The connection between horses and humans is as ancient as it is sacred. It’s truly a unique relationship from a prey and predator perspective that continues to evolve to this day. Connection is a shared interest among horses as much as it is among humans and the relationship between horses and humans was likely created because making that connection with each other has been, and continues to be, beneficial for both.

Liz* came to us for some life coaching. She’d been struggling with a “passion project” that she had started and was feeling stuck and uninspired. Liz wasn’t ready to give up on it, but she was starting to feel more weighed down and stressed out about it than passionate!

After entering the arena and introducing herself […]

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Jerry* came to us through a program for Veterans. He and his wife, Anna, were participating in an activity that involved walking their equine around the arena to four designated barrels labeled with different topics to discuss and reflect on. On top of the barrel, labeled “Self Care”, there were a few brushes to invite the opportunity to take some time to brush their horse and talk about what self-care meant to them. When Jerry and his wife had a turn at the “Self Care” station and started to brush their horse something unexpected happened.  “Mama”, the horse they’d been working with, didn’t seem happy at all with the brushing she was receiving, she held her head high and kept trying to move away from the brush. This […]

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Our emotions are one of the main things that make us human and yet the relationship that we humans have with our emotions tends to be tenuous at best. So often, we reject and avoid our emotions, especially those labeled as “negative”. We have learned that showing emotion is a sign of “weakness”, that we should remain in control of our emotions, that we shouldn’t show them, and quite possibly that we shouldn’t even have them. However, this type of condemning of our feelings does us much more harm than good.

Honoring and respecting our emotions leads not only to authenticity and balance, but to a sense of inner peace. When we allow our emotions the time and space they need to exist, we […]

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Matthew* came to Stand InBalance because he’d been battling addiction through most of his young adult life and he had heard that equine therapy could be a good compliment to traditional talk therapy.

In his first session, Matthew connected with Maybelline (a donkey) and was brushing her when Bubba (another donkey) walked over and promptly nudged Matthew pretty hard. Maybelline swiftly and effectively swung her head around, flattened her ears and motioned for Bubba to go away.  Bubba immediately moved away.  Matthew went back to brushing Maybelline and then several minutes later Bubba came back again and pushed Matthew. This startled Matthew and he immediately walked away from the donkeys exclaiming “that’s it! I’m done.” He went over to the shade, sat down and put his head in his hands. We asked what happened and he […]

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When Michelle* first came to Stand InBalance, at age 32, she had been working in sales for 5 years and wanted to transition into product development.  She often had great ideas but would go blank and lose her center whenever she tried to develop her ideas and share them with others. When Michelle entered the arena, she was very stiff and unsure how to connect with the horse she chose.  She became so constricted by trying to do what she thought was “right” that she was unable to trust her instincts, listen to her inner knowledge or follow through with her own ideas.  The more she doubted herself, the more agitated and less cooperative the horse became. After taking a break & checking in with herself, Michelle realized that she was still inhibited by adolescent experiences of being shamed for her ideas.  As she shared this realization, Michelle’s chosen horse walked up and stood next to her.

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