Assisted Therapy Center Reflection

It’s 8 a.m. on a chilly day in January and I’ve already showered and gotten ready. All my classmates are sleeping in and enjoying their Saturday morning, but I don’t envy them; I’m excited to start my day volunteering at the local Equine Assisted Therapy center. Although it wasn’t clear to me then, looking back on my experiences working with special needs horses, people and children, I’ve come to the realization that a major component to the healing of these cases is the overcoming of social and mental barriers rather than just physical obstacles. I arrive that morning and introduce myself to Mrs. Deborah, the head instructor, who gave me anything but a brief run down of the importance “you volunteers” play in the healing process of the riders. At the time, I was dumbfounded by the idea that unfamiliar faces could actually benefit someone with special needs. Mrs. Deborah, however, continues to give me the customary pitch about the program, the do’s and don’ts, what to expect, so on and so on. It’s finally time the children start arriving after we had loped and saddled the horses and I’m anxiously leaning against a red hitch post dreadfully anticipating what

Despite the fact that there are contradictions to mainly focusing on mental health, I presume that the process of healing can’t primarily be set on overcoming physical barriers, it must also include the mental and social barriers. We’ve all heard the saying, or something similar to, “mind over matter” which means the willingness to surmount physical problems. This saying is so prevalent because it’s true. If one is mentally stable enough to desire to get better, than the physical healing process would come a lot easier and