Becoming the Awesome Person You Are!

Often times when people are around the horses in equine therapy they realize their lack of self confidence, which the horse picks up on. You are amazing! In this article from Psych Central, we will go over why "messing up" is OKAY and makes you the awesome person you are!

"The problem of rating the totality of yourself as good or bad, rather than rating your actions, or behaviors, is that you are setting yourself up to be an emotional mess.

When we make the mistake of rating ourselves as good or bad, we feel miserable for not thinking we’re good enough. Or, when we rate ourselves as good, we run the risk of setting ourselves up to feel bad when we fail at something. Either way, we’re in trouble.

Humans cannot be all good or all bad. So rating yourself this way is totally irrational. Learn to let go of this old rating system and you will feel better about yourself.

Today you may screw up that report for your boss. You may forget to wish your wife a happy anniversary, and you may act selfishly and somebody else might feel hurt. But that makes you human, as human as anyone else. For all those things that you do that may not be so great, there will be a million things that you do that are stunning. Yet most of those actions you won’t even recognize, or remember, as they’re automatic.

Yes, you are a flawed human being — but you are also amazing for it, not despite it."

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/04/21/you-are-amazing/

How to Overcome Horrible Situations

With all the craziness in the U.S right now, it's sometimes hard to cope with horrible situations. Listed below are some ways Psych Central and those involved with horses or equine therapy would reccomend to beat these awful situations. 

• We remember the words of those we hold in high esteem.

  “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’ To this day, especially in times of disaster, I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world.” — Mr. Rogers

• We cherish what we hold dear.

  We hug our kids a little tighter. We appreciate our loved ones even more. We commit random acts of kindness to make life easier for those we know and, perhaps more important, for those we don’t know. We cherish the freedoms we have and are grateful to those who dedicate their lives to making that freedom possible.

• We reach out to those more vulnerable than we are.

  Of course, we do what we can do for those directly affected by the tragedy. But we do more than that. We extend a helping hand to those who are more vulnerable than we are. They may need to share their story, to dissolve into tears, to quiver with fear, to explode with rage. Whatever they require, we are there for them. It’s healing for them; it’s healing for us.

• We do not define the human race by its worst elements.

  People are fantastic! They are kind. They are compassionate. They are big-hearted. They are considerate and generous and loving and sympathetic. Need I say more? And yes, there are those who are cruel and cold and brutal and mean. But we do not let ourselves be corrupted by those elements. We deal with them when we must. But we do not allow them to corrupt our hearts.

• We resolve to become more resilient.

  We may consider ourselves to be anything but resilient. Indeed, we may view ourselves as nervous, unable to deal with storm clouds and ticking bombs. We want life to be safe. Why not? But we recognize that life is fragile. Hence, when tragedy strikes, we strive to become survivors, not victims. When we are ready and only when we are ready, we resolve to do what we can to make ourselves and our little corner of the world a better place. We rejoice in the wonder of life and feel blessed to be a part of it, no matter how awful it is when horrible things happen.

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/04/20/coping-when-horrible-things-...

Meditating, Equine Therapy, and Mental Illness

Meditating and equine therapy can both go hand in hand to beating mental illnesses. Here is someone who is an avid meditator that talks about their mental illness. 

"Since I have become a disciplined meditator I have had little difficulty with my bipolar disorder. It is only natural to wonder if I could manage as well if I continued to meditate and came off the drugs. In fact, it is very tempting.

But my doctor advises me not to and, after much reflection and concern for my family, I agree. Just as I couldn’t manage this well without the meditation, much research evidence supports the idea that I couldn’t manage without the medication either. I’m not willing to take the chance.

Every person with mental illness to whom I have taught meditation has asked me if I think serious mental illness can be cured. At this point, with what science has discovered, I don’t. But it can be managed, and managed well, if meditation is added to the medical model of drugs and therapy.

Just as the person with diabetes will take insulin indefinitely, I must continue to take my medicine. And just as one with diabetes must adopt a healthy lifestyle to best complement her medication, the person with mental illness must as well. What I am sure of is that meditation is one of the best complements available."

