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This beautiful lady (in the picture below) lost her mom when she was only 8 weeks old Since then, she's had to say goodbye to her horse friends, who either died, were sold or moved away. All this time she was living with feelings of being unsafe, helplessness and unloved until she met her current owner, who asked me to come and help her release (some of) the negative emotions and trauma. The owner of the horse told me that she'd never seen such a bad case of separation anxiety/barn sourness. In the horse's world there's really no such thing as barn sourness or buddy sourness. Either the horse is feeling anxious, or he is not. What we call it is up to us, but for the horse and my assessment it doesn't really matter. What does matter is the fact that even the simplest things can become a disaster when a horse is not feeling safe, about the environment or about the future. Horses that have endured trauma are more susceptible for changes in their lives and surroundings, they're always triple-checking everything before they can truly settle in or down. But this horse had attached herself to her friends, looking for safety and stability after losing so many of her horse friends and family members. It was almost impossible to even make a connection with her when she wasn't near her equine friends, she always had to make sure she could hear, see and smell them. Even during our healing session, she occasionally walked over to (one of) her friends to ask for support while I helped her release some trauma.  It took me longer than usual to help this horse be brave enough to let go. She walked away from me as soon as I started triggering, but when I gently invited her back, she eventually released and relaxed and let go. I repeated these steps on every integration point, since she walked away as soon as the triggering at the next point started so I had to invite her back into my space. This seemed to work for her, to slowly but steadily let things go by snorting, sighing, pawing or licking/chewing. Afterwards she seemed happy and very relaxed, and I felt relieved to leave her in such responsible and loving hands. That is what she deserves.
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*scroll down to watch video We don't use this approach often enough when we're working with horses. Too often it's about what WE want, what WE would like to accomplish.. we take into consideration what holds us back, like our fears & our limited thoughts. ❓Why do we pressure or sometimes even bully the horse into working with us, into submission? The concept of partnership sometimes only seems to apply when riding, when instead it should start in the pasture or stall, working your way towards the roundpen, arena and eventually trails or competitions. But we can't expect to have a calm, relaxed horse after putting so much pressure on them, after deliberately telling them "YES" so many times when they've told us "NO". Where is their freedom? Their choice? Their voice? It's really no wonder that abused horses often carry a lot of trauma in their throat area, it's where they store feelings of suppression. The lack of experiencing true freedom can be devastating for any equine.  For 🐴Fin "The Devil's Horse" (the horse in the video) I wanted to do better, to show him his options and find better ways to communicate than running towards or away from stuff when he feels overwhelmed. He soon figured out that there were no lines, no ropes and no tools, just him & me. He spoke and I listened. That's the important thing of waiting: you got to have patience. The patience to let them explore, figure things out. The patience to say "it's ok, we can do your thing first but we'll do it together". To me it seems like the more time we take with horses, the faster we get -better- results from them. Instead of wearing them out during training, I like to leave them feeling better than when we first started our session. I want to leave them with a sense of renowned freedom, which is a Big Deal for any horse (spiritual pride). Lots of people fear horses that show lots of pride and confidence, maybe that's how Arabians got their reputation as being too hyper, too hysterical etc. If we just learned to not take their behavior personally but rather observe their and our own behavior, we can accomplish whatever we dare to dream of, without the use of force. Vibrate higher 🌠 P.S. I can confidently and honestly say that Fin is not dangerous, mean or possessed by the Devil. He is sensitive, yes but if you don't know what you're doing then it might feel like he's a bit much. He simply needs guidance and is very straightforward with his answers. Not a mean bone in his body❤️ 🌟Walter: van gewond en doodsbang gevonden worden op de snelweg van Los Angeles (voor nieuwsbericht zie laatste foto's), naar een nieuw paardwaardig leven In januari 2020 leerde ik Walter kennen. Eind juni 2018 was hij naar Love This Horse gekomen en had al die tijd de rust en ruimte gekregen die hij zo hard nodig had. Tijd om alle trauma te kunnen verwerken, verhuizen naar een nieuwe plek en fysiek te kunnen aansterken. Tijd die veel dieren op veel rescues niet krijgen, waardoor ze worden afgeschreven en afgedankt of ingeslapen. Vera (de eigenaresse van de rescue) weet gelukkig hoe belangrijk het is om zwaar getraumatiseerde paarden te laten "decompressen" voordat er met ze gewerkt wordt. Na anderhalf jaar alleen of met een maatje in een speciale (waar hij niet uit kan springen!) roundpen geleefd te hebben en mensen van een afstand te hebben bestudeerd, was hij klaar voor de volgende stap. Toen ik de eerste keer bij Walter in de roundpen stapte had ik geen idee waar de tijd ons heen zou leiden. Zou hij