Losing Confidence

[Rich M]

I spent years with okay equipment and had deer duck and dodge every arrow I threw at them. It really ate away at my confidence.

It does sound like you need to go over your bow and lock-tite everything, then shoot it to make sure she's dead nuts, then go shoot the first deer to redeem yourself and get the confidence back for when the bucks get mobile.

[Edcyclopedia]

All 3 are controllable.

Errors do happen, repetition will help alleviate.
Twigs should / can be trimmed.
Go back and lock tight the crap out of everything.

Kill deer!

[ Post made via Android ]

Amen! I bought a small target to bring with me to shoot before every hunt.
I'm not going to shoot past 25 yards in thicker areas
Routine maintenance is now my go-to. I'm also marking all of my rests & sights so if it's off I will know immediately.

It's seriously bittersweet and I've been down for most of the day because of it but I'm really thankful it happened now when I'm after does and not actually missing a big buck. Had I missed (another) big buck I don't think the bow would be coming out of the woods with me...

When time permits, I shoot 1 arrow only before heading out.
I need that 1st shot to be full of focus and a direct kill shot on my target...

I even practice along a tree row @ sunset to keep my old eyes remembering what to likely expect (deer 30 - is closing time)

[ Post made via Android ]

[whitetailassasin]

Confidence is something many guys struggle with. You can hit 10 in a row, all great shot, but all it takes is 1 miss and it eats at you immediately. The positive thing in this is 99% of the guys start wondering why and look to investigate as to why. Loose rests, sights knocked off, etc can be identified and sometimes just the plain ole I missed happens. Shooting as often as you can, as well as looking over your equipment helps. I regularly take shots even in season to keep my confidence as high a possible and also to make sure nothing is off. When the moment of truth arrives try to clear the mechanism, think aim small miss small. Follow through with the shot and hold even after you shoot. Allow yourself to really zone out on a tuft of hair, a rib, a discoloration in the killzone and turn on the killer instinct. You'll be fine man.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[PK_]

I have been using the same bow for like 11 years now. The first time I ever took this bow into the woods I shot what was then my largest bow buck, first day, first morning. Later that year and the next 3 seasons or so I went on a terrible streak. I believe I lost 9 bucks in a row with bow. That sounds ridiculous and irresponsible and I don't even like posting that number publicly but it is the truth. Every shot was less than 25 yards broadside or quartering away. Textbook kill shots. Every impact looked like it was right in the boiler room. A couple may have looked a touch high or low, but if you saw the shots on camera you would think 'dead deer'.

Looking back, a couple were likely due to hunting 25'+ in a tree, others were simply, literally an inch too high or low. Most of those bucks survived and we saw them later. I had experienced hunters/blood trailers help me trail those bucks and we knew the land and grid searched. Some were just a mystery. It ate at me and I nearly gave up bow hunting.

The point of this is that we have low points in bow hunting, keep trying to improve and do things right and you WILL pull out of it.

Since that bad stretch I never lost another deer until just last year, my bow suddenly was shooting 6" low at 20yards. That buck survived.

[Jrichard]

Like said prior, I try to shoot at 40 or 50 yards a majority of the time. Then when I drop down to 20 yards, for some reason its a breeze. IDK its all personal preference. I dont have too much experience with on the spot hunting, but this year I got myself on deer twice and blew both opportunities.

First one was on opening day. a deer walked out from this really thick undergrowth. I couldn't get my kisser button on my lip it was on my cheek. Not to mention I was shaking uncontrollably so that was not helping me anchor my nose and kisser button. Then by the time I got the bow anchored and ready to go the deer was already out of my primary shooting lane. Then while looking through my peep and down my sight it looked like it entered another hole so I shot. It sounded like I hit the deer, but it was a branch. Now mind you I had gotten in a different tree than my gut had originally told me to get into. If I was in that tree IT would have been a 15 yard chip shot and the deer would have been directly in front of me broadside.

Then the next week I went back to this same spot. got in the tree I was originally going to get in. I turned and positioned myself to shoot where the runs came in. And about 5 minutes before I had to lower my bow I heard a CRUNCH behind me. I went to turn around to get ready to shoot and my foot board we CREEK. The deer looked right up at me but could not tell where I was. She started walking back to where the only hole I could shoot was so when she got behind a tree I drew my bow. She stood there for about 2 or 3 minutes and I started getting tired so I went to let down, and my arrow clanked off my whisker biscuit. she bounded out of there so fast.

