Overcoming the Yips 009: I thought it would heal in about a week, but then I couldn't hit a forehand in practice
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I started soft tennis in junior high school and this is my 7th year.
I achieved decent results in junior high.
I was able to hit second serves and returns almost without making mistakes.
Even in high school, I was able to hit normally at first, but
after becoming a second-year student, I became unable to hit a forehand. I think it's probably because I missed a few returns in a match.
At first, I thought it would heal in about a week, but then I couldn't hit a forehand in practice.
My symptom is that when I try to hit a second return, I feel a strange sensation in my wrist, as if my wrist is saying it's going to miss. And sure enough, I do miss.
It's not just second returns; I can't do forehand volley-to-volley, low volleys, short rallies, or ball feeding either.
Especially with ball feeding, even when I try to hit it to my partner, it goes into the bottom of the net, into the middle, or goes out. I really don't understand it.
I can hit backhands normally, and I used to be able to do volley-to-volley and short rallies, but now I either hit the bottom of the net or hit home runs.
I'm really troubled, but when I consult with my seniors, they just say I'm bad or that it has nothing to do with my wrist, so they are no help at all.
My advisor said I might want to take a break from tennis for a while.
In fact, when I played for the first time in a month after becoming a working adult, I still felt a bit strange, but I was able to hit low volleys and returns normally. I thought I was cured, but a week later, I couldn't hit anything, starting from ball feeding.
I'm really troubled because I want to be able to play tennis as usual. This is a long message, but please help me.
Answer
▶Definition of the Yips
Once again, let's organize the definition of the yips.
(1) Symptoms appear in the forehand(they do not appear in the backhand).
(2) Even in the forehand, they mainly appear in strokes and ball feeding(they are less likely to appear in volleys. *In soft tennis, they might appear if the 2nd serve is underhand).
(3) Even in the forehand, they do not appear in shots without much time, like half-volleys.
(4) They appear in the service toss.
(5) They are less likely to appear in practice and appear in matches(you can hit freely as usual in practice).
(6) They appear in experienced, advanced players(they do not appear in immature beginners).
(7) They appear in people who are serious by nature(they do not appear in people who are laid-back).
Based on the above, (1) and (6) are accurate, but (2) through (5) do not partially apply.
Your humble attitude, such as saying "this is a long message," might also correspond to (7).
▶"Yips = Bad at tennis" is not true
If you have 7 years of soft tennis experience and have achieved decent results, then what your senior says about you being 'just bad' is off the mark.
The yips are not just an extension of 'being bad'.
'Being bad' and the yips are clearly different.
And if you are 'just bad,' it's still better.
If you are just bad, you just need to practice.
But with the yips, practice doesn't help, so being just bad is still better.
▶ 'Opening up' speeds up recovery
The yips are suspected, but there is no need to jump to that conclusion.
Even if it is the case, recovery is expected to be quick.
People whose yips truly become serious are usually those who have a strong desire not to worry or burden those close to them, including seniors, advisors, friends, family, and partners, and cannot bring themselves to admit that they have the yips.
Also, that type of person is more prone to the yips.
▶ People with the yips are diligent in practice
What the advisor says, 'Maybe you should take a little break', hits the mark.
This is because, as mentioned earlier, 'practice doesn't help'.
However, the personality of someone who gets the yips is basically (7), so they want to regain their form, and they want to practice even more at times like that.
They are afraid that if they don't practice, their poor condition and anxiety will only get worse.
But that is like trying to do muscle training to recover strength when you are injured.
The inflammation could get even worse.
At such times, it is also necessary to do nothing and 'wait' for natural healing.
▶ Exercising the 'courage to rest'
The courage to rest.
This is often said in physical terms, but it applies to the mind as well; 'resting is also training'.
When you talk about 'resting,' since people who suffer from the yips are basically (7) in personality, they might feel the guilt of 'slacking off', but that only becomes a trigger that further damages self-esteem.
Therefore, why not try reframing it like this?
'I've worked hard on many things, so it's only natural that I'm going through this temporarily.'.
And when you accept yourself as you are, yips treatment makes great progress.
▶ Cherishing yourself
When this warm feeling of 'cherishing yourself' is nurtured, life as a whole becomes easier to live, so as I always say, I want to emphasize that 'the yips are worth having'.
People who suffer from the yips tend to have a tendency to 'prioritize others' convenience' over cherishing themselves.
That is not 'kindness,' 'compassion,' or 'consideration,' but the flip side of a psychology that cannot cherish oneself.
In other words, the front side of a sense of self-negation, thinking 'someone like me'.
Even when their own physical condition is not good, they end up pushing themselves, saying things like 'I'm fine'.
▶ Self-esteem is easily misunderstood
This article“Why people with perfectionism have extremely low self-esteem” is a paid article, but it explains the reasons why self-esteem is so easily misunderstood.
People often try to improve it through directions like “Learn to love yourself through positive thinking!” or “You can affirm yourself by being kind to others!”, which are misguided (and dangerous) approaches, and there are actually many psychology professionals who convey such information.
However, at the very least, I have never heard of anyone who “actually increased their self-esteem” through such an approach.
※Regarding paid articles.
You can use the “refund guarantee” stipulated by note's terms of service, so if you find it not very helpful after subscribing, please do not hesitate to submit a requestfor a refund.
▶ “It’s good that it’s only to this extent”
Once again, when I think about the suffering I might have carried for my entire life if I hadn't contracted the yips, I feel that “right now, it’s good that it’s only to this extent”.
Of course, it is natural to feel impatient and want to “heal it immediately!”
But just as conditions and timing must be right for a person to change, conditions and timing must also be right for the yips to heal.
Even if you alone try hard, saying “I want to get married soon!” or similar, if the conditions and timing are not right, that effort will surely just spin its wheels.
Whether it succeeds or not requires meeting the right partner at the right time.
I am rooting for you, albeit from afar.
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