emotioneel in staat zijn mensen weer te kunnen vertrouwen? En in hoeverre is dat eigenlijk nog mogelijk? Hoe veel kan ik van hem vragen? Het was bijna onmogelijk om niet constant te denken aan wat hij heeft meegemaakt, littekens en oude wonden bedekten zijn hoofd, benen en lijf en hij was bang. Zo ontzettend bang. Behalve stapje voor stapje steeds iets verder komen met Walter, wilde ik het ook leuk maken voor hem. Vera had inmiddels het vertrouwen van Walter gewonnen waardoor ze hem wortels kon voeren. Na iets meer dan een halfuur tijdens onze tweede sessie durfde Walter te blijven staan en een wortel uit mijn hand te pakken. ❤️ Dankzij zijn liefde voor eten kon ik gemakkelijk wat druppels Ashwagandha tinctuur verdelen over wat brokjes/wortels, zo'n 15 minuten voor ik met de training begon. Deze tinctuur (via De Groene Os) helpt op lange termijn het emotioneel en fysiek herstel van het paard te verbeteren. Het helpt negatieve emoties zoals stress en angst naar de oppervlakte te brengen, zodat ik hem kan helpen het laten afvloeiien. Van januari tot februari werkten we in de roundpen, in vrijheid. Dankzij mijn werk op een andere rescue was ik inmiddels aardig gevorderd in Liberty Horsemanship, waardoor Vera vroeg of ik dit met Walter wilde doen zodat er (voorlopig) geen halsters of touwen aan te pas kwamen. Deze fysieke en mentale vrijheid gaf Walter de kans om "nee" te zeggen en van mij weg te rennen wanneer hij het toch te spannend vond. Om te voorkomen dat hij in "freeze" mode zou blijven (van de spanning niet meer durven/kunnen bewegen) liet ik hem veel bewegen, in stap of draf en van richting veranderen door met zijn voorhand naar binnen te draaien -iets dat hij al na vier sessies snapte! Samen bewogen we in harmonie door de roundpen, soms volgde ik hem, soms volgde Walter mij. Veel sneller dan ik verwachtte kon ik hem binnen anderhalve maand aanraken en aaien op zijn schouder, hals en hoofd. Volgende keer: Halsteren en leren meelopen "You're about to overcome something you've been dealing with. Your mind and your heart will soon be at peace again. Be patient, everything will be okay." ❤ Many abused horses arrive at rescues underweight and scared. It will probably come as no surprise to learn that it's often hard work or seemingly impossible to put weight on them. Feelings of being unsure, not knowing what will happen to them next weakens their stomach. Even if they are able to chew down -some of- their food, when it's to be digested in an out-of-balance body it can still lead to ulcers, cribbing or eventually biting. 🐴Whiskey (in the pictures) has received a couple of IET sessions from me, which helped him greatly with expressing himself and confidently be with me in the roundpen. He still needs more time, work and love to become a well-balanced horse again. But it's absolutely great to see and feel Whiskey happy chomping on his breakfast while I treat him. He is feeling safe ❤ The first and last picture of his face shows how much better he felt after running and kicking around during our first groundwork session. Whiskey2 (yes, he is the second horse named Whiskey at Love This Horse) came from a low end auction where he arrived beat up. Physically he is healing nicely, but the emotional scars will take some more time to heal. ☯️Last week I gave him an Integrated Energy therapy session but he wasn't quite ready to release most of his trauma yet. But I was able to peel through the first layer and get him to show some expression and true horse behavior while in the roundpen which is also very important during rehabilitation. He will need some time to come around ❤ klik hier voor Nederlands MY VISION AND BELIEFS: When I started working with horses, I was inspired by the old masters like Ray Hunt, Mark Rashid and Buck Brannaman. Their way of not "working" - but connecting with their horses felt so pure and true, I could feel it in my bones. I thought; 'This is what I want to learn, this is what I will pursue.' Now, over 10 years later, I have a passion. To help those who otherwise cannot be heard, to give them a voice and give them their lives back. Setting yourself up for succes or failure Horses are too spiritual and too pure to just grab them, hop on their backs and ask for something without ever giving anything in return, like partnership, comfort, respect and an appropriate environment to live in. Somehow, along the way, we've lost our ability to emphatize, to put someone else's needs before our own. We do this when we have children, we make the best choices possible and put our own lives on hold, just to support them. So why not with horses? When you're setting goals, or having dreams for your horse, how long does it take you to get to the things that really matter? It's not about the lessons, your tack, your fancy outfit and brand new trailer. It's about making sure your horse is willing and able to do the things you ask from him. Not afraid of the consequences when he fails, but asking for guidance when things get tough. Like true partners. Working & living with horses: More than our eyes can see Over the years, while working with all kinds of horses in The Netherlands and USA, I have tested my theories (yes, I have many!) about partnership as the main ingredient during my rehabilitation program. These horses all had different backgrounds, like racehorses, cutting horses, hunter jumpers, reining horses, warmbloods, coldbloods, thoroughbreds. All with often one thing in common: a complicated and heart-breaking past, which has made them either angry at - or afraid of - people. Just physical training and care aren't the right tools for these horses. They'll need much more support and guidance on an emotional and spiritual level. Like humans and other animals, horses