JJ – the Heart Doctor
My horse is a heart doctor.
“What?” you may ask of me, and perhaps look askance, wondering if I need a different kind of doctor.
But all us Equestrians know about the healing that horses provide. When we get together at least one of us talks about how our horses are better therapy than seeing a counselor. The rest of us nod our heads and sometimes add our own stories.
“Anytime I’m around my horse, I just feel better,” a friend agrees. “I feel at peace with the world.”
That’s a big statement these days when any number of events can stress us out.
Here’s an example. My mom and dad, definitely not “horsey people”, lived with me for a few months. Mom amazed me one evening when she said, “You know, when you get home from the barn you’re a completely different person. You’re more relaxed, less frazzled from work. You just look happier.”
I knew it was true, but for Mom to see it? Well, I suddenly felt like she finally understood what had been driving me from the day I could say, “Look—horsey!”
So, is this why horses are used for therapy for all ages of children and adults with disabilities or challenges of any kind? Yes, and there’s plenty of information on the internet to read about our wonderful equine partners.
Recently a writer-friend asked if it was possible in the real world for a horse to help slow a human’s heartbeat, or calm a human. She asked because I’m writing a book featuring a thirteen-year-old girl who turns to horses for emotional comfort. She’s grieving and feels abandoned, but when she’s with her horse—and he’s her best friend—her heart rate slows and her anxieties melt away. At least for a while.
I knew the answer to my friend’s question, of course, because my horses are my go-to guys when I’m stressed, and all other times too.
But I typed her question in a search of the internet to see what information was out there.
“Are horses’ heartbeats soothing to people?” I typed. Here’s one of the links that came up, and it’s an excellent article.
HeartMath | Horses & Humans Healing | Tao of Horsemanship
According to this article, a human’s heart energy encompasses a sphere-like area around our bodies, about ten feet. But a horse’s heart energy field is five times larger than ours, and can indeed influence our own heart rhythm!
In fact we only need to be in the general vicinity of a horse to feel that sense of calm and peace. Interacting with horses lowers our blood pressure and our heart rate, decreases stress levels and decreases anger, tension, etc.—whatever we were feeling before we got near the horse’s energy field.
Recently one of my dear friends suffered a terrible loss. I invited her over and we started brushing our horses. She spent two hours hugging, brushing and talking with JJ, my eight year-old gelding. Sometimes he can be a stinker but he was calm and loving with her. By the time she left she was at peace and talking about what wonderful therapy JJ provided. She’s been over to visit him many times after that.
I hope readers will explore the internet to learn more about the healing abilities of horses, and how they help people of all ages learn trust and affection, responsibility and confidence, among other wonderful attributes. Here’s another link to help readers get started. Happy reading!
Terri Roe-Cunningham
I love horses. I was born with them in my blood. When I'm not riding horses, I'm writing about them.