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/04/15/meditation-as-an-adjunct-the...

Utah has all horse quarantines removed

Utah horse owners are in luck today! For those in the equine therapy community in Utah, you can feel much better now about takingyour horse to events or other community driven activities without the risk of EHV-1. 

"The Utah state veterinarian's office has lifted all quarantines that have been in place since equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) was discovered in Cache County in late February, the department announced April 8. 

The quarantine removals come after the last two horses at locations in that county passed a 28-day waiting period without becoming sick after coming in contact with diseased horses.

There was a total of nine confirmed cases of EHV-1 in Utah, all of which were confined to five locations in Cache County. Four of the affected horses were euthanized because of their condition. The state veterinarian's office restricted the movement of infected and suspect animals as a precaution to prevent the spread of the disease.

The Cache County Fairgrounds Horse Arena was temporarily closed during this outbreak because the affected horses had been at the facility shortly before displaying clinical signs. Officials suspect that a common tie-down rail at the arena was contaminated by an infected horse and was the center of the outbreak.

Utah State Veterinarian Bruce King, DVM, reminds horse owners that EHV-1 lies dormant in many horses, and signs could surface due to stress or contact with infected horses. He says it is always recommended that horse owners practice good biosecurity when taking their animals to equine events.

Horse owners should feel confident that they can attend upcoming events with no more risk of contracting the disease than before the recent outbreak."

Source: http://www.thehorse.com/articles/31669/utah-ehv-1-all-quarantines-lifted?utm_...(TheHorse.com%252b-%252bNews)

Horse Behavioral Problem Evaluation

While many of the horses in equine assisted therapy don't have behavioral problems, there are often times a large number of mis-behaving horses under saddle. Here we will review a study about this problem and you can read more on TheHorse.com 

"As many as 91% of leisure riding horses in the United Kingdom exhibit some sort of behavior problem under saddle on a regular basis, said Jo S. Hockenhull, PhD, of the School of Veterinary Science at the University of Bristol, England.

In the study, Hockenhull explained that behavior problems in riding horses in the U.K. could compromise the use of those horses in a leisure fashion and possibly lead to riders selling mounts that behave poorly under saddle. To better understand the prevalence of behavior problems, Hockenhull created an online survey about behavior under saddle that owners of 1,326 horses completed over the course of one year. The survey asked respondents to think only back to the previous week when answering the questions on a scale of 1 to 5 (“never” to “frequently”). The vast majority (91%) reported some sort of problem behavior.

Of the 1,326 horses, 78% were ridden with artificial aids—such as martingales, whips, or flash nosebands—to control their behavior, she said.

According to Hockenhull, this could be reason for concern.

“Poor riding may lead to the development of behavioral problems or learned helplessness in ridden horses, and these problems may be exacerbated as the owner attempts to address the problem by increasing the intensity of the aids or the complexity of the tack used to control the horse,” she said. Horses with ongoing or increasing ridden behavior problems are at greater risk of changing hands or euthanasia, she added.

Even so, most of the ridden behavior problems in the study revealed minor issues that were more likely to be “irritating to a rider rather than dangerous,” Hockenhull said. Bucking was rare (only 17% of the horses), and rearing and bolting were very rare (7% and 3%, respectively). The most common problems were shying (50%)—which can be dangerous if it’s violent, she added—along with walking off before the rider has finished getting in the saddle (46%) and pulling or leaning on the bit (45%).

The good news, however, is that overall, leisure riders—at least in the U.K.—seem quite good at caring for their horses’ health and maintenance. A full 97% of the horses received annual dental exams, and more than a third received semiannual exams. Furthermore, 88% of the riders had had their horse’s saddle professionally checked for fit, and 61% had them professionally rechecked as often as once a year.

Hockenhull admitted that her results might be slightly affected by the survey's voluntary design. Only people willingly responding to her requests to complete the online survey—through emails, online forum postings, and paper leaflets in riding stables—were included in the study."

