distressing that she loved and gained so much from her sprint training but when she then competed she fell apart mentally. Her symptoms were ‘zoning out, sickness and general panic attacks. We had reached the stage where a decision had to be made….It was ‘all or nothing’.
I found Dan’s website and we went to him to see if their was anyway that he could help. To be perfectly honest I didn’t hold much hope as my daughter had got herself into a spiral which she seemed to automatically get into just before she competed.
Right from the start Dan was professional and as a runner himself understood her problem from both perspectives. Over three sessions Dan was able to re-programme her way of dealing with things. He also was able to provide her with practical coping strategies, things which she could do before she competed, thus breaking her negative thought pattern.
It is lovely to see my daughter now being ‘in control’ of her feelings. She finishes every race with a smile, regularly winning. She said to me: “Even though I still have some of the feelings just before I compete. They are good nerves and I can now control them and I am in charge”.
I cannot begin to thank Dan enough. The best thing is she can now use the lessons learnt in other areas of her life too. We intend to have a repeat session just before she competes next year in the summer Athletics season.
