Help! I hate surfing! Or does surfing hate me?
A story of a girl who loved surfing, but then one day, nothing seemed to go right…
There's nothing worse than frothing and being so excited about surfing, but then when you go surfing nothing seems to click anymore, you feel like you can't even pop up, let alone make it down the line like you used to… sound familiar? You are not alone!
Zee Van G / Photo Anthony James
I have been surfing for over 15 years now and this happens to me on an annual basis.
I think it's completely natural to burn out when it comes to surfing.
Maybe you have been surfing tons over the last few months and your body is finally telling you to take a break, or maybe you have stuff going on in your personal life.
Sometimes surfing is the cure, it can be a safe sanctuary, where you can go for a few hours, confess your sins, be done with it and leave the water feeling reborn.
Or on the flipside, surfing can make things feel worse, especially if you're already in your own head and then you feel like you start surfing bad or making mistakes, it's easy to beat yourself up and to become frustrated with yourself.
Me on a perfect little wave, not surfing perfectly, but executing a perfect dismount! / Photo Darren Hicks
Sadly I don't have all the answers, but I am here to tell you that it's OK to fall out of love with surfing.
If we surfed good all the time, we wouldn't even know what a good surf is right?
There are always going to be waves to surf and it's important to check in with yourself, try not to put pressure on it and have faith that the stoke will return.
I usually find it takes 1 wave or 1 good surf session to put me back into flow and to set my mind back into a good space, but it cant take time and I have to remind myself of this, but I know it will happen eventually. .
It can help to do something completely new too, try a new activity, badminton, dance class, stamp collecting, pole dancing, rock climbing, art classes, challenge yourself in a new environment that's not the ocean, around people who may not surf themselves.
You can still enjoy the ocean without a board! / Photo Anthony James
Talking about it with friends or on forums who also surf can also be a big help because even if they aren't experiencing it at the moment, I bet they have done at some point and it's nice to hear that it's not just you.
At the end of the day, it's only surfing and you have to do what feels right for you, you don't have to surf if you don't want to or you don't feel like it, take some time off and rest the body & mind, so that when you return, you go into the ocean with a new, calmer perspective and you can just do you, if it works out hell yeah, if it's still not happening yet, get out of the water and go grab a coffee, a slice of cake and chill, its all good!
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