So I ws in the same situation as you. I figured the more these deer got pressured the harder it was going to be to find them. So I started to get upset. Then i started practicing in my buddies back yard and trying things out. One thing that really works for me is talking to myself. Step by step. What I am going to do. IDK that really calms me down and makes sure everything goes in sequential and fluent order.

But trust me I may not be slaying any giants but I was after my first deer ever. And I was losing confidence fast.

[Hawthorne]

This might sound silly but you have to know your weapon intimacy. I know exactly when something isn't right when i shoot. It's always the brace height moved or the knocking point. I shoot trad much simpler. Sleep with your bow if you have to like Rory McElroy sleeps with his golf clubs. lol

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[woodswalker]

Losing confidence is a self fulfilling prophecy, once your confidence is gone, in your mind you are going to miss or something is going to go wrong every time you shoot, so you do miss. The longer it goes on the worse it will get. I used to shoot a lot of skeet, not competitively but I wasn't bad, I shot close to 20 or just over. Once in a while I would go into a slump and start missing birds I never should have missed and the more I missed, the more I missed. The competition guys said you have to shoot yourself out of that mind set by shooting until you are back where you should be. They told me at each station and before calling for the bird in my mind I should go through where I want to break the bird, the mounting of the gun, foot placement and the swing, then see the bird break in my mind. It works and I feel certain it would help you get your confidence back with the bow.

[tbunao]

Everyone has already said it. I would like to add that I started blind shooting at close range for form purposes. It has also helped with getting in more tune with my bow. You learn to feel everything the bow is doing as you go through the motions. When something doesn't feel right with it I feel like I notice a lot quicker before a real issue occurs.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[Lockdown]

Lots of great advice already given. If you check your equipment out and shoot well in the back yard, the rest is mental. I was beating myself up about losing that buck in SD. Not anymore... I shot and it took a week but I'm confident again.

"He who says he CAN and he who says he CAN'T, are both usually right." Staying positive goes a loooong way!

Shoot until you're confident and keep that mindset the entire time you're hunting. Go through scenarios in your mind while on stand. Draw your bow and settle on an object, imagine it's a deer and envision your arrow finding it's mark.

[ Post made via iPhone ]

[briar]

I had a period of time where I was shooting a junk bow and didn't know a lot about broadhead tuning. In one year I missed 3 in a row and was sick about it. I got a new bow, new everything and started shooting and decided before opening day I was only taking a perfect shot at a relaxed slam dunk deer...and that's what I did. I shot 3 deer that year because I was taking my time, and not feeling the pressure.

Since that time I have been pretty good, but I am still super careful about my shots and shoot a lighter bow. It helps me not ever feel rushed to shoot because I am getting shakey.

[Twenty Up]

Thanks for the advice guys I really appreciate it.

It's kind of ironic in a way how one of the big components in why I chose bow hunting over sticking with the rifle was because of the challenge it presents. Regardless after each hiccup I have kept coming back for more until I hit this slump. What really resonated with me was to "shoot through it" and to visualize the entire process of the shot (thanks WoodsWalker). For some reason this, in my mind at least, seems to be the problem. I've began rushing shots and getting a target panic feel when full drawn at an animal. This has never happened up until this season and how it began I've no clue.

At this point I just need to re-practice my mental process of drawing on a deer and to shoot with a purpose compared to shooting just to shoot.

[JoeRE]

PK and woodswalker pretty much summed up my thoughts. Loosing confidence is devastating for a hunter. Doesn't matter what equipment you are shooting or how much skill you have, if you don't have confidence you are probably gonna fail.

I have been rock bottom too. Gotta start small and set your priorities accordingly. Realize it probably is going to take you more than just one kill or even just this season to get you back in full bore killer mode.

Make your practice reflect hunting situations. Shoot only 1 arrow at a time out of a tree, in the woods, with hunting clothes on. I like to shoot at stuff with a blunt but beware of rocky ground breaking arrows.

VISUALIZE deer coming in and perfect hits.

Then wait for a slam dunk shot - no hard angles, within 10 or 15 yards or whatever. Set up low so you don't have a steep shot. Close enough that you are shooting at an individual hair on that deer. The old adage "aim small miss small" is still true. Aim TINY.

You might have to pass the next 10 deer within "normal" bow range for this to happen but its far better than wounding any of them.