Grace* came to Stand InBalance to work through some childhood emotional and physical trauma. 
In one particular session, she was working with “Star”, a horse she wasn’t too familiar with. Star had a “horsenality” that required one to be more tuned into his subtle, non-verbal cues than the donkey she normally worked with. Knowing this about Star had already created some anxiety within Grace. In response, Star quickly reflected his awareness of her mental state by flattening back ears back as she approached. Grace apprehensively tried again, putting her hand out. Again, Star was said “nope!” and flattened his ears while glaring at her.
When asked how she was feeling, Grace shared that she knew this horse was “harder” than the donkey and was worried about “failing” at the simple task of connecting with him for a walk.
When asked how Star might be feeling, Grace took a moment to stop and reflect. She looked at Star and said “probably the same way as I do!” She laughed, let out deep sigh and Star did the same. Then he lowered his head and let her put the halter on.
As the pair began to walk together, another horse came over and nipped at Star’s rear causing him to move quickly and spin around. Although startled, Grace held the lead and tried again to walk to the barrel across the arena. As she made this next move Star reacted to some noise and again spun around and tried to go the opposite way. Every time Grace took two steps with Star, something would distract them and Star would swing around and walk in a different direction. Their trip to the barrel was looking a bit chaotic.
We took a short break and asked Grace if there was anything she wanted to do that would help. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and began practicing a mindfulness technique she had used in past sessions. After this brief check in, Grace set out to walk towards the barrel. At first, Star began to walk in the opposite direction, but Grace held her resolve and they successfully got to her destination.
When asked about this experience, Grace exclaimed that after she remembered to connect with her mindfulness, she just kept telling herself: “Find your breath, where are your feet? what do you see?, hear?” and just like that Star went with her. Grace had been really mindful of her feelings, thoughts & actions. She also had to pay special attention to the cues that Star was giving her and interact with him accordingly. When she could hold her focus & keep her calm, Star also became calm.
After the session Grace shared that after months of being asked to be mindful about her experience and being actively reminded to check in with herself and her surroundings she had gotten pretty good at it! Good enough to calm down, find her center and then access her strength and focus when presented with a new challenge.
*All names & identifying information have been changed
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