have several energy fields. Humans have four (physical, emotional, mental and spiritual), horses have three: physical, emotional and spiritual. Each layer has a cellular memory, in which all kinds of impressions are being stored during their lives. The physical layer is their body, with the cellular memory of wounds, trauma and disease. The emotional layer exists a little outside the body, and carries feelings, emotions and emotional trauma. The spiritual layer is the most distant, with humans this is the layer that carries our karmic lessons and trauma we're carrying from a life we've lived before. Since horses don't carry anything with them from past lives, this layer represents the Spirit itself, the horse's gift to the world. It's the horse in his highest, purest form. As you can see, horses do not have a mental layer. So why is that? Horses are not able to have negative thoughts or feelings about themselves, or limitative thoughts. They don't hold grudges, they just forgive and let go. However. Horses àre able to carry guilt, fear, all empathetically taken on from the humans it serves. Which means that when you're buying a new horse, they might have some energy blockages due to taking over the emotions from their previous owner(s). Since horses, like most animals, are more grounded than us humans, they are masters in empathetically taking on a humans emotion and then release and clear it very quickly. But if the horse's own needs aren't met, like lack of interaction with other horses, the wrong diet or even neglect/abuse, it gets harder and harder to channel all that (negative) energy. At this point, you'll have a horse that is (either) physically, emotionally or spiritually out of balance. These horses always show typical behavior like cribbing, biting, bolting, shoving, not cooperating, low energy, rearing, bucking or sometimes even attacking. Integrated Energy Therapy A great tool (for me) while working with these types of horses, is Integrated Energy Therapy (IET). This is a beautiful and safe way (since I don't necessarily need to be near the horse)to get the energy in their cellular memories flowing again. For example, a little insight in IET from one of my study books: "The cellular memory in the area of the throat and lungs is where feelings of shame about self-expression are suppressed. There is a great deal of strength in the throat center of a horse. This is conveyed by the archetypal image of the horse standing very proud and regal, with no sense of pride or boastfulness. Horses have a tremendous ability to be expressive and spontaneous. They have a very large range of expression."  "Energy can be suppressed into the horse's throat center, when a horse chooses to become "domesticated" so that it can enter into the path of service to humans. Some of the energy of a horse's wild spirit is suppressed into the throat center. When the horse is not serving humans and is allowed to be free, this spirit can flow through the cellular memory of the throat center and the horse's true spirited nature will be expressed. By Energizing and Integrating the horse's cellular memories, we are able to imprint and restore the right energy that allows the horse to remain strong and true. To me, an essential part of working with horses.
"The Human possesses the one thing that means more to the horse than anything in the world, and that is peace and comfort." - Buck Brannaman  ℹVoordat ik bij een paard /potentiële klant langskom, wil ik eerst weten of we al eventuele fysieke blokkades kunnen vinden en eventueel laten behandelen door bijvoorbeeld een dierenarts, hoefsmid, osteopaat etc. 1️⃣In de eerste plaats vraag ik dit om te voorkomen dat ik werk met een paard dat daadwerkelijk een fysiek probleem heeft, waar ik vervolgens verantwoordelijk voor gehouden kan worden (je weet het maar nooit, in Amerika 🙄). 2️⃣In de tweede plaats omdat ik wellicht helemaal niet nodig ben. Een slecht gebit kan een tandarts behandelen, een verkeerde stand kan worden behandeld en ondersteund door een goede bekapper, etc. Als ik trouwens kan helpen bij het zoeken naar een geschikt persoon, dan doe ik dat graag! ❤ 3️⃣In de derde en laatste plaats kunnen fysieke problemen OF helemaal niet aanwezig zijn (het probleem is dus emotioneel/spiritueel) OF wel aanwezig zijn, maar de fysieke blokkade is dan een terugkerend probleem en een blokkade in een ANDERE laag (emotioneel/spiritueel). 👉Bijvoorbeeld: Een paard met rugproblemen - of singelnijd, zadeldwang; geleidelijk oplopende uitingen van frustratie tijdens het benaderen of aanraken van bepaalde gebieden - dat regelmatig behandeld wordt door een osteopaat of andere behandelaar, blijft maar dezelfde fysieke problemen opnieuw en opnieuw ontwikkelen. Blokkades in de hals, nek, schouders en de poll van het hoofd, zijn veel voorkomend bij paarden die nog in een Mentale staat van stress/onrust/powerlessness verkeren. Het WEGNEMEN van de energetische blokkades en de gebieden vervolgens weer in balans brengen, is vaak een lang, moeilijk maar ook heel mooi proces 💞 Weer durven leren loslaten, voelen, mensen toelaten, naar de oppervlakte laten borrelen wat niet meer nodig is en er dan met slingers en sprongen ceremonieel afscheid van nemen 😂 Doei!! Dat hebben we niet meer nodig 👋🏽🚀 Veel paarden voelen zich daarom al na een eerste sessie VEEL beter 🦄🐎🥳 (🌟Zie hieronder een foto van een hèle blije Quill na haar eerste IET behandeling van mij🌟).  De kunst is om dit "Energetische Gesprek" regelmatig te voeren, om te zien of en waar er nog "rommel" zit die ruimte mag maken voor nieuwe, betere dingen. Bekijk hieronder een video waarbij een IET sessie doe met een paard dat al een paar mensen heeft gebeten; Liefs, Zoë
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