The Shakes

[Chuck7]

Has anyone ever gotten the shakes..Two years ago no more than 4 minutes after I reached the top of a cypress tree and settled in ..a bunch of wild hogs came right under my tree.It was pitch dark..and they were smelling my tree.When daylight came only one small one was left..Mentally I knew to stand quietly , pull back and let teh arrow go..I could not stand past more than half way..My knees were shaking life a leaf..Mentally ..I was not nervous or afraid..My body though was acting very weird..I did not have the strenghth to pull back the bow either..[:-]The hog stood still for over a minute about 10 yds away..and I was locked up the entire time..I could not make my body stand up..Has this ever happened to anyone else before??

[KS227]

If the shakes go away....quit hunting!! It is how you harness it that matters.. I have had to sit down and put my head between my legs to keep from passing out.
1 Breath in through your nose and out through your mouth, very slowly
2 Embrace it, don't fight it. It is predictable and controllable.
3 Have a predetermined shot routine to focus on
4 Focus on that routine!!!
5 Breathe!!
6 Aim small, shoot small.
Physiologically, you are experiencing a "fight or flight" response. If you lost the ability to draw...it essentially is panic. It is a primordial instinct that you don't get everyday. To recover,focus on your breathing and something ridiculously simple...like a spot of mud on your shoe or the trigger on your release. The focus will calm you and the breathing will stabilize you.

[Chuck7]

Your pretty darn smart Matt..thanks for the info..Generally I'm full of faith and confidence..I'm a school teacher in a very bad eneighborhood..My faith , confidence and survival instinct was there from the military..and I was surprised that came over me..The hog never knew I was there.It's like.."Body straighten your butt up we got somrthing to do." and it wouldn't obey me.[:-] My stupid knees caused my entire body to shake..

[chazspot]

I have been hunting for years and I still experience this. A very nicebuck rushed in right underneathme a few years ago and I could barely stand up. I was sort of leaning back against the tree I was in and tried to keep my knees from knocking.

The breathing and focus is good advice. Practice it and it will pay off when you need it to. Now if I could do the same...

btw: I cleanly missed on the big guy.

[sandilands]

Try hunting bear.......... they can climb trees!
I still get it. Even after a doe kill. My shakes start after the shot though. Its wild isn't it?

[dark ak]

I still get them even when seeinga doe I have to think calm down and breath slow

[SparrowHawk]

Last year I had the biggest buck I have ever seen hunting just a tad to far for a shot oppurtunity. He was coming West of where I was hunting and I needed him to come South in any direction to get good shot. When I realized he wasent going to go south I grunted him. I was standing up at the time and when the deer looked directly in my direction my knees just about wanted to give out lol. He continued to tear up his scrape and just ignored me though[:@]

My adrenaline was pumping so high that night, I really thought I was gonna get that bruiser. o well maybe this year right?

[kodiakhuntmaster]

I've had the shakes many times. It lets you know you're still excited by your sport. The thing that helped me get over it is the shooting meathod I learned in the the service. Just remember the word "BRAS"... Easy to remember right? It stands for "Breathe, Relax, Aim, and Squeeze". Originally the word was "brass", or "breathe, realax, aim, and squeeze slowly" but somehow "bras" was easier to remember.

Anyhow, as long as I could remember the steps, I've always been able to work through the shakes.

Breathing is the most important part, even with hypnosis the first thing they ask you to do is breathe. As long as you're giving yourself enough air you're staying away from tunnel vision (or just foucusing on antlers or something like that).

[Chuck7]

Bur felllows,
Why doesn't it happen with a rifle in your hand?