We’re absolutely stoked to introduce you to Danni. A surfer, therapist and space-holder whose work lives at the intersection of emotional wellness and wave riding.
With a background in psychotherapy and a deep passion for the ocean, Danni empowers surfers of all levels to explore their inner world while navigating the outer one. Her work focuses on building emotional safety, confidence and self-awareness both in and out of the water.
In Part One of this two-part series, we dive into the powerful relationship between fear and joy, the mental blocks that can hold us back in surfing, and how working with our emotions (rather than against them) can deepen our connection to ourselves, the ocean and the surfing experience.
If you’ve ever struggled with fear in the water, self-doubt, or surf-related trauma, this is for you.
We hope you enjoy it!
Q. Hey, Danni. We’re going to dive straight in here. You combine your background in psychotherapy with surf coaching. How does this unique combination benefit the surfers you work with?
I describe my work as empowering surfers to better understand and embrace their emotions in the water by teaching tools and techniques that support increased confidence and emotional safety.
I like to think of it as offering surfers of all levels a version of what sports psychologists provide to professional surfers.
The one key difference with me is that rather than chasing world titles, the main goal is that you truly enjoy surfing!
This work draws on my psychotherapy training, tools and techniques I’ve discovered through my own healing journey, my experiences participating in and assisting numerous group workshops, my personal relationship with surfing and a good dose of intuition.
Whether in group settings or one-on-one sessions, I never quite know what someone will bring to the space.
That’s part of the beauty of it.
Meditating before each session allows me to feel fully present, engaged and connected with the person or group in front of me.
In group work especially, the focus is on sharing and what each individual brings.
It creates a wonderful opportunity for the group to connect on a deeper level while exploring something they’re passionate about.
While there are often recurring themes among the workshops and clients I’ve worked with, each group dynamic and individual is also completely unique.
This is what makes my work so special and endlessly fascinating!
Q. Surfing is often portrayed as this carefree pastime, but for many it comes with a lot of internal battles. What’s the least talked-about mental block that holds surfers back?
Yeah, I mean, I believe it’s our relationship to fear, anxiety and frustration that matters most. Specifically, how we respond to these emotions when they arise.
The reason this isn’t often talked about is because many of us aren’t fully aware of what’s happening in the moment—we’re simply reacting.
We tend to judge ourselves quickly, form negative opinions about what we’re feeling and even shame ourselves for it.
When we meet fear or frustration with resistance or negativity, it prevents us from actually feeling the emotion. And if we can’t fully FEEL it, we can’t process it, so it lingers in the body.
In these moments, we’re essentially adding fuel to the fire: we meet an unpleasant emotion with a negative thought, which creates even more discomfort.
Before we know it, we’re stuck in a negative loop or even spiralling.
This creates major barriers to how we perform, how present we are and ultimately how much we enjoy our session.
Q. That’s so true. Do you think this is common amongst all surfers? Or is there a pattern amongst certain types of people in how confidence is lost (or built) over time?
Yes, I do think this is quite common among surfers.
Of course, some people feel more at ease and less anxious than others. High achievers, in particular, can find surfing especially challenging.
They’re often used to succeeding quickly, but with all the variables in surfing—and the generally slow pace of progression—it can be frustrating, which can lead to feeling stuck or blocked.
Fear, anxiety, self-doubt and imposter syndrome are some of the most common blockers I see, along with the impact of past scary incidents. These all shake our confidence.
I believe we feel such intense emotions in the water because the highs are so high. Catching your first unbroken wave—or even just riding whitewater—can feel euphoric.
It’s addictive in a way. So when we have a session that doesn’t go well or we don’t feel that same buzz, it can hit hard. That’s often when self-doubt creeps in and we start being overly critical of ourselves.
Fear related to a specific incident is also a very common barrier. And, as I mentioned before, when we try to resist or fight fear, we often end up amplifying it.
This is where we can get stuck. Instead, learning to meet fear with curiosity and kindness—rather than frustration and rejection—can help it move through more easily.
Naturally, this takes time and the right kind of mental training, which is where I can support people.
Confidence dips can also come from being overly attached to a specific goal or timeline.
When there’s urgency around “becoming a better surfer”, we lose presence.
We’re thinking about the future rather than being in the moment, and in doing so, we miss the joy and magic of surfing itself.
Ironically, this disconnection is often what holds us back from progressing in the first place.
Q. The radical rollercoaster of surfing emotions is real! Is that something that you experience too? How has surfing shaped your approach to confidence building?
Surfing has changed my life in more ways than I could have ever imagined.
It’s been a true rollercoaster of emotions (as you said!) and a powerful journey of self-discovery, helping me tap into parts of myself I didn’t even know existed… especially my confidence and inner strength.
Ten years ago I wouldn’t have recognised the person I am today (in the best possible way).
That transformation is largely thanks to discovering surfing.
I often think of my surfing journey as a romance with different stages that aren’t always linear or mutually exclusive.
There was the first date which was followed by the honeymoon phase, where I was totally obsessed and head over heels.
Then came the first fight: a gnarly hold-down in Bali.
After that, a period of breakthroughs and breakdowns, filled with turbulence. I even hit the three-year itch where progress felt like it plateaued forever. Eventually, I arrived at a sense of acceptance.
Now, I’m lucky enough to use my own lived experience across all these stages to help others navigate their own surfing (and life) journeys, especially the harder parts.
Just like the ocean has tides, we move through our own phases and emotional shifts. It’s completely natural. But we’ve been conditioned to resist the lows, to push them away. Yet the highs can’t exist without the lows.
So we can either resist the tougher stages, which often keeps us stuck there longer, or we can choose to meet them with acceptance.
That simple shift can help us move through them with more ease and grace.
Stay tuned for Part 2 where we dive deeper into the HOW.
We will explore practical tools, mindset shifts and emotional strategies that’ll help you move through fear, build confidence in the lineup and reconnect with the joy of surfing from the inside out!
