Me and Captain went out alone!!!For many riders hacking out alone would seem like second nature, they wouldn’t even think twice about doing it. I WAS one of these riders. I loved hacking and the freedom that came with it. If I was having a bad day, I’d hack. If I was angry, upset, happy, excited, I could not wait to get out and ride. There was no better feeling than going for a good canter and gallop through the fields to clear the cobwebs. Five years ago I had a very nasty accident while hacking, I didn’t know the horse I was riding and the accident left me unable to properly walk for quite a few months. I was also in the position where I didn’t have my own horse to then get back on and help me to get my confidence back. It was nine months before I rode again, my nerves to ride in an arena were manageable but this was still a strange feeling to me. Before the accident I would get on any horse, had no real fear as I knew a horse wouldn’t deliberately try to hurt me. I had entered into a whole new world that was holding me back and I didn’t like it. I was than luckily enough to find an incredible horse to ride, she helped me get my confidence back to some extent. Over the two years I rode her she allowed me to feel happy being in the saddle again. We loved hacking with other people and we would school happily on our own. But, hacking alone was still unimaginable. As much as I wanted that sense of freedom back fear outweighed it ten times over. I began to think that hacking on my own would never be possible again. Then came along Captain. He is pretty sensible hacking with another horse but if I tried to ride out with someone on foot he would rush everywhere, I couldn’t put my leg on as he was too sensitive, I just couldn't get his attention. You would just have to sit there and point him where you want to go and hope that you didn’t need to ask him anything on your way! Now, I don’t put this down to him, he is a very sensitive horse and I know full well that my nerves were causing the majority of this reaction. I needed to do something to sort this out. Having spent time working with Rosie Withey (Horses as Teachers), having lessons with Captain and attending Rosie’s workshops in EFL, and having lessons with Linzi Hardingham it gave me tools to use to improve my own confidence and self-belief, not just in riding, as well as Captain’s trust and confidence in me. I’ve realised that Captain does look to me to know things are ok, he needs me to be there for him as much as I need him. I have also used EFT (tapping) to work on my confidence and work through the trauma of my accident. On Sunday, I took Captain for a short ride, with my mum walking the dog and he was so good. He walked out well and was also listening to me, I was even able do some schooling on our ride because he was so responsive, rather than being anxious. Then came Monday. I’d been feeling really ill for a week and just wanted to escape for a little bit. All I wanted to do was go out, just me and Captain. So I tacked up, took lots and lots of deep breathes and off we went. Now to say I wasn’t still anxious would be a lie. I haven’t suddenly got back all of my confidence. We only went out for about 15 minutes and half way round my ‘tools’ to stay calm did begin to falter, there is only so much deep breathing you can do! But we made it round and Captain remained relatively calm. We still have work to do and I know with baby steps we will get more confident together. Reflecting back I am so proud of myself, and Captain, to think how far we have come together. I know I found Captain for a reason, he is always guiding me through new things and I can see how, when you work together, you really can face any challenge. We’re gaining our freedom. Love Alice and Captain x
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Here she is, the ‘new recruit’ - The DuchessA second horse was not the plan! The Captain is still improving and not getting as anxious anymore but he was in need of a new field mate. Weighing up all the options my parents and I decided getting our own companion would make things easier. My dad has always had a dream of having his own driving pony and so the search began. My Mum works for Bristol horse charity, Horseworld Trust. I was volunteering at a Tack Sale for them when I got to meet Duchess. With all the hustle and bustle she was not phased, in someways I thought perhaps she was switched off to everything. Duchess was taken in by Horseworld two years ago, at three years old, completely emaciated and with a little foal. The foal had deformed feet which the vets expected was due to Duchess not having the nutrients to help her grow. Duchess was a very tentative mother and her foal was suitably named Cinderella. Read their full story here: http://www.horseworld.org.uk/news/news/emaciated_mare_and_foal_rescued_and_given_a_fairy_tale_ending_at_horseworld/ Captain and Duchess quickly developed a brother/sister relationship, wanting to be close to each other but arguing when they were too close. Duchess