Source: http://www.thehorse.com/articles/31640/prevalence-of-horse-behavior-problems-...(TheHorse.com%252b-%252bNews)

Horse EMS Therapy

Sometimes we overlook EMS( equine metabolic syndrome ) and assume a horse is just overweight, but it can be much deeper than that. In the video link below you will find out more information on how to diagnos EMS and then treat it with different types of therapies. 

Video

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Study on Horse Stress and Inexperienced Riders

Though you might think a horse's stress level would increase with inexperienced rider, they actually don't according to this study posted on Thehorse.com. In equine therapy we have horses that are even trained to be very calm and have very low stress levels. 

"In their study, von Lewinski and colleagues investigated 16 German sport horses and 16 riders in a jumping pattern of seven jumps (at a maximum height of 97 centimeters, or 38 inches). Half the horses had participated in advanced-level show jumping competitions; the other half had just completed basic training and had never completed a full jumping course. The riders themselves were divided into groups of either high-level professional riders or amateur riding students. (All riders had sufficient experience to safely ride the horses over jumps, von Lewinski added.)

Each rider rode an experienced horse and an inexperienced horse over the jumping course, and each horse was ridden by an experienced and inexperienced rider. The researchers evaluated both horses' and riders' salivary cortisol ("stress hormone") levels and heart rates before and immediately after the course. They also measured heart rates during the jumping round.

“The stress response of the horses was not affected by the level of experience of their riders and, in particular, not increased when the horses were ridden by less experienced riders,” von Lewinski said. “But for the riders, both their own experience and that of their equine partner influenced their stress response.”"

Source: http://www.thehorse.com/articles/31587/study-horses-not-stressed-by-inexperie...(TheHorse.com%252b-%252bNews)

When Silence is Enough

Actions do almost always speak louder than words, especially in horse therapy where we use non-verbal communication. Silence might just be thr right thing if someone is undergoing a heavy time of grief. 

"I remember when my grandfather died unexpectedly. I got the call from my parents while I was at my freshman college roommate’s house. My cell phone had no coverage in that tiny Michigan town, so my dad had called my roommate’s parents’ house. My roommate’s mother looked concerned as she handed me the phone. She didn’t walk away.

When I’d heard the news, my roommate’s mother immediately pushed a box of tissues my way and went to the stove to pan-fry French toast, handing me a plate with a fork ready to go. I remember as I cried and took bites of that syrup-drenched bread, she told me stories of when she lost her grandfather. The kindness was real; the words were well-intentioned. Yet I can’t remember anything she said, nor was I comforted by any of it. What lingers is that memory of the French toast, her maternal presence, her action in my grief.

Life’s tragic occurrences pop up more often than we would hope in the lives of the people we love. Yet few people have mastered the art of responding well to heavy news. We’re simply not all trained in the art of listening. Professional counselors and psychiatrists are the ones who know how to listen and what is most helpful to say in response. They understand what kinds of comments a grieving person will receive as helpful, and likewise, the type of comments that will sting, irritate, and fall flat.

I spend a lot of time in the car with nothing to do except steer and soak up radio waves. After I listened to the radio host say “I wish they had never said anything in the first place” so bluntly, I pondered his response. Was it too harsh to react to his friends this way? Did he have a right to request his friends’ silence, like the Biblical character of Job? Job endured endless words from his three unhelpful friends in the midst of losing everything."

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/03/13/what-to-say-when-theres-noth...

Personal Peace in the Workplace

Maintaining a personal peace in the workplace can be hard sometimes, especially if you work in a stressful enviorment. Even those in equine therapy who work around horses can sometimes run into the stresses of life and it's really helpful to have a way to wind things down again. Psych Central has come up with tips that can help you maintain that peace in the workplace. Here's one of them:  

"A Daily Meditation Practice

A regular meditation practice gives you the foundation for being mindful at work, Halliwell said. He suggested reading meditation books or listening to guided CDs for developing your practice. (Mindful.org has a great list of resources.)

