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animal therapy. equine therapy

PostPosted: Tue May 22, 2018 12:19 pm
by leonardo
Equine therapy is an alternative for physical and psychological rehabilitation where, by means of a specialized practice, it is mounted on horseback with the purpose of rehabilitating physically, psychically and socially those people who have various disabilities and sufferings. The enjoyment of this activity, coupled with the experience of therapists and specialized educators, results in surprising improvements and learning in the individual. Horse riding is perhaps the only way to feel that you move and move without using your legs, and the feeling of riding a horse, with its very peculiar movements, takes advantage of the natural movements of the horse to stimulate the patient within a boarding multi-disciplinary.
The main benefits are obtained through what the horse transmits through its back and its movements, where the patient benefits from:
Body heat. (38 °), which is transmitted to the pelvic belt and the patient's legs.
Rhythmic impulse (90 to 110 impulses per min.) This impulse is transmitted to the pelvic belt and passes through the spine to the patient's head.
Transmission of a pattern of locomotion equivalent to the physiological pattern of human gait.
A series of three-dimensional oscillations such as: advance and retreat, elevation, descent and displacement are recorded in the neural connections of the brain and are automated over time, gradually getting the patient (and depending on each case) a greater degree of autonomy .
The benefits are several, among which are: Improves balance, mobility and posture, regulates muscle tone and works several muscles simultaneously, makes muscles and joints more flexible, stimulates attention and concentration, the rider develops a more efficient spine and the instructions that it sends to the brain are of better quality, among many other benefits.
Here I transcribe from Anna's Blog, a girl with down syndrome, the experience of her and her parents in the first contact with an equine in equinotherapy:
"After a theoretical talk in which the parents were able to meet the staff of the center and know the benefits that this therapy can provide our children, each of the children had the opportunity to approach and / or ride a horse. In our case, we had serious doubts about how Anna was going to take this encounter since usually any animal gives her much respect and even fear, no matter how big! When it was Anna's turn, as we expected, she initially showed a rejection of being so close to Tambor, and did not want to know anything about the horse. But little by little it was taking confidence and against all prognosis ... it began to touch it! From there she even leaned on him and was encouraged to brush it, so in less than five minutes Drum had given him enough confidence to stop being a threat and Anna was very comfortable. Of course, when passing it from one side of the horse to the other, he was extremely careful to arch his whole body and legs so as not to end up on top of him!
Ultimately it turned out to be a very enriching experience since, although it was only meant to be a session for a first contact with the horse, we could see how Anna's usual fear of animals, or any large object that moves, quickly became a brief relationship of trust ... Now we will have to assess whether we want to repeat the experience in a regular way (the appropriate frequency would be that of a weekly session) "