Trauma is a complex and overwhelming experience that we can’t seem to “get over.”
It affects our relationships, our sense of self, and our peace of mind. It makes it hard to see the world as a safe place, to trust others, and especially, to trust ourselves to be OK, to love, and to live life to the fullest.
Trauma is a whole person, whole body experience.
It doesn’t matter if the trauma doesn’t feel “bad enough” to be trauma… if it was overwhelming, painful, incomprehensible, confusing, and “too much”… it was a trauma. The memories and experiences that were too much can’t be processed or digested, and so they are stored in non-conscious memory and in our nervous systems, in our bodies. That means that our conscious minds are saved from having to deal with something that is overwhelming and too painful to bear, but it means that we pay the cost of holding it our bodies.
Anxiety, depression, insomnia, illnesses, anger, nightmares, headaches, lack of energy, body tension, and the inability to relax and enjoy life… these are all the ways in which the body holds the trauma on our behalf. Those make it hard to be open and available to others and to ourselves. Getting through the days is all we can manage.
Treating trauma is very possible.
It requires unwinding the body, training the conscious mind, and allowing the memories to be processed and the feelings to be felt and digested in a safe way, with safe people, and in a safe environment. We need something that is bigger than the trauma, that can hold us as we enter into our pasts and feel the feelings of being overwhelmed, alone, and afraid. We need to learn to be that for ourselves, but we also need others to be there for us as we take these brave steps.
Horses offer presence, strength, and the ability to be there with us. They know how to let go, be still, and hold us. They are bigger than our trauma and our fears, and they live the present, where we are safe and whole. They teach us to have the courage, to be with ourselves, and to feel and let go of the trauma.
They also offer us the experience of life. They help us get in touch with ourselves in the moment and with our sense of aliveness and hope as we process the memories and feelings that are holding us in the past. They offer generosity, joy, nonjudgment, and acceptance. They let us know who we are and ask for us to be whole.
If you’re interested in working with the horses to let go of what is holding you back, contact me for a free consultation.
