Animals don’t speak, which means they don’t say any judgemental comments on whatever a person does. On the other hand, people can be pretty judgemental, and you can’t open up to someone freely if you feel there’s the slightest chance this person may judge you. This is why many people find animals extremely therapeutic.
It has been scientifically proven through research and experiment that animals are extremely helpful for people who suffer from mental issues. Horses are some of the most beautiful animals and the most emotionally intelligent ones as well. These free-spirited beauties are excellent at helping people overcome a number of mental and emotional health issues that people suffer from. Here’s how horses can help individuals overcome mental obstacles.
Becoming Aware of Your Own Emotions
One of the first steps to healing from any mental illness is to become aware of how you feel. Horses are extremely skilled at reading people’s emotions and body language. They react according to the energy and vibes coming from the person they’re interacting with. This reaction mirrors the person’s emotions and attitude, which helps them become aware of how they feel and act.
Seeing their emotions and attitude reflected on the horse helps people become more aware of their emotions, which is the first step to healing. People need to understand and address how they feel about dealing with whatever they’re suffering from.
Boosting Confidence and Self Acceptance
These magical creatures are wonder workers when it comes to boosting a person’s self-confidence and helping them accept who they are without judgment. Horses respond to people who are kind to them, who are not trying to control or dominate them. Many people who have self-esteem issues hide this by trying to prove to others that they’re powerful. To show how powerful they are, they may try to bring down those they interact with and try to control them.
This method, though, never works on horses because they’re free-spirited and never accept being controlled. Patients of different ages have written reviews about their experience at Transformations Mending Fences equine therapy, and how this non-traditional method helped them become more confident and accepting of who they are. Bonding with a horse requires respecting this animal and how it values its freedom. The fact that they can finally appeal to the horse means that they’re finally ready to understand their vulnerability and accept it.
Creating a Sense of Peacefulness
Horses appreciate the wilderness and beauty of nature, and they do not feel comfortable in crowded, noisy places. This is why they’re free and happy living on a farm or running through unrestricted, vast, green areas. Their love and appreciation for nature allow them to be fully themselves, which brings them a sense of calmness and peacefulness.
One of the methods used in equine therapy is horseback riding, in addition to tending to horses in other ways. Horseback riding helps the horse and its rider connect and appreciate the beauty of nature, which gives a sense of magical peacefulness to both the horse and its rider.
Enhancing Social Skills
For any person to successfully bond with a horse, they’re required to learn many social skills, including sensing how the horse reacts to their attempt, respecting the horse’s space, and learning when and how to approach the animal. Many studies have shown that horses’ social skills are quite similar to people’s. Just like people, horses are sociable and have their own boundaries.
To successfully interact with anyone in a healthy manner, a person needs to understand how to read how people react to any move they make, respect their boundaries, and have boundaries of one’s own. Through successfully bonding with horses, a person will learn and enhance the skills to have healthy relationships with others.
Listening to People When They Open Up
Mares are actually exceptional listeners. This makes people feel easy about opening up to them without fearing judgment or rejection. Even though they don’t talk, they’re susceptible to how people feel and show emotions towards what people are saying and how they feel. This creates a safe space for anyone with any issue to feel protected and easy around a horse.
Horses don’t just look majestically breathtaking, but they’re also some of the most intelligent creatures in the world. They can sense what a person isn’t showing and can tell how a person really feels. This makes them perfect for helping people with mental and emotional obstacles overcome these challenges and learn new skills that help them become stronger and healthier.
