PTSD- Post-traumatic stress disorder (Psychological Modality)
- Jaithra Kakarla
- Jun 18, 2020
- 4 min read
Updated: Aug 2, 2020
It has long been reported that household animals like cats and dogs can be fantastic for those suffering from anxiety and depression, offering natural support and comfort. But have you ever considered how horses may be able to help those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder?
Research studies have shown that therapeutic horseback riding can lead to a significant statistical decrease in PTSD symptoms, such as insomnia, flashbacks or panic attacks, after just three weeks, while after six weeks, this also becomes classed as a clinically significant decrease. It has been found that there is a 66.7% likelihood for those engaging in horseback riding to having a lower PTSD score at three weeks, and 87.5% likely after six weeks.
As the Journal of Rehabilitation Research & Development (JRRD) explains, “As prey animals, horses are hypervigilant until they learn they are not in danger. Unlike many dogs, who trust unconditionally, horses require humans to work to gain their trust. Because of their own hypervigilance, [those] with PTSD easily understand and can relate to the trust and hypervigilance in a horse.”
“Other symptoms of PTSD are emotional numbness, a feeling of “not being in one’s body”, and a lack of awareness of body language, so [those] with PTSD learn to become more aware of their bodies, their body language, and expression of emotion through their bodies. They must become aware of the body language of the horse, which helps them become aware of others’ body language too.”
These shared behaviors between horses and those with PTSD – from being oversensitive, easily startled, hypervigilant to danger, and so forth – mean healing can come from a common ground that another human may not be able to give, especially not in a medical setting such as the hospital.
Non-threatening, trusting, and open relationships can be built with these connections breeding further positive feelings of patience, love, respect, safety, and empathy. Equine therapy is found to reduce levels of anxiety and stress, improve moods, create a sense of peace and contentment, among other benefits.
Equine Therapy is also helpful for veteran soldiers. The return of the soldier is a time of celebration marking the end or a respite from the waging of war. However, more and more soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines are returning to short-lived celebrations followed by years of depression, rage, and debilitating psychological issues. The repercussions of their experiences in the theater of war are staggering—divorce, depression, abuse, fear, and anxiety are occurring in some of the highest rates ever seen. Even more tragically, far too many of our servicemen and women have returned home to such confusion, depression, and hopelessness that they have taken their own lives.
The effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder are deeply-seeded and extremely complex. They can affect nearly every facet of the mind including emotional, cognitive, and physical responses—nightmares, increased startle reflexes, depression, extreme irritability, and even times of rage. Although these issues affect separate parts of the brain, they cannot be treated separately. When the brain is exposed to consistent trauma (as in war and combat), the brain is literally rewired in such a way that it locked into the thoughts, fears, guilt, and emotions of those traumatic experiences long after the fighting is done.
The same hyper-vigilant mental state that raises a soldier’s awareness and abilities during combat is the same mental state that can destroy him after returning home. These intertwining paths of traumatic experiences and emotional injuries add a level of complexity to the therapeutic process that is not present in many other psychological issues. When faced with the combination of cognitive, physical, and emotional symptoms (as with PTSD), the opportunity for recovery is at its highest when all three of these modalities can be experienced together during the therapeutic process. This is why the action-based and experiential approach of equine-assisted therapy is proving so effective at treating post-traumatic stress disorders.
Equine-assisted psychotherapy offers a more comprehensive experience for those receiving counseling for PTSD. Since EAP is a proven experiential/action-based form of therapy, it allows for the immediate integration of concepts in real-time. While there is time for participants to reflect on what they’re experiencing, EAP is not “talk therapy.” The concept of experiential therapy is absolutely vital when approaching a sufferer of PTSD. Much of a traumatic experience simply cannot be verbalized or explained with words—equine-assisted therapy allows for the focus to be in-the-moment and led by the patient’s agenda. While working through different exercises and interacting with the horse, participants gain real-time feedback about what does and do not work. It can be overwhelming to bring new strategies into your relationship with yourself and others. Equine therapy gives you the opportunity to try new communication methods with a partner without an agenda.
PTSD is a very complex affliction that brings together symptoms from many modalities of the mind. They’re all connected so it’s necessary to treat them all together—cognitive, emotional, and physical/experiential. Traumatic experiences inundate you through all three of these modalities and by using experiential therapy such as EAP, all three are used in the recovery process. Many times, traditional talk-therapy struggles to effectively instill the required behavioral changes necessary for a sustainable recovery from PTSD. Furthermore, talk-therapy can’t offer real-time feedback and the opportunity to quickly try multiple strategies for communicating such as EAP offers.
The horse acts only as a partner and many times as a mirror for how the patient is seeing the world and how the patient is responding to that world. EAP has been proven across the world as being highly effective in treating patients with PTSD and has a solid track record of enabling dramatic results in fewer sessions.
RISKS I implore any individual considering any form of EAA* or EAT** to consult with their physician or any related doctor before beginning this form of therapy. It is highly important that you are well aware of the risks of participating in this form of therapy, which sometimes may be entirely related to the health issue too. If you have any queries or suggestions please leave a comment below or reach out to me through the Contact Form on the Home page. *Equine-Assisted Activities **Equine-Assisted Therapy Visit the "Current medical use of horses" post to gain more clarity about the interventions for specific modalities: https://www.equineinsight.info/post/current-medical-use-of-horses If you have any comments or suggestions, reach out to me via the comment section or the Contact Form on the Home page.
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