Flight, Flight, freeze. Those are some of the responses that occur when the tiny spot in the middle of your brain called the amygdala gets triggered and takes over your emotions. If you have attended one of our camps you know horses have similar responses.
As part of our learning during lessons, we are discussing aspects of communication. Each week we gather during lessons and take less than 5 minutes to discuss these topics. Learning is a life long adventure and can happen on or off the horse!
* Week 1: How to better communicate with peers, parents, and horses. (asking how, what, why, when, where, and how)
*Week 2: How to apologize correctly vs poor apologies and what is it about bragging that bothers those around us.
*Week 3: Reading nonverbal communication between humans and also horses. What is being said with body language.
*Week 4: Amygdala Hijacking- what causes are emotions to erupt into fight, flight or freeze- both during riding or with our peers. How we can STOP, breathe, Think, Respond - instead of allowing our emotions to take over in an escalated state of reaction.
My goal as a trainer is to teach life skills, not just how to stay in a saddle. Reading horses is a lot like walking into a room and reading the environment, stigma, and expectations of oneself. Communication is a key element to becoming a better rider, but also will improve relationships all around.