Horses and Emotions

Kim

Cardeccia | https://confidencethroughconnection.com/

The subject of emotions, especially when being around horses, can be a hot topic. For many of us, we have our horses because of an emotional connection to them. Not only do we love them, but we know that there's something about horses that help us feel better.

Usually If we're not faced with a tough situation where they are unable to honor our invitations.

Or if we're not afraid. Then we can be warned that we need to have our emotions under control.

There is truth in that. And, there isn't always guidance in support in how to maneuver through what we feel.

We humans have a tendency to move towards what feels good, and away from what feels bad. Including our own feelings. Deciding not to label emotions good or bad is a good starting point. Just consider it for a moment. Or two...or a million. I know it can be quite ingrained, but just for fun, give the idea a try.

Our emotions serve an important function. They, along with our experience and intuition, help us navigate through life authentically They are important and we can harness the power of them with practice.

Awareness is the first step. You might have heard that somewhere before? Being able to detect changes in our emotions will give us more leverage in being able to guide them. This is really what allows emotional regulation, which is our ability to effectively manage and respond to experiences and triggers.

Responding rather than reacting is key A simple concept, not always easy. Again, practice helps. How do we practice? First, by being aware of what we're experiencing Around our horses, when we deviate from calm, getting that back is such an effective step. Giving ourselves credit for catching that our calm is slipping is important. Not beating ourselves up because we've slipped. We offer patience and time to our horses. We owe it to them to extend the same grace to our own selves.

We can also practice being calm. Whatever soothes your mind and your body, do more of that. It could be meditating, crafting, walking, etc. The more time we spend in an emotional state, the easier it is to get into that state at will.

To help with frustration, we can ask questions For example, if our horse won't step over a pole, we could ask if they could walk alongside of it. Not taking our horses' choices personally can help alleviate frustration as well. Remember that our horses aren't giving us a hard time, they are having a hard time. The more curious we are about how we can make things easier for them, the less disappointed we will be. Like we mentioned before, catching the feelings in the early stage will allow us to respond instead of react and support our horse through our ask.

Our horses give us so much, including opportunities to grow. Accepting our emotions will help us be able to accept what is happening with our horses. Then, we can choose our perspective, brainstorm, and compassionately lead the interactions with our horses with purpose.

You will feel better, and your horse will, too. Practicing emotional regulation always pays off.

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