23/05/2024
Rehab... it is not for the faint hearted.
'I can do this!' you think as the vet explains the problem and the healing process and time. You have been ready for this news as you are just so grateful to your hero of a vet for finally getting to the cause of all the issues.
However, once the elated side of your brain is allowed to absorb this information; it hits you. It hits you like a Japanese Bullet train and you flop onto the nearest firm looking surface. Did the vet say 6 months or was it 8? You suddenly realise that you only retained parts of the information and now, after having the vet around for the past few sessions, you are on your own.
This is where horse-induced trauma takes place.
1. The Winter Blues: this is where you have recieved said awful news in the depth of the wet, soggy months. How are you going to rehab a horse? You can barely drag your own mind out of it's hibernation duvet. The thought of going through the motions during the darkest months of the year immediately make you reach for the chocolate and look for a series to binge watch.
2. The Summer Frustration: arguably worse than the winter variant. This is the one where social media and the yard increase your horse-induced trauma. All those photos, videos, lorries, rosettes... all you can see are people having fun and it makes you feel like you in an invisible box, one that stops you from feeling those happy, summer vibes.
Firstly, you are not alone, despite how you may feel. Most horse owners have been there and felt what you feel right now.
Secondly, although tempting, don't lose hours of your life searching the Internet for a magical cure. This is denial. It is where many questionable companies make money selling gadgets, potions and lotions to people who are in your shoes. Many of us have been there and it is why we have a collection of crystals, powders that smell worse than your partner's work boots, a strange putty that you aren't quite sure whether you should rub in, inhale or smoke and contraptions that look like they were designed to restrain women during childbirth in the Medieval period.
What can you do?
1. Deep breath and accept the situation. Fighting is exhausting and does not lead to a happy place.
2. Ask your vet to send a report through - you aren't expected to understand everything they said.
3. Next contact your physio and farrier and pass the report on. This is what we do. We are here to work through this with you.
4. Once reports have been seen, it's time to make a plan. Not a ridiculous one which you won't be able to achieve, but one that is structured around your lifestyle as much as possible.
You are not alone. You have a team. You will survive this.
And most importantly: YOU REALLY CAN DO THIS!
To everyone going through rehab right now, you are heroes ❤️
