Archive for Horse as Healer
Exploring Boundaries With Horses
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Boundary setting is an area of growth that I focus on in my Equine Experiential Learning and Coaching sessions. Boundary setting teaches us about our power and how we define our personal space.
Horses provide perfect opportunities to strengthen boundary-setting skills. It is a natural tendency for most horses to test boundaries. A horse feels secure when she knows where she stands in the pecking order of the herd. She achieves this understanding by testing boundaries and outsmarting other herd members. When a new horse arrives into the herd she establishes herself in the pecking order by her ability to hold her boundaries and stand up to others. When we engage with horses we enter into the herd. Naturally the horse wants to know who will be in charge of the herd of two. Read More→
Feel the Fear… and Do It Anyway
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Fear. It has the power to stop us in our tracks. Other times fear can be so strong we want to fight back or run away. Sometimes it works subliminally to sabotage our dreams, our life path, and the possibility of living our passion. Fear can make us small.
The positive side of fear is that it keeps us physically, emotionally, and spiritually safe. Ask any person who has achieved any life or physical goal and they will tell you that they listened to their fear but also had to face their fears to advance themselves.
In my book, Hope…through the Heart of Horses I talk about how I had to address my own fears about horses before I could coach others. It was through that process and my ability to use the tools I had developed that helped me stay PRESENT with my fear while moving towards my goals. Read More→
Integrative Riding – Another Way that Horses Help Humans to Heal
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In my last article I talked about how horses are teachers for humans in areas of personal, emotional and spiritual growth. What a person holds emotionally in the body, and mentally in the mind, affects how a horse responds to them. Interacting with a horse on the ground can teach a person a tremendous amount about them selves (if one is willing to listen).
Horses also serve humans when they are ridden. For years now therapeutic riding centers have employed horses to carry mentally, developmentally or physically disabled children and adults on their backs as a method for healing. The power of the horse to heal is not mystical, but is directly connected to the motion created when a rider sits on a horse’s back. The rider benefits as their hip and pelvic area begins to follow the flow of the horse, moving side to side. With each of the horse’s stride the rider’s hips shift back and forth pumping spinal fluid through the spinal column. The spinal fluid then flows through the nervous system and stimulates the brain and all of the nerve endings of the limbs of the rider. Read More→
Horse Dancing
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A few weeks ago I facilitated Advanced Equine Facilitated Learning workshop here in Colorado. There are several components to the advanced work, including horse dancing. Horse dancing is a way to explore fluid movement and connection with a horse with no set instructions or plan on what will transpire during the dance. Each participant selects the horse they want to dance with and the music which most resonates with them.
Typically in these sessions when a person is body-centered, free of agendas and fully present to the moment, the horse, and the music, a flow transpires between horse and human. It is not about walking, trotting or cantering transitions or about any other training techniques. It is about understanding how your horse responds to your energy, your focus, the pressure of your attention, and the quality of your movements. It is about connection to yourself and connection with the horse. Read More→