“It made a real time mark of goodness on my soul”: Equine Therapy Course is Great Success
15th July 2021
Tedworth Equestrian, The Armed Forces Equine Charity is delighted to announce that our first equine therapy course was delivered with great success.
The course ran from 13-16th June 2021, and was attended by 8 beneficiaries. Of this 8, 6 were ex-Army and 2 were ex-RAF, all with a range of mental health issues including PTSD, anxiety, social isolation, severe trust issues and trauma resulting from both combat and personal experiences.
All of our participants made amazing progress over the 3 days, with all reporting profound changes to their outlook and overall wellbeing.
At the end of the course, participants were asked to fill in a self-evaluation form. On average, participants reported a 111% improvement in their wellbeing, with the most successful participant going from a score of 1.5/10 to 7.5/10.
One participant said: “The humour and banter allows for restful escape from my traumas and the care and support provided from each and ever person is so high in standard – it made a real time mark of goodness on my soul.”
Over the three days, participants worked with horses at Tedworth Equestrian Centre to learn coping strategies to rebalance and regain control over their emotions. The aim is to equip people with skills transferable to everyday life and their personal recovery journeys.
Horses respond to even the most subtle human body language, so participants were challenged to remain calm, be confident and take control of their emotional responses in order to build trust with the horse.
Another participant spoke of the benefits the course has had on their recovery, nodding to the programme’s potential to make a tangible difference to people’s lives. They said: “I have, for years, had a big problem with trust and lack of trust. I denied I had a problem full stop, but especially with people.
“Working with the horses again, especially Dennis, helped me regain some trust. This helped me open up and I had a session with the Occupational Therapist the day after [the course] in which I was able to be more open and honest with her and myself.”
The course, delivered by Warrior Equine, was the first in a series to be run by Tedworth Equestrian, The Armed Forces Equine Charity this year.
Jamie Balls, Tedworth Equestrian CEO, said: “We were so impressed with Ele Milwright and her team from Warrior Equine. The feedback from the veterans themselves shows just how powerful this course was for them.
“The excellent partnership we have now built with NHS Op Courage South West teams gives us absolute confidence that the gains can be built upon under their guidance and care. Bring on the next course!”
We are incredibly enthused by the success of this first course and look forward to partnering with Horseback UK to deliver the next course, from 13th-17th September 2021, at Tedworth Equestrian Centre.
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