[QUOTE=Nootka;4430401]
My sister and I have Ehlers also… very interesting :yes:[/QUOTE]
Agreed. I was diagnosed relatively recently, and of course, we’re finding that my mother, aunt, grandmother, great-grandmother, and so on all have it. We knew we’d inherited some odd health concerns along the line, but didn’t realize what it was. Interesting stuff!
It’s awesome to see some delurk action on this thread. 
Invite, GLAD to see you back. I’m sporadic online right now, but feel free to email if you need cheering up/commiseration/or just conversation!
[QUOTE=pintopiaffe;4433849]
It’s awesome to see some delurk action on this thread.
Invite, GLAD to see you back. I’m sporadic online right now, but feel free to email if you need cheering up/commiseration/or just conversation![/QUOTE]
Thanks so much! I agree that this thread is having some major delurking power 
I hope folks continue to break out of their shells!
Roll Call
Hi!
My name is Janice ( Heartbeat Warrior) I have a 501c3 non-profit that serves wounded warriors and their families in WA state. I am getting ready to implement a new program for our wounded warriors. Equine Assisted Therapy to include Hippotherapy and Equine Assisted Psychotherapy.
I have Medical people on board and a NARHA trainer. I have someone who is donating their ranch and some horses for this. I am excited and learning all the time!
this is a great board!
Heartbeat Warrior ( Janice)
www.heartbeatforwarriors.org
I have been reading the posts of you ladies and wanted to get my 2 cents in here.
After a long life in the horse world , I now have joint and back pain and what some call fibro-myalgia. I can not straddle a horse now. Oh I could but I’d pay for it for weeks after.
I had posted elsewhere about the ladies I have made sidesaddles for. Most have similar problems to what you listed.
I am very careful now about what horses I ride. I had a horse bolt and run with me last year and I was so thankful I was in my Western sidesaddle. I gripped the horns and pulled him in with all the strength I had.
I feared if I fell off in that huge field no one would find my body until they mowed the hay.
I hurt for a week after that. I had pulled muscles in my arms and chest and my knees were sore from the grip I had on the sidesaddle horns.
I find our Grandmothers knew what they were doing by riding sidesaddles. And also most only rode "Lady Broke " horses. I can suggest from my own experience for you to ride only safe and sensible horses. For the lady with the 1/2 Draft 9 year old, get rid of him before he really hurts you. Look for an old retired gelding that is unflappable. You need a steady horse that will take care of you. There is one out there for you. You have to search for him.
Horseback riding is theraputic for all. What ever problems you have, when you are riding a horse it is all left behind. Horses are good for the heart, mind and soul.
And also the body. I do not ride much now but I do my saddlemaking which brings me a lot of joy.
Keep on with your riding and be careful of the horses you choose to ride.
Keep on and enjoy yourself.
Kind regards, Sadlmakr
[QUOTE=redears;4426743]
I am on the autism spectrum (high functioning, genius really) and I do eventing.[/QUOTE]
Welcome to the club.
I do want to mention that high functioning doesn’t automatically mean genius, but glad it did for you.
Stating that so offhandedly just makes the rest of us less gifted feel left out.
Also may further the idea that high functioning equals gifted, which is really not always so.:no:
Training and competing with horses, we find that they are a great equalizer, at many levels, are they.
Bluey - so true!!! Working with my horse keeps me humble - in academe, it tends to be a somewhat rarified atmosphere, and you speak a different language (Geek). I have been doing this for so long that I just know how to do it. Working with my horse on the ground or under saddle reminds me just how clueless I can be about so many things!
And I am sure my students appreciate that!
[QUOTE=DressageGeek “Ribbon Ho”;4435840]
Bluey - so true!!! Working with my horse keeps me humble - in academe, it tends to be a somewhat rarified atmosphere, and you speak a different language (Geek). I have been doing this for so long that I just know how to do it. Working with my horse on the ground or under saddle reminds me just how clueless I can be about so many things!
And I am sure my students appreciate that![/QUOTE]
Would that be classic or modern “greek”?
Yes, it is so nice to have a partner in a horse that doesn’t speak the same language, but we still learn to communicate with so well and make friends with.
