How Do Horses Help Us Heal?
Over the course of my career as a Certified Equine Gestalt Coach, I have heard the question time and time again: Can horses really help humans heal? And if so, How? The answer to our first inquiry is yes, horses really do have the ability to help us humans heal anything from a run-of-the-mill bad day to our deepest traumas. The follow-up is a little trickier to explain, as the healing process very much depends on the individual human… and horse.
Read on for a few of the ways that horses help humans heal.
Horses help us see our authentic selves.
There’s something about horses that encourages us to drop the act and get real. Perhaps it’s the fresh air that comes along with barn life. Maybe it’s the lovely smell of horse manure. And maybe… just maybe… it’s the fact that horses want pretty much nothing to do with us unless we step into our true, authentic selves. They can literally see through our BS, my friends. As prey animals, it’s a matter of their survival to see past the sly predator and find the truth of the matter (i.e. they don’t want to be dinner). So often, clients come to a session wearing the facade of life: everything is peachy. But it’s not until that mask is dropped that the horses will engage and oh so strongly validate the client’s truth. What is more life changing than a large and powerful animal validating your truest truth?
The door to authenticity is right there. Horses can help you walk through it. (For more on this topic, check out Horses and Authenticity: Calling Us On Our BS)
Just being with horses helps lift our energy.
People with horse experience ranging from zero to professional receive this benefit with little to no effort. Due to their large, strong, and extremely sensitive energetic field, these majestic creatures have the ability to sense our energetic state. And they also have the ability to shift it. If we humans approach a horse with no agenda or distractions—put the phone down, people—we open a door to healing. We might notice the horse getting particularly nosy with a certain body part, or even our entire body. Chances are, he is investigating our energy centers, also known as the chakras. If one energy center seems to be unbalanced or low, the horse can use his own energy to balance it for us. This is done without any detriment to himself, and often completely outside of human awareness. It’s like healing on cruise control—all you have to do is enjoy the ride. With our energy centers back in balance, we are left feeling better than we did before our horse encounter.
Long story short: have a bad day? Feeling uneasy? Go sit with a horse.
Horses help us heal from trauma.
Horses have the most amazing way of helping us work through our darkest times. Those of us with trauma of any kind can benefit from a specific form of healing work with horses called the Equine Gestalt Coaching Method (EGCM). In a session, a Certified Equine Gestalt Practitioner (such as myself) partners with a horse to help guide the client through his or her “unfinished business” or trauma. Unlike other animal-assisted therapies, the horse is an active coach in the process rather than a tool to achieve a desired outcome. Our equine partner naturally possesses the traits, skills, and instincts that help guide the client from a place of pain and push them (at times literally) toward peace. All that is required of the client is the willingness to do the work and an open heart. With the horse’s innate lie detector and energy balancing skills as mentioned above, along with many other natural healing gifts, the horse-human coaching combination can deliver a healing experience that is unmatched by other methods.
In summary
While there are many animal-assisted therapeutic modalities out there, healing work with horses is unique. Our equines are our partners, rather than a tool to achieve an end result, and there are so many different ways that they show up and help. Guiding us to authenticity, balancing our energy and healing trauma are only a few examples of ways that they can help people heal. Putting words to describe these experiences isn’t an easy task, and I always encourage my clients to share their experiences in their own words (you can see what some have said here).
Want to see what it’s about for yourself? Schedule your free consultation today to learn more about my work as an Equine Gestalt Method Coach and how it can help. The horses and I look forward to meeting you. Questions? Let me know!
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