The way of taking away the emotional attachment from the memory is quite an easy process which can take 5-10 minutes at first and which speeds up as the golfer now knows how the process works.
When an experience we have causes a strong enough emotional response in us, our mind takes a snapshot of what occurred, and stores it for when we might need that information again, primarily to keep us safe. It does so in various ways depending on the experience and on your modalities levels (visual, audio, kinaesthetic, processes). However it might be smell or taste.
To add to that it compresses the memory into a manageable size that makes it easier to recall. Unfortunately at times this means we bring up memories that aren't related to the current experience and it all gets muddled up, and we react to a current experience based on a previous unrelated experience.
So we are standing on the tee on the 1st, with a crowd, and we top the ball and it only goes 20 yards. The mind takes a snapshot to save for the next time we are in a similar circumstance. Then we need to take our second shot whilst the same people are watching and this shot's importance is now through the roof because it's now about our ego. This compounds the snapshot. If we play a good second shot then we can retain some positivity about how we can overcome challenges however if we further make a bad shot then all hell can break loose in the mind.
This is why processes are so important.
When the golfer stands on the tee again and they look for information then the memory of the topped shot comes back to them and as I said before our primary focus is on not playing a bad shot, which we might just get away with.
When working with this golfer. I ask them to close their eyes and take themselves back to the tee shot and recollect that snapshot, the one that now causes tension each time they stand on the first tee.
The way to change the image is quite easy. If it's a movie then press the pause button, if it's in colour make it black and white, if the golfer is in the picture then take themselves out of it. There are a few more before I get to the woo woo part when the golfer throws the picture to me.
Then I take away any noise, any emotions and internal thoughts and any new feeling in the body that recalling the snapshot has caused. I then cause some confusion which breaks the attachment of the emotion to the memory and then anchor it in some way.
Then when the golfer stands on the 1st tee again they cannot recall either the event or at the very least the emotion from the event, and they can then play freely.
I will be demonstrating this on Sunday night.
Stuart