Horses healed my broken heart, after the horse world broke it.
There is scientific evidence showing the horses heart can heal your heart and from my experience, it rings true.
I used to ride horses competitively. It was my life for many years. It was all I did.
I have no regrets and I would not change a thing… but it certainly was not all roses.
Long Story Short:
- It kept me out of trouble.
- It allowed me to create deep understanding and non verbal communication skills that are rare and amazing.
- It was traumatic and dramatic causing deep wounds.
I walked away from it when I went to university. I was told over and over again that I was throwing my life away by people I thought were my friends.
Trauma. Drama.
There’s something about horses though, that has nothing to do with competitive riding or training.
I missed out on it my entire childhood as I was learning how to navigate a jump course rather than navigating my own soul.
Horses have a way of letting you see your soul through their eyes. They are a brilliant mirror for self reflection and they have a way of healing your broken heart.
Not because you are sitting on top of them navigating a jumping course, but simply because you are in their presence.
The Heart
The heart. The centre. The core.
We know when our heart hurts the rest of our body hurts too.
There’s nothing more painful that heart break. And it seems to radiate through our physical body.
In all the trauma and drama of the competitive horse world, the one constant was heart. Horses hearts are pure, they don’t love you because you won the event. They just like you. Or they don’t. It’s simple.
Heart Math
Can we dive a bit deeper into the heart?
Science has shown that the heart communicates with the body and brain on various different levels. The HeartMath Institute has been studying these patterns for over 30 years now.
The heart is the most powerful source of electromagnetic energy in the human body. According the researchers, the heart has a higher level of intelligence than the brain. (But you already knew that.)
The electrical activity generated by the heart can be measured (ECG) and detected up to 5 feet away from the body in all directions.
A coherent heart rhythm is what allows the body to recover and adjust to stressful situations. This is what allows us to heal from stressful, traumatic times in our lives without the lasting effects on our nervous systems.
A calm heart equals wellness.
An erratic heart equals imbalance, stress and pain.
The Horse
The horse’s electromagnetic field is 5 times larger than that of a human. It is stronger and can directly influence your own heart rhythm.
Horses are likely to have a coherent heart rhythm which explains why we feel better when we are around them.
Horses naturally scan their environment for prey and a very in-tune with the energies of their environment.
They can feel if you are scared, tired, sad, or happy, relaxed and content.
Through a mindfulness practice with horses you can learn a deep self- awareness, exercise the law of attraction and view your internal self through a truthful mirror.
The Healing
Studies have shown that horses heal humans.
My own story confirms that.
A horse’s heart rhythm can be strong enough to influence a human’s heart rhythm. This aids in nervous system regulation, brain chemistry balance and provides an overall sense of calm.
And calm, is where the magic of healing begins.
Just as we are affected by the horse’s heart rhythm, the horse is also affected by ours. Therefore, the relationship between the human and the horse can be mutually beneficial.
For all these reasons and some more, I love incorporating horses into my yoga retreats.