When you allow a horse to go at its own pace along a country lane you soon succumb to its rhythm and your mind turns to other things: the kangaroos gathering in a distant corner of the paddock amidst the St John’s wort, a kookaburra sitting on a sagging gate, butterflies drinking from recent puddles along the road.

The horse bends its neck now and then to pick at the seeds on the grass and I get to thinking: If we mend the gate, change the noisy wheel-bearing in the ute and rub some oil into the parched saddle, then the day has passed on small things; if we cut our winter wood, plan the digging of a new dam or put hay aside for the animals for the coming dry, then we are ahead of ourselves. All the same, you have to be careful not to let your mood slip worrying about the changing weather or the steadily rising cost of living because these pressures are unrelenting.

When you have to catch a horse to go somewhere, saddle it up, and all-the-while talk to it in a way that takes into consideration its temperament and mood, then you are certainly going at a different pace to modern urban life. In this advanced industrial era, our day-to-day activity necessitates smart gadgets, electronic funds, semi-autonomous vehicles and, increasingly, artificial intelligence, and we forget that only nature can ground us.

Healing is another matter largely reliant on nature, and this principle is used in hippotherapy to treat both physical and psychological disorders. In fact, forming a relationship with an animal that involves co-operation and communication for mutual benefit is an ancient process, but it was only developed into a specialised therapeutic discipline in the 1960s and 70s in Europe, Canada and America.¹

On the physical level it is quite straightforward, because hippotherapy relies on the natural gait of the horse to provide motor and sensory experience in order to improve neurological function. Assisted by a horse trainer and physiotherapist, the repetitive rhythmic movement of the horse provides stimulation to the rider which mimics the movement of the human pelvis and spine when walking. This encourages the development of physical strength, muscle tone, postural control, co-ordination, balance and flexibility. In addition, communication with the horse provides ‘neuroconnection’ which encourages learning experiences that encompass cognitive, social and psychological aspects of hippotherapy.²

Hippotherapy has been used to help treat traumatic brain injury, cerebral palsy,³ autism,⁴ muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis,⁵ poor gait in the elderly,⁶ and stroke,⁷ as well as psychiatric conditions such as PTSD.⁸ Regardless, taking a holiday and getting out into nature to do any kind of exercise is therapeutic in itself.⁹

We can’t underestimate the benefit of simple relaxation or meditation, but if you are chronically stressed then taking adequate breaks from mental work, eating a healthy diet, doing rigorous physical exercise and having fun are necessary to prevent burnout. Furthermore, we tend to forget that if we are recovering from illness then old-fashioned convalescence is essential—we are not machines.

References:

1.         Muñoz Lasa S, Máximo Bocanegra N, Valero Alcaide R, Atín Arratibel MA, Varela Donoso E, Ferriero G. Animal assisted interventions in neurorehabilitation: a review of the most recent literature. Neurol Barc Spain 2015;30:1–7.

2.         Koca TT, Ataseven H. What is hippotherapy? The indications and effectiveness of hippotherapy. North Clin Istanb 2015;2:247–52.

3.         Zadnikar M, Kastrin A. Effects of hippotherapy and therapeutic horseback riding on postural control or balance in children with cerebral palsy: a meta-analysis. Dev Med Child Neurol 2011;53:684–91.

4.         Srinivasan SM, Cavagnino DT, Bhat AN. Effects of Equine Therapy on Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review. Rev J Autism Dev Disord 2018;5:156–75.

5.         Muñoz-Lasa S, López de Silanes C, Atín-Arratibel MÁ, Bravo-Llatas C, Pastor-Jimeno S, Máximo-Bocanegra N. Effects of hippotherapy in multiple sclerosis: pilot study on quality of life, spasticity, gait, pelvic floor, depression and fatigue. Med Clin (Barc) 2018;

6.         Kang K-Y. Effects of mechanical horseback riding on the balance ability of the elderly. J Phys Ther Sci 2015;27:2499–500.

7.         Pohl P, Carlsson G, Bunketorp Käll L, Nilsson M, Blomstrand C. A qualitative exploration of post-acute stroke participants’ experiences of a multimodal intervention incorporating horseback riding. PloS One 2018;13:e0203933.

8.         Johnson RA, Albright DL, Marzolf JR, et al. Effects of therapeutic horseback riding on post-traumatic stress disorder in military veterans. Mil Med Res 2018;5:3.

9.         Maier J, Jette S. Promoting Nature-Based Activity for People With Mental Illness Through the US ‘Exercise Is Medicine’ Initiative. Am J Public Health 2016;106:796–9.