Life, Loss & the Healing Power of Horses (Page 2)

CW: Why is this form of therapy effective? Why horses?

SF: I feel that we have all had relationships with horses in the past. Either through our ancestry or past lives as we relied on horses for our survival, i.e., growing food, transportation, or fighting wars. So there is a memory of horses within us that when activated does something extraordinary for our sense of well-being. It’s like being connected to something that makes us feel complete. I know this might be hard to understand, but I especially see this with children as young as two or three years old. They absolutely love horses and get so much joy from just being in the horse’s presence.

Regarding using horses for therapy, horses see who we really are; we can’t hide anything from them. It is much easier for someone to access and speak about how they really feel in front of a horse than in front of a person.

CW: What do you think made Natalie’s session especially difficult?

SF: I don’t know if “difficult” is the right word, challenging is probably more appropriate. Iman’s session was super easy and I didn’t have to do much at all, Diva did most of the work! I think there was this expectation in the air that Natalie’s session would be similar. But it was very different. I was concerned that extremely private information might come forward and was not sure how to handle this if indeed it did. I have no control on how these sessions turn out, and memories that have been buried for years or even forgotten events that have happened in our ancestry can be revealed. As it turned out, as you can see in the video, it was a part of Natalie that needed to be “seen” and integrated.

CW: Can you share one particularly amazing/uncanny story from your experience as an equine therapist?

SF: I feel so blessed to do this work and I feel that every time I work with the horses something amazing happens! Recently, Jackie was in a private session and totally surprised the client and me. Jackie was representing the client’s higher self while I was representing the client’s life purpose. There was a moment when as the “purpose” I was able to define who I was, I said to the client “You are a joy master” at this point Jackie stepped up and elevated herself on top of a tire platform with both of her front feet as if to validate what had just been stated. Jackie had never done this before; I had never taught her how to do this and she did this on her own initiative. I took a photo of the moment. My client has graciously given me permission to show this photo.

Have you ever had a healing experience with horses or other non-human animals? Tell us about it in the comments section below!

Subscribe to The Chopra Well and don’t miss next week’s episode with guest star, Rainn Wilson!

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By The Chopra Well

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Veronique L.

7:06AM PST on Nov 24, 2012

Thank you for sharing!

November 24
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Carrie-Anne B.

3:56PM PDT on Oct 28, 2012

interesting article, thanks for sharing :)

October 28
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Marie W.

9:53PM PDT on Oct 23, 2012

Thanks.

October 23
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Christine W.

3:25AM PDT on Oct 21, 2012

Thanks for sharing!

October 21
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Muriel S.

1:03PM PDT on Oct 20, 2012

Thank you. Interesting article. It gives us one more good reason ... to respect horses. Rather than slaughter them!

October 20
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Rosa m.

9:12AM PDT on Oct 20, 2012

Horses are amazing and very smart animals.
they're also very beautiful animals.

Valentina R.

6:46AM PDT on Oct 20, 2012

Horses are amazing, intelligent, beautiful animals. They shouldn't be eaten, but used for pet theraphy.

Suzy D.

6:22PM PDT on Oct 19, 2012

"Have you ever had a healing experience with horses or other non-human animals?"

When I was first initiated into Reiki I returned home and was relaxing on the bed. Our cat Yoda (he had scant hair around his head as a kitten) who had sore eyes as a result of cat flu when young, detected a change in my hands. He ploughed his head into the palm of my hands and seemed to take some relief from the warm energy which I could feel emanating through them. After a minute or so he decided he had had enough and went off to attend to feline matters. He was a frequent visitor to the palms of my hands after that though whilst his eyes steadily improved over time.

Although I believe in Reiki greatly, I can offer no scientific proof for its efficacy. Also, although the effects over time for Yoda`s eyes were impressive, I cannot disprove that his eyes would not have healed anyway. I regard it as complementary to conventional medicine, not an alternative. That being said, I have been personally convinced of Reiki`s effectiveness on many other occasions for Humans and animals alike, although it is by no means a cure all.

October 19
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Isabel A.

4:17PM PDT on Oct 19, 2012

Horses are great healers, no doubt about it. Thank you for sharing.

Mary D.

7:21AM PDT on Oct 19, 2012

I LOVE horses. We have two that we rescued and trained. With all due respect, I believe Natalie N. is incorrect. We can't keep them at home, but in a herd of horses boarded in a pasture at a ranch not too far away.

Our horses enjoy groundwork that includes agility training as well as being ridden because of the bond we have with them. Each time we arrive at the ranch, they come running out of the herd and up to us nickering, glad to see us, eager to be pampered as well as to have something to do. Seems they get bored in the pasture albeit they do get to run and play with their "buddies."

Horses are sensitive, intelligent beings and when treated well, they like to get out and about. We communicate with them via light cues such as leaning back when we want them to stop, shifting our weight when we want them to turn, etc. The sad part is that here in Colorado, they keep closing horse trails for use by ATVs and other off-road vehicles, noisy things that decrease the serenity of enjoying our parks and mountains IMO.

We also fight to save the lives of wild horses, which are our heritage, but endangered due to the profits in killing them for food exported to other countries. They don't round them up and kill them humanely either. It's truly heartbreaking.

To me there's little more beautiful than watching a wild herd in which they take care of each other. And there's nothing as calming or magical as spending time with our beautiful, intelligent horses.