But working with a teacher is best. “In my view nothing beats working with a teacher live, as they can help you work with your own unique situation, guiding you, answering your questions and helping you work with obstacles that will inevitably come up."

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/03/12/3-tips-for-being-mindful-at-...

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Positivity in counseling is as important as it is in your everyday life. Equine therapy is a great example of how positivity and the interaction with horses can greatly improve one's situation. 

 

Positive psychology often is passed off as pop psychology or New Age-y by those who haven’t actually looked into it.

"The actual theory behind positive psychology was defined in 1998 by Martin Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi [1] and looks at all aspects of a person’s psychology. It does not discount traditional psychology, nor supersede it. Rather than viewing psychology purely as a treatment for the malign, however, it looks at the positive. Positive psychology is a recognized form oftherapy and is offered by some counselors and psychologists.

Psychology has always been interested in where people’s lives have gone wrong, and what has resulted because of it [2]. Illnesses such as depression are well-documented and patterns of depressive behavior well-known. However, until recently, what makes people happy and how they achieve inner happiness and well-being has been a mystery.

Practitioners of positive psychology study people whose lives are positive and try to learn from them, in order to help others achieve this state of happiness [3]. It is a scientific study and not remotely hippie-ish, despite its connotations.

 

Positive thinking is one aspect of positive psychology. Surrounding yourself with a great lifestyle and material goods may seem to lead to happiness, but how you really feel is governed by what goes on inside your head. When you go out of your way to think positively, you actually purge yourself of negative self-talk. [1]"

 

 

"Negative thinkers have four common mindsets:

• Filtering.

  Many negative thinkers will pull the negatives out of a situation and focus on them. Sometimes these people will see only the negative in a situation, to the point where they deny any positive.

• Personalizing.

  Some people make every tragedy about themselves. They will personalize every negative thing and assume that bad things happen because they are unlucky, or as a result of something they did or didn’t do. They will often construct negative situations with perfect logic, providing plausible reasons why negative things are either their fault or set out to hurt them.

• Catastrophizing.

  This involves anticipating the worst. Some people even precipitate it. They can turn a slightly awkward interaction into an overreaction, making the situation worse. If something negative does happen, they will use it to validate their negative assumptions.

• Polarizing.

  This type of negative thinker sees things as black or white. Either a situation is perfect or it is a catastrophe. This type of negative thinking can affect every area of a person’s life. Its effects can be both psychological and physical. By practicing positive thinking, you can actually stave off medical conditions and reap the benefits of having a positive outlook on life."

   

  Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/03/11/positive-psychology-the-bene...

How to Choose the Right Therapist

It's very important, especially in equine therapy and horse therapy to make sure you find a therapist that fits. This means that automatically there is a connection between the client and the therapist, which makes it easier to communicate. 

If you're interested in finding a counselor that's right for you in Orange County then please visit our Orange County Horse Therapy page :) 

Types of Psychotherapy

Here at Pegasus Equine Therapy we believe horse therapy is the most powerful form of psychotherapy, but watch this video and see a few different types: 

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Treating Anxiety

Again Psych Central has written a great article on using mindfulness to treat anxiety. While I believe that equine assisted therapy and horse therapy are powerful advocates for beating anxiety here is another option: 

"Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a common treatment for anxiety disorders. Cognitive-behavioral therapy theorizes that in anxiety disorders, the patient overestimates the danger of disruptive events in his life, and underestimates his ability to cope. CBT attempts to replace maladaptive thinking by examining the patient’s distorted thinking and resetting the fight-or-flight response with more reasonable, accurate ones. The anxious person and the therapist work to actively change thought patterns.

In contrast, instead of changing thoughts, mindfulness-based therapies (MBTs) seek to change the relationship between the anxious person and his or her thoughts. 

In mindfulness-based therapy, the person focuses on the bodily sensations that arise when he or she is anxious. Instead of avoiding or withdrawing from these feelings, he or she remains present and fully experiences the symptoms of anxiety. Instead of avoiding distressing thoughts, he or she opens up to them in an effort to realize and acknowledge that they are not literally true.

