I recently posed a question to the "hive mind" on Facebook requesting ideas for supporting a dog who "stresses down." First, I received a lot of great comments - thanks to all who chimed in! Second, I received many private messages from people who had never heard the term.
As a result, I had man...
The other day, I was spinning. I was worrying - no, fretting - about something that might or could happen, and then planning what to do about it. I was burning a LOT of energy on "negative fantasy island." It wasn't fun.
I saw myself doing it - I was fully aware. I knew I had to change my thoug...
We've all been there. Working hard, putting in the hours, training your dog for agility, obedience, or rally competitions, and you hit the wall. (Open purgatory, anyone?) Progress comes to a screeching halt. It feels like you've hit an invisible wall. It might be normal - even expected - but it's fr...
I don't listen to my podcasts after I record them. I prepare, record, add the bits to the ends and middle, and I send them off. But this week's episode (dropping Thursday) is a doozy - not only because it's an interview with Cynthia Horner (the 2024 Westminster winner++), but because of all the gems...
Tis the season of chasing goals. In agility, this means pushing to qualify for the Agility Invitational and crossing off big goals like MACHs and PACHs. Oh, but my fellow obedience, conformation, rally, and other dog sports players are not off the hook - this "chasing" catches all of us eventually.
...Compartmentalizing our lives seems to be the norm - we have our dog life, our work life, our parent life, our spouse life, and so on. I find that most people keep some type of emotional divider between the many complex aspects of being a human. In coaching, I often have to remind handlers that the s...
As humans, one of the things our brain is designed to do is see patterns and trends; it's how we learn so quickly. We also look for patterns when we need more information - like trying to solve a puzzle. Seeing patterns is a tremendously valuable skill set, and the best of us can uncover mysteries a...
Sometimes, we're not upset for the reason we think we are. I've had several coaching clients lately who can tell they're getting more upset than usual, but they can't quite figure out why.
From what I see, meltdowns are rarely about the last thing that happened to send you over the edge - they are ...
Today, a client shared some advice she sought and received from another handler at a trial. She said the advice made sense to her logical brain. That simple sentence sparked an often-overlooked concept: when we ask emotional questions, we get emotional answers; when we ask rational questions, we get...
I'm writing today's post in this sort of "in-between." I'm in between many handlers—and clients—coming home from the AKC Agility Nationals and my own preparation for my national specialty. So basically, expectations are flying!
My expectations are about the future, while some handlers are sortin...
Whenever I hear someone talk about "self-sabotage," I think to myself, "At least I don't do that." However, upon just a smidge of reflection, I realize how wrong I am. Sigh.
Self-sabotage happens in lots of tiny ways. Sometimes, I frame it as "cutting corners" because the ways we sabotage oursel...
Remember the story Three Little Bears and Goldilocks? One bed is too hard, one too soft, and the other "just right." I often use that blonde child's name as a shortcut when talking to clients about finding the right intensity or "edge." Too much or too little isn't good; you must find your personal ...
