Those with disabilities are turning to the power of horses as a form of therapy to improve social skills, as well as building their confidence and independence.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Wagga’s equestrian horses are aiding residents suffering with mental illness, like anxiety and depression, and those who are autistic and intellectually disabled.
A group from the One Door Sunflower House, a mental health service in Wagga, has spent the last few weeks as part of a program being run at the Belisi Wellbeing and Equestrian Centre.
Bruce Eastman is a member from the Sunflower House and said this was his first experience dealing with horses.
“This is my first ever experience with horses and it’s been awesome,” Mr Eastman said.
“I’ve learnt how to interact with horses and teamwork has been important with this program as we’ve learnt how to interact with each other without saying words.”
Riding instructor and horse therapist Erika Neo developed the wellbeing programs for both groups and individual sessions at Belisi, following her successful start-up for disabled children in Singapore.
Ms Neo said over the course of the programs the clients have developed a more positive outlook on life and towards others.
“They are reacting more positively to the horse and they aren’t backing away from them,” she said.
“They are more comfortable with themselves and others, they have become more empathetic and they’re more willing to ask for help and they don’t feel weak when they do.”
Ms Neo said she has also worked with students from Mount Austin High School, who may or may not have a disability and also who may come from difficult backgrounds.
“For teaching compassion and empathy, we do a lot of grooming and groundwork, how to approach a horse, including your body language towards it,” she said.
“We have also set some challenges, like giving some boundaries and rules for the group and then they need to sort it out in a group or individual setting.
“With grooming and tacking, we teach them the order in which to do stuff, and what needs to be done before other stuff is done.
“This way they learn ordering techniques and hopefully they understand that a big task can be broken down into smaller tasks,” Mrs Neo said.
The centre held a Christmas lunch for the Sunflower House group as part of their last week in the program.
The centre’s strategic manager Rachel Riethmuller said she is hopeful that clients will now be able to navigate themselves around difficult situations from undertaking the program.
“We encourage them to be independent and to learn from their mistakes and because of the horses calm temperaments, it kind of allows them to navigate themselves,” she said.
“It gives them a chance to focus on communication and shifting their perspective to consider how their behaviour might impact the horses and how it is important to communicate.”