Although it may seem counter-intuitive, fully realizing the experience of anxiety enables anxious people to release their over identification with negative thoughts. The person practices responding to disruptive thoughts, and letting these thoughts go.

By remaining present in the body, they learn that the anxiety they experience is merely a reaction to perceived threats. By positively responding to threatening events instead of being reactive they can overcome an erroneous fight-or-flight response."

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/01/28/using-mindfulness-to-treat-a...

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Equine Therapy > Prescription Drugs

Here is a snippet from a Psych Central article that I thought is really relative to equine assisted therapy. So many people in the U.S are over-diagnosed, when they are just reacting to a situation the way anyone would! 

"According to the National Institute of Mental Health, approximately 25 percent of Americans suffer from some sort of mental illness. The vast majority of those are taking psychotropic drugs. That’s a lot of disturbed Americans.

Or is it? Perhaps that high statistic is nothing more than normal emotional reactions being over-diagnosed and over-medicated.

Are there ways to help without harming? Yes! Consider equine assisted therapy. This consists of teaching people how to cope with difficult situations, become more resilient, and manage their emotions — all without diagnoses and medication."

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/02/05/are-we-over-diagnosed-and-ov...

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Enhancing Your Relationship

This is a great post from Psych Central on enhancing relationships. Here are a couple different ways to make a relationship renewed. 

1. Create connection-boosting rituals.

“Create a meaningful way to connect that meets both partners’ needs for connection that you can count on each day,” Massey-Hastings said. For instance, when she was just beginning her career, she and her husband would eat dinner together almost every night.

But then her schedule changed, and that was no longer possible. “One week of this shift and we were both in tears — we didn’t realize how much that ritual structured our time to connect,” she said. So they revised their routine. Today, they have a snack when she gets home.

“Eating together and talking about the day, for couples and for families, is a very powerful ritual of connection,” she said.

Rituals don’t need to be elaborate, either. It could be something as simple as rubbing each other’s feet every night, which Massey-Hastings and her husband also do. It’s a minute but meaningful ritual they look forward to, she said.

If you have kids, you can create rituals after they’re in bed. For instance, Massey-Hastings works with a couple who cuddles in bed for 30 minutes after putting their child to bed.

2. Be affectionate when you say hello or goodbye.

“A time that lends itself naturally to acknowledging your bond is around moments of separation and reunions,” said Irwin, who also leads workshops for couples. She suggested asking yourself: “Do I hug and kiss my partner when we greet each other or say goodbye? How about in the evening when we say goodnight?”

If you’ve been together for a long time, you might not. But this can contribute to “couples feeling more like roommates than lovers,” she said. Whether it’s a hug, kiss or touch, daily physical attention can greatly enhance your relationship.

3. Let your partner know they’re on your mind.

Send your partner a text, leave a loving note or give them a quick call during the day, Irwin said. As she noted, these seemingly small gestures communicate an important message: “You matter to me.” “This can be especially meaningful when folks work long hours or experience prolonged periods of separation,” she said.

4. Acknowledge how much your partner means to you.

Let your partner know the things they do or say that are meaningful to you, Irwin said. Maybe your partner gives you a massage every night or cracks a joke after you’ve had a tough day at work. Maybe they make you coffee every morning or always wash the dishes after you cook dinner.

“[This] shows that you aren’t taking your partner for granted, and lets them know that they make a difference in your life,” she said. “A wonderful positive spiral that can ensue when we take a moment to point out the way we appreciate our partner,” she added.

5. Check in with each other.

“Make it an intention to slow down, make eye contact, sit near each other, touch one another and check in,” Irwin said. Even just asking your partner “How are you?” is a beautiful way to bond.

“These conversations bring a significant point of connection in couples’ sometimes-busy, seemingly parallel lives. It’s saying to each other ‘In our crazy lives, the person I want to talk with at the end of the day is you!’” she said.