I wish more kids had a chance and interest in horses, because even if they never again as adults are around them again, to have learned to interact with other beings that are so different is an asset everyone should have.
As we can see in this roll call, horses have helped so many and beyond what anyone that doesn’t know about horses could imagine.:yes:
And to interact with a horse is just leaps and bounds different than anything else. Talk about self-esteem boosters! I love how my super quiet daughter has no problem saying “I lug around 1200 pound beasts all day, don’t mess with me”
I was talking with some friends who still don’t realize that equestrian sports are indeed SPORTS. And she said something jokingly about DD having an eating disorder because she is so thin and all she does is brush “ponies” and ride.
LOL! :lol: :lol::lol:
I quietly told her that handling those 1200 pound “ponies” burns off quite a few calories each day :lol:
I have yet to find anything that a horse isn’t good for. Well, the bank account maybe…
Hi, I’m a rusty older woman with lots of wear and tear arthritis, but what interferes with riding is the lower back. Spondylolisthsis–L4 slipped out over L5, pinching nerves–spinal stenosis, facet arthropy, SI arthritis trying hard to freeze the joint, and degenerating discs. I can ignore feet, knees, wrists, etc. but when the back nerves pinch everything stops. I get nerve root injections that keep me going. NSAIDs mess up my digestive system but are necessary. If I can walk, I can ride. Riding is no harder or more painful than sitting actually. I have an office (bank) job that allows me to work at home a lot. That helps with morning stiffness. DH nad some good farm help keep the animals happy. I was planning to do most of the farm work when we bought the place, but that very summer my back went on strike. When I am on my horses, I forget everything else and it is worth the effort.
[QUOTE=Bluey;4435684]
Welcome to the club.
I do want to mention that high functioning doesn’t automatically mean genius, but glad it did for you.
Stating that so offhandedly just makes the rest of us less gifted feel left out.
Also may further the idea that high functioning equals gifted, which is really not always so.:no:
Training and competing with horses, we find that they are a great equalizer, at many levels, are they.;)[/QUOTE]
Oh, most definitely. I split a lesson with a less experienced horse/rider combination on Sunday, just as I was feeling not challenged enough by the two foot fences, I crashed through an 2’ oxer over my mare’s head.
I’m not like mensa genius or anything, I didn’t mean that in a smug way or anything, I’m sorry if it came across that way!
I am Sue and I am an apprentice NARHA instucor, going for my certification in Dec. I have been a volunteer in TR and Hippotherapy for 13 years, and I’m trying to decide whether to go back to school for a degree in OT, Nursing, Education or Counseling to further my TR career or become qualified as a Hippotherapy Instructor down the road. I still can’t decide, but I have seen miracles happen with horses. My ultimate goal is to set up a program for abused women and children to help them heal through horses.
Dear Sue,
Go for it girl. We need more like you.
I too have seen miracles happen with horses and kids as well as adults.
Autistic children will often come out of themselves and enjoy horses immensely.
I have seen them blossom with horses to love and ride.
Our young veterans who have lost limbs can ride. They have to be shown they can ride and ride well.
It is good for their souls to be able to do so.
KR’s sadlmakr
[QUOTE=chai;4437479]
I am Sue and I am an apprentice NARHA instucor, going for my certification in Dec. I have been a volunteer in TR and Hippotherapy for 13 years, and I’m trying to decide whether to go back to school for a degree in OT, Nursing, Education or Counseling to further my TR career or become qualified as a Hippotherapy Instructor down the road. I still can’t decide, but I have seen miracles happen with horses. My ultimate goal is to set up a program for abused women and children to help them heal through horses.[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=redears;4437415]
Oh, most definitely. I split a lesson with a less experienced horse/rider combination on Sunday, just as I was feeling not challenged enough by the two foot fences, I crashed through an 2’ oxer over my mare’s head.
I’m not like mensa genius or anything, I didn’t mean that in a smug way or anything, I’m sorry if it came across that way![/QUOTE]
I was kind of kidding about all that, I know how you meant that, really and it came thru true and genuine, nothing to be sorry about.
