Barn Therapy: A Vacation From Your Problems

Wow, there is so much going on right now that I don't know where to start!!  It has been a whirl-wind couple of weeks, and to say the least, I'm a bit stressed out from all of it.  I was prepared to write about all the things that have stressed me out lately, but I actually figured out what my problem is tonight at the barn.  So, I will spare you the details of all of the things that have happened and instead wow you with my brilliant insight.  Ready? 

So, prior to my fall and resulting broken arm, one of my favorite ways to get away from the stress of the day was to ride my horse.  No, actually, I didn't even have to ride.  Just being at the barn-grooming my horse, cleaning stalls, and just talking to all of the other boarders.  I think the barn has something therapeutic about it, sort of like a safe place where you can go where everybody knows your name....and they're always glad you came!!  OK enough cheesy TV show theme songs.  Seriously, being out there allowed me to put all of my troubles behind me and just concentrate on one thing-being with my horse and taking care of him.  After being flooded with so many things to do in a day's work, it's nice to have a couple hours a day to just concentrate on one thing and one thing only-and my one thing is a big grey Thoroughbred. 

Since I am sitting the bench for a few more weeks, there aren't many things that I can do with 1 hand(picking a hoof...pulling a mane..even cleaning tack...not gonna happen!).  Therefore, many of my friends have chipped in to help feed and take care of Smokey for me.  Since Lacy was riding today and the weather was nice enough, I thought it would be a good day to go out and get Smokey all groomed up before she got to the barn.  It was then that I realized exactly what I was missing!!  Call it an "Ah-ha" moment, hopefully not the first or last one in my life.  In the last week, I haven't been out there much because of my busy schedule and my injury.  And it has affected me in the worst way.  The barn atmosphere has been a huge part of my life in that it helped me to de-stress from a tough day's work.  Not having an outlet for your daily stress can be over-whelming, leading to a complete overload of your brain.  And when your brain is overloaded, just like your car's engine, it will completely shut down so that you cannot have a coherent thought on even the smallest of decisions (blue socks or black socks...or white socks...or navy socks...AHH!).  More importantly, even the smallest of issues seem like they are 100 times bigger when you are stressed out. 

Being at the barn helps to connect to other people with similar interests and helps to put things in perspective.  Sharing your stories of a tough day at work, problems with family, or just listening to the daily sounds at the barn is therapeutic for a majority of us equestrians, whether we realize it or not.  Believe me, if we didn't have our horses and the barn to go to after a tough day, a lot more therapists would be a lot richer!! 

So, no matter what your limitations are (for me, obviously its this purple reminder on my arm), remember to keep doing the things that help you to gain some perspective and give yourself a "vacation from your problems" (quote from What About Bob?...one of my favorite movies).  I realized today that I needed to have that "vacation" as often as possible.  It doesn't have to be a long "vacation", but take a little down time out of every day for your brain.  I know where I will be headed tomorrow...and I will just have to get some help in pulling my horse's mane.  Any volunteers?