Relationships certainly take work. But nourishing your partnership every day isn’t painstaking. Instead, it gives you the opportunity to build your bond. Plus, helping your relationship blossom on a daily basis helps you cope better as a couple with the inevitable challenges of life."

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/01/28/5-ways-to-enhance-your-relat...

Caring for Yourself

It's very important to take care of yourself. During horse therapy and equine therapy for those with addiction we make these 6 points a MUST for recovery! The article is provided by Psych Central

1. Care for your needs.

"According to Hanks, “A great place to start cultivating a healthy relationship with yourself is by caring for your basic physical needs.” That includes getting enough sleep and rest, eating nutrients and exercising.

Conway agreed. She stressed the importance of giving yourself the space to discover and connect to “what feeds you in mind, body and spirit.”

2. Joy is important.

“Prioritize the activities that bring you joy and fill your emotional reserves,” Hanks said. Conway suggested giving yourself treats every day, such as “a walk in the park, a small bar of chocolate, a long bath [or] a yoga class.”

3. Focus on your inner world.

According to Hanks, a healthy relationship with yourself also includes being aware of your internal processes. She suggested simply asking yourself these questions on a regular basis: “What am I feeling? What am I thinking?”

Also, consider the why behind your behavior, thoughts and feelings. For instance, Hanks suggested asking: “I wonder why that’s bothering me? I wonder why I’m feeling more lonely lately?”

Journaling and therapy are other vehicles for becoming more self-aware, she said.

Conway teaches several online courses and offers a free workbook, which also help readers tune into their inner lives.

4. Regularly make time for yourself.

For instance, “Sit quietly for 10 minutes in the morning with your first cup of coffee,” Conway said. “Find books that speak to your soul and steal moments to dig into them every day,” she said.

5. Meditate.

“I find the most useful method to be the gift, to oneself, of a daily meditation,” Duffy said. “In those moments between the thoughts, we allow ourselves peace of mind that can carry us through even the most stressful days.” These are several suggestions on meditating:

• Meditation for Beginners
• How I Meditate
• How to Get Yourself to Meditate

6. Be your own best friend.

“Any time you hear the negative put-downs swirling around your head, think about what you’d say to your best friend or sister or daughter, and then rewrite the script with love,” Conway said.

Again, cultivating a positive relationship with yourself is the building block for your whole world. As Hanks said, “It’s crucial to have a great relationship with ourselves because it’s the only relationship that you are guaranteed to have every day of your life!”"

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/01/13/6-ways-you-can-have-a-health...

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Sleep, Mental Health, and Equine Therapy

Sleep can greatly effect the state of our mental health and plays a large impact on how we go about the day. In equine therapy and horse therapy we will see many patients who's depression sarted out from the lack of sleep. Here is more information from Psych Central. 

"Today, we think that sleeping through the night is a sign of normal and healthy slumber. In fact, people who wake up around the same time every night think their sleep is fractured — and that something is wrong, Randall writes. And when they complain about this concern to their doctors, they probably walk away with a sleeping pill, he says.

But segmented sleep has actually been the norm for thousands of years — that is, until the advent of artificial lighting. In the 1980s and ‘90s, history professor Roger Ekirch began seeing interesting patterns in his book collection, which included tales and medical texts: references to “first sleep” and “second sleep.”

Psychiatrist Thomas Wehr also began seeing strange results in his sleep experiment: After participants, who were deprived of artificial light for up to 14 hours, caught up on their sleep and felt more rested, they’d wake up around midnight and lie awake for about an hour, and then fall asleep.

In another study, Wehr found that during that hour awake the brains of participants were churning out higher levels of prolactin. This hormone reduces stress and relaxes the body after orgasm, according to Randall.

Before Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, people would fall asleep after sunset. Then they’d naturally wake up around midnight for about an hour. During that time individuals might do anything from praying to reading to having sex. Then they’d naturally fall back asleep until morning.

Randall notes that other studies have confirmed that people naturally experience segmented sleep. And in areas with no artificial light, people still experience first and second sleep."

Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/01/07/the-strange-surprising-scien...

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