has also quickly learned that all she has to do is ask and she gets some energy healing. She’s got quite demanding!! We often spend time in the field together letting the energy flow. Duchess’ character has grown and oozes out, she loves attention from people and will happily follow you round the field while you’re poo picking (although she loves a game of tipping the wheelbarrow!). Duchess is only 5 years old, she didn’t have a good start to life and has a lot of healing to do. I’m so pleased I am able to give her a home where she knows she is safe and is listened to. We have started to bring Duchess into work, with lunging and some ground work, but everything will be very slow and if at any point she shows she doesn’t want to continue we will stop. Duchess is helping me realise that sometimes in life we are put in terrible situations but there is always something we need to keep going for. I am so thankful to Horseworld for the hard work they put in to rehabilitate Duchess and get her strong again. Duchess has become my little lady and now we are helping each other. Love Alice (and Duchess) x x x Yes, really! To help me explain let me introduce you to Captain. Now, I’m not one to make rash decisions, it can take me an hour to decide what to have for my dinner. But when it came to buying Captain I had no doubt! People will often say you don’t chose your horse, he choses you and that is certainly what happened with Captain. I brought him back in August last year, when we drove him to his new home he shriek the whole hour drive. I had to sit in the cab and hold back the tears, all my own self-doubts screaming in my head that this was a big mistake. Once he was at his new home he wouldn’t stay still. Taking in all his new surroundings, but there was something more to it. I was desperate to help Captain understand that I would help him. So I decided we would try some Reiki. For the first ten minutes Captain didn’t leave my side, he soaked it up. He then moved away and I realised, for today that was enough. Something else you need to understand about horses and why people are drawn to certain ones, they will mirror your emotions. It became quickly apparent Captain had separation anxiety, he always had to be insight of another horse, he wouldn’t stay in his stable and he didn’t enjoy being ridden if the other horses weren’t near by. All of this fed my own anxieties, thinking I wasn’t good enough for him, why couldn’t he be happy with me? Over the first few weeks I had Captain I kept trying to offer him Reiki but he wasn’t open to it again. He would move away and not show any interest. I assumed it was all because of me, I forgot that horses are very sensitive to energy. My own anxieties teamed with Captain’s uncertainty to the change in his life weren’t mixing. It wasn’t until one of my friends came to meet Captain. Laura, a fellow therapist, tried some crystal healing with him and although he chose his crystal he then let himself get distracted by EVERYTHING, birds, cars, a cloud. Laura agreed that Captain had very large barriers and he just didn’t want to let anyone in. It wasn’t until he thought we weren’t looking that he finally processed the healing. After Laura’s visit I realised it wasn’t just me Captain wasn’t letting in, he, like most people, just didn’t want to let people into his emotions. He was trying to protect himself. Following this I offered healing to Captain on a regular basis, but on the days he didn’t want it I didn’t think it was my fault, I just accepted that it wasn’t right for him that day. The biggest change I’ve seen in Captain’s behaviour was after I decided he could have some time off of being ridden. I hadn’t been well in the lead up to Christmas and thought a break would do us both good. Over this time I offered Captain healing every day, whether that was Reiki, clearing energy blockages along his Bladder Meridian or a massage, he had something. One particular day I decided I wanted Captain to have some crystal healing. Captain thought otherwise. He didn’t want to pick one, he wouldn’t stand still and he kept head butting me. I gave up and offered him Reiki, I got the same reaction. All my self-doubts came up, why doesn’t he want me? Why is he fighting me when all I want to do his help him? I stepped away for a couple of minutes to get out of my own head. I then realised, he wanted work on his Bladder Meridian! The responses I got here were clear, it wasn’t that Captain didn’t want me he just wanted me to help him in the way he needed. Since this Captain has become a lot calmer, he hasn’t been as anxious and we seem to have become more in-sync. So does energy healing work with horses? Definitely! Why wouldn’t it? They are very influenced by the energy surrounding them, blockages in their energy system can result in physical and psychological problems, the same it can in people. Just because horses can’t speak our language doesn’t mean we shouldn’t listen to their needs. Captain certainly tells me what he wants now! Love, Alice and Captain x |