January is always a time when people take time to look backwards and reflect on the year. They think of things that they want to improve or change.
I don’t remember what my goals were in 2022. They were probably centered around exercising more, attending horse shows and doing more reflection/quiet time with God.
In March 2022, all of my goals changed. I was diagnosed with breast cancer. After the shock wore off, I began to reflect on cancer and what it meant for me. My new goals included being healthier, helping others, spreading love and joy, and of course beating cancer! Now, as the most intense parts of the fight are over, I find myself checking back in. I am not meeting some of my goals like I want to be, but I am not alone.
Discoverhappyhabits.com shared that only 9% of people actually feel that they are successful in meeting their new year resolutions. So how do we move from great ideas to permanent change?
One idea that is often listed is to get support.
How can Cornerstone and equine therapy help with that? We can help you work on your goals in a fun way! My motto is “You might say no to going to therapy, but I bet you won’t say no to going to the barn!”.
I find that the patterns and habits we struggle with always come out with equine work.
For example, I work with a lot of kids that struggle with ADHD. They need to work on improving their focus and staying with hard things. Recently I had a young student working with a horse in a round pen. Their goal was to have the horse walk around them for 2 laps without stopping or losing focus. The horse did one lap, but then started smelling things on the ground and zoning the kid out. When I asked the kid if they felt like the horse was connected, they said that it felt like the horse was ignoring them. We then discussed how to increase pressure and/or ask from the horse. They were then able to successfully complete that task. When we started talking about what happened, (here comes the magic!) - they realized the importance of being aware of themselves and “catching” themselves when they start to wander.
They were learning to be present, patient and persistent. The minute the kids lose focus and disconnect, the horses do too!
AND THAT IS IT– the whole premise behind equine therapy is that we are practicing the skills with our horses that we want to transfer to other people and/or settings.
So here is the question– what are your goals?
If you want a fun, meaningful way to work on your goals– call me and let’s get started!
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