I don’t tease too good, should remember that and watch not to do it.:o
I hope your crash didn’t hurt your mare, yourself or your pride too much.:eek:
(There I go again. Incorregible. :rolleyes: )
[QUOTE=sadlmakr;4437688]
Dear Sue,
Go for it girl. We need more like you.
I too have seen miracles happen with horses and kids as well as adults.
Autistic children will often come out of themselves and enjoy horses immensely.
I have seen them blossom with horses to love and ride.
Our young veterans who have lost limbs can ride. They have to be shown they can ride and ride well.
It is good for their souls to be able to do so.
KR’s sadlmakr[/QUOTE]
We had one of the kids today in our hippotherapy group that was born with a severe brain defect.
He has improved tremendously in the last year, with two times a week hourly lessons, along with all other kinds of therapy, of course.
The horse lessons seem to bring the best in him, although he does seem to fade out at the end, as he gets tired.
No one knows where he will be in a few more years, but I think that the horse therapy is an important part of his therapy that nothing else can benefit him equally.
This is why I think it is such a win-win: with all the unwanted horses, here is a way to show that even those horses some may believe are too old, not sufficiently sound, too small, whatever…that they still have so much to offer.
Cool idea for a thread!
I’m in a psych doctoral program. I was EAGALA mental health certified (level 1) until 2008, but didn’t quite agree with the program, so I left it (PM for more). I also spent a summer with Special Equestrians in PA (great program), and trained one of my dogs to AKC CGC certification, and we did dog therapy. Also recently started a dog therapy program at a local cancer center… hope to continue all this stuff once I have my degree! Finally!
As for me personally, back issues - arthritis, scoliosis, 2 vertebrae fractures, bulging discs, muscle spasms like whoa. Docs believe I’m developing fibro (noooo!), but for now I’ll just keep popping pills and stretching and not hearing that.
Thanks for the encouragement. I have been inspired by so many of the kids, teens, adults and parents I have met through the years in TR. I also saw how my own horses helped ease my sister’s pain when she was staying here to escape her abusive husband, and there is no doubt that my horses saved me after her suicide. I’ve now been on both sides, as the helper and the recipient of the healing power of horses and I’m a believer.
I love this forum
Ten years ago I fell through the medical cracks, saw 21 doctors, had two surgeries to my hands that I found out later I never should have had. End result, damage to hands and arms. On top of that now I have “piriformus syndrome” as a result of a recent car accident. I gave up most of my many activities over the years. 6 years ago I decided to see if I could ride. Long story short, I ended up being united with my soul mate horse Tiger, a now late-teen arab. He seems to know not to pull-he is sooo light! Sometimes driving (to the ranch) causes me pain, but over the years I’ve become pretty good at managing my use/overuse. This piriformis thing is a literal pain in the a** and I haven’t ridden much since it began, but am confident it will diminish and I’ll be back in the saddle again! In the meantime, I hang out with my horse, love him so much and can be sure that one smell of horse will erase all or most stresses of life!
First I want to say what an encouragement it has been to me to read all of the previous posts. I sometimes get discouraged by my physical limitations and wonder if I should just give up riding, but after reading this topic and seeing that there are so many others out there like me who struggle with riding, I feel more hopeful. Im in my mid 50’s (as if that isnt bad enough, lol!) and have severe scoliosis w/ rib rotation, have Harrington rods implanted in my spine so I am extremnely fixed and rigid and stiff from my waist upwards. I also have Rheumatoid Arthritis & Lupus which causes me alot of joint pain, stiffness and extreme fatigue. As a result of the scoliosis, I have reduced space in my chest cavity and have only 45% total lung capacity. I get out of breath before Im even tacked up most of the time. Im noticing lately that I can hardly make it once around ring at a posting trot because I cant catch my breath and if I ride more than an hour I sometimes get so stiff that I cant even get off. It’s not even safe for me to ride when I get that stiff, if something were to happen and my horse spooked or took off, I doubt that I would have the strength or flexibility to stay on. I’ve started driving my horses, thinking that is easier, and it is, to a degree but I get frustrated because I cant maneuver my cart (Meadowbrook) myself and still need help harnessing and unharnessing. I have two saintly Standardbreds, and do a little showing, a little dressage and alot of trail riding.
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