Does What We Resist Persist?

By Alexa Linton, Equine Sport Therapist

Published in Island Horse Magazine

When it comes to being in a harmonious partnership with our horses, there are always a few rather difficult things we need to look at. We chatted last month about our tendency to want to label or have expectations of our experience with our horses. The energetic influence that these “labels” have is difficult to deny. Essentially, our energy, and subsequently, the energy of our horses, flows towards these beliefs and creates a self-fulfilling prophecy. In my mind these beliefs are like closing doors, locking away all the potential and possibilities that exist within the horse-rider partnership. This may relate to health, riding, or just how you view your horse in general. By acknowledging, accepting and releasing these belief patterns and labels, we are free to create our own path, with its infinite possibilities. In the same vein, it is a very common occurrence for resistance to arise in us about just about anything. To give one example, imagine a horse with a poorly fitting saddle. The owner recently spent a great deal of money on the saddle and would rather not believe that it is not fitting. Many trainers, vets and massage therapists later, the horse is still reacting to the saddle, quite understandably. Even though this owner was resisting the idea that the saddle was not fitting, the problem of course, persisted, leaving the horse in worse shape than before.

Resisting is as natural to the human being as waking up in the morning. It could defined as fighting against or responding negatively to something in life. Find me ten minutes in your busy day when you are not in resistance and I’ll give you a pat on the back. In fact, we often even resist getting up to face the day in the morning. From there we might resist a pain in our back or a request our kids make, or react negatively to the contents of our closets, then into our car where we get upset about how everyone drives, and to the barn where we procrastinate on manure picking. Most importantly, we tend to resist all those things about ourselves that we don’t want to see. Generally, we do this without being aware, by resisting the behaviour or appearance of those around us. This, of course, includes our horses. Imagine if all the people and horses around you that you resisted were merely showing you a reflection, by acting as your perfect mirror. Imagine if everything you resisted outside of you was actually teaching you about yourself. Even, or should I say especially, the horse that drives you crazy, is un-ridable, or is constantly injuring herself.

It appears to be true that when we resist something in the world around us, it pushes back, and perhaps even gets bigger and stronger. For example, when our horse is injured and we don’t want it to be happening, we resist, creating a great deal of questionable energy around the injury. This resistance is generally from a place of fear and negative thinking. This injury, understandably, will generally heal slower from this place of resistance, than from a place of acceptance. It may also be more likely to re-occur. Here’s why: the injury and any other experience is here to teach us. If we can’t look at it, we definitely can’t learn from it.

Even within the complex world of equine digestion, the concept of resistance comes into play. We may not allow ourselves to see the colic warning signs in our horse, or we may resist changing our horses diet even because “this is what I’ve always fed my horses”. Even though we have read the convincing articles, seen the positive proof in friend’s horses, and have been hearing that annoying inner voice for months. Or we resist calling a vet or an equine therapist when we realize that something is not right, because “what if they tell me that it’s my fault.” Resistance is natural, but it can also be detrimental, with the health of your horse on the line. Think positive about your horse’s digestion but also realize that when your horse is showing signs of decline, resisting is not the answer to their persisting issue. Be willing to see the truth about your horse’s health, accept it, learn from it and take the necessary steps, whether that is a diet change, a vet or an equine therapist, to help to bring them back into their natural balance.

We might also refer to resistance as pushing our comfort zone. Anyone who has ridden a very forward horse has experienced their comfort zone being challenged, creating fear and then resistance, usually manifested by pulling on the reins. To let go of control of the world around us, or notion of, can be a terrifying concept. The danger lights go on and our resistance kicks into full gear, sending us into survival mode. In truth, we have no control of the world around us, a fact that you can put to the test the next time you ride your horse. As much as you would like everything to be “perfect”, life doesn’t go as planned. A simple ride can go wrong or right, exactly as we had liked or not at all. The sooner we start having fun, stop reacting and begin to accept each moment for what it is, the better our partnership with our horse will be.

In the wake of a “negative” experience with your horse, it is quite easy to wish it never happened, but the truth is, it has happened. The more positive and accepting energy we can bring to the situation and ourselves, the more healing that can occur. We need to see the world, our horses and ourselves, as they are, without any illusion. Noticing the doors we have closed in our partnership, through our resistance and our entrenched beliefs, and opening them again one by one, will bring us closer to our horses and all those around us. Even for one day with your horse, try to release resistance and allow your accepting self to shine through. It is quite incredible what can be experienced and learned from this new balanced place.

Happy trails!