Whispers With Horses: Mixing Mindfulness With Horse Handling
Mindfulness instructor Joana Franco, Ph.D, with River
WELLSVILLE, UT—Inside USU’s horse arena, three women worked with horses on lead lines. The atmosphere was more than silent. It was absolutely peaceful.
This was the end of a Whispers with Horses class, a training opportunity that walks participants through mindfulness and compassion concepts and practices. On that day, the session was on dealing with difficult feelings.
Participants start with just themselves and other humans, with an opening meditation and a discussion of the day’s concept. Then they put it into practice while working with the horse; grooming first, then working with the horse in the arena.
“Throughout that time they are noticing and paying attention to what they learned about mindfulness that day,” said Joana Franco, Ph.D. Franco’s background is in mindfulness and instructional design, but this is her first experience adding horses to the mix.
“One great thing about practicing mindfulness concepts with a horse is it forces you to practice it while doing something,” said Sarah Andersen of USU’s Equine Assisted Services. “So while sitting and being mindful is really good, sometimes, when we start doing something, we forget to stay checked in with ourselves. Horses don't allow us to forget.”
“The first day that I came here, we were not doing the training yet,” Franco said. “I was just getting acquainted with the horse and figuring out what that looks like for me. And I remembered feeling like my nervous system a little bit more agitated, and I could notice the horse a little bit more agitated. … I started calming myself down, and that would calm the horse, too. So it was an interesting experience to see how much of a mirror they are.”
“It’s been a little different than what I expected, but it’s been a good different,” said Anna, who worked with a gentle giant of a horse named Doc. “I’ve learned how to redirect my mind instead of criticizing myself. Like, ‘OK, that’s OK. Let’s step back and try again.’”
“I'm an animal science major,” said Delaney, another participant who paired up with a horse named River. “I didn’t have any equine experience before this class, so I thought it'd be a good way, like two birds with one stone, to also be mindful and get that horse experience. And combining the two is super interesting. … I always enjoy these days, always leave feeling super proud of what we've done with the horses, and then super proud of myself for being able to do the activities with the horses.”
“It's been really rewarding,” said Rebekah, a psychology major who minored in equine assisted services. She teamed up with a horse named Mona that day. “Actually, I've noticed a lot of that generalization in my life, of being able to apply it to my family, with my spouse and my daughter. …
“Last week, we learned about psychological resistance and being really self critical in a situation, and beating up on yourself. But … if you're aware of it, you can step back and kind of just observe what's going on. And rather than criticizing yourself and going down that storyline, you can just observe it, acknowledge it, and then still be present in the moment.
“When you're working with a horse and you don't know a lot about them, there's a lot that you can get wrong, and they can mirror your emotions. So if you are being negative, then they might act up a little bit. And then at home, there's always a lot of pressure trying to do things right, especially when I have a little two year old.” Rebekah said at those times, she reminds herself: “It’s like when I was working with Mona. I need to be present and not worry about if I'm making a mistake, because it's all trial and error with the horse. I don't get upset with the horse, so I don't need to get upset with my daughter, because she's still learning.”
So how is the experience for the horses? Equine Experience’s Andersen said most research has concluded that mindfulness classes are not stressful for horses, but she’s hoping more study can be done. “Anecdotally, I think the horses enjoy it. They're relaxed, they're engaged. They come meet us at the gate. They all want to be part of what we're doing.”
The Whispers with Horses curriculum was developed by William Marchand, Ph.D, as therapy for veterans. “Our hope is that we're going to be able to do more of these events and sessions, and eventually get some research pushed out on the efficacy of utilizing horses in mindfulness practice,” Andersen said.
To find out more about the next training available, contact Sarah Andersen.