HNJ Equine Touch

29/04/2024

31/03/2024

Brilliant day! Lovely to share these amazing modalities with some new folk.

26/03/2024

How is everyone? Yet again, I have neglected my social media page - sorry! I have been working away, both locally and in the Borders and as usual forgotten to ask permission to post pictures -hence the absence of them!
I have also been focusing on the human version of Equine Touch (VHT) which I am currently studying -so the last few weeks have been a bit of a blitz to get my theory papers and case studies in for marking. All done now and I had an absolute blast this weekend in Lincolnshire at the level 4 course with my long suffering study buddy Helen Duncan. Massive thanks to Helen Choma for a fantastic weekend, excellent teaching and fabulous food, and to the other course students (you know who you are!) for such great company. These really are fantastic modalities and I am so excited to be learning more about them.

31/01/2024

I am absolutely delighted with the progress that Daisy is making. Alot softer in her body on the 3rd visit after her tying up episode. There was still some tension around her head/neck at the 2nd visit but that was gone and the feel of the hindquarters was back to her normal. This photo was from the start of her 3rd session. She is so lovely and appreciative of the bodywork.

20/01/2024

Despite the freezing temperatures, I had another lovely trip to the Borders this week to see new and repeat clients.

I am planning on another trip down on Tuesday 23rd January. I have room for one additional appointment late morning -please message me if you are interested.

14/01/2024

Heading from Perth to Jedburgh on Thurs 18th Jan (weather permitting).Can fit extra appointments in either along the route or around Jedburgh without incurring mileage fees.
Message me as soon as possible if you are interested in an Equine Touch session for your horse.

14/01/2024

I am pleased to report that there was significant improvement in muscle tone when I visited again this week and Daisy was moving much better. Further improvement noticed by the owner the following day too.
Daisy was superb during the session which was carried out in the field -my hands were frozen! She doesn't usually process much at the time, and on this occasion she asked to walk off a few times (which we allowed) and she was then happy to come back and let me carry on. It is always better to listen to the horse as they will get much more out of a session if they are willing participants.

I hope everyone had a restful and rejuvenating festive period. I am a bit slow at catching up with my posts after fighting the usual seasonal bugs!
I had a lovely rush trip down to the Borders on Monday to help the gorgeous Daisy, after a tying up episode at the weekend. She had been seen by a vet at the time, and an Equine Touch session was just what she needed to help her release the tension in her traumatised muscles.
Follow up with the owner the next day and she reported that Daisy was feeling a bit softer, standing in a more open stance and seemed quite cheerful.
There is more work to be done and a repeat visit is planned this week to encourage further softening.
Daisy is such a sweetie bless her and so appreciative!
Picture of a very tight butt!!

10/01/2024

I hope everyone had a restful and rejuvenating festive period. I am a bit slow at catching up with my posts after fighting the usual seasonal bugs!
I had a lovely rush trip down to the Borders on Monday to help the gorgeous Daisy, after a tying up episode at the weekend. She had been seen by a vet at the time, and an Equine Touch session was just what she needed to help her release the tension in her traumatised muscles.
Follow up with the owner the next day and she reported that Daisy was feeling a bit softer, standing in a more open stance and seemed quite cheerful.
There is more work to be done and a repeat visit is planned this week to encourage further softening.
Daisy is such a sweetie bless her and so appreciative!
Picture of a very tight butt!!

15/12/2023

You know when there is a difference between knowing in theory and really knowing, because you have experienced it? So I know that Equine Touch works, but now I really know it works, because my lovely friend/fellow VHT (human ET) student and recently qualified ET practitioner, Helen Duncan, came to my rescue with an emergency VHT session for me.
To explain, for some inexplicable reason I developed excruciating lower back pain - I honestly could not sit,lie or stand in any position which did not hurt; even GP prescribed analgesics did little to dull the pain. I have never felt anything like it and nor do I wish to again. Helen immediately offered to come over and gave me a session the next day. Straightaway there was some relief and the following day the pain was reduced further to a slight ni**le if I sat too long or just when I got up. No drugs were needed at all after her visit. There was also a further session a few days later -so by the time I saw the physiotherapist that the Dr organised (1st appointment 1 week after this started), I was pain free. Could I have waited a full week to see the physio in that amount of pain ?? No I could not!! Obviously I sang the praises of VHT to the physio who fully concurred that fascial release is extremely effective at reducing tension and pain.

So just something to think about for yourself and your equines. I have the benefit of speech and am able to articulate my suffering (and I did!!); can they, and if they do, do you understand, or put it down to bad behaviour?
I am not aware of doing anything particular to trigger this episode -no slips or falls, but I had been doing some decorating. Turns out I have been compensating for a weakness in one area, but since my injury over 4 months ago, this weak area has had to take more strain, and suddenly everything had had enough.
For your horse/pony, if it is already compensating for some weakness, old injury or tension, can it cope if asked to do something new or work differently? Just pulling through the mud can set something off. There wasn’t any heat or sign of trauma to cause my pain, so just because you cannot see it, it doesn't mean that your horse is fibbing when he/she is telling you something hurts.

The other point to takeaway is that I found immediate relief after 1 session, but was further improved after 2, and these sessions happened very promptly. If I had left it longer, it would almost certainly have taken longer to ‘undo’ as the body is very good at finding ways to cope which then ‘stick’. Equines are prey animals and therefore conditioned to hide physical weaknesses from their predators. They are likely to be suffering for quite a while before they ‘say’ anything and it is also likely, that however well intentioned we are, it will be a fair while longer before we notice that they are trying to tell us something. It is unfair to expect one session of any type of bodywork to ‘undo’ all the tension and compensation patterns that have built up over this time.
Peel the onion, one layer at a time.

21/11/2023

Busy week last week down to the Borders and more locally with follow up visits for some, and first visits for others. Pictures from a few of them.
Remember if the body has been holding tension for a while, then we cannot expect it all to be released in one go, irrespective of which modality you use to address it.
The guiding principles of Equine Touch are to work with the horse, not to overload it past the point of co-operation.
'Less is best'
'Peeling the onion'

10/11/2023

**update****
Got a space Mon 13th mid-late afternoon/after work if anyone is needing a session for their equine. You will need to notify your vet beforehand. Message me on HNJ Equine Touch for more info/to book

******

01/11/2023

A lovely day spent in the beautiful Borders yesterday, working with some new equines-each with differing issues and requiring different approaches to accept and participate in the process. It was so lovely to see each of them thinking about what was going on and releasing the tension.
Also a fabulous drive down on a sunny day with the sun filtering through the autumnal colours-magic!

Didn't get pictures of them all whilst processing, but here is 2 of them showing how to let the tension go...

17/10/2023

Another trip to the Borders is planned for 31st October but already quite full. Could possibly squeeze 1 more session in for late afternoon if relatively close to Jedburgh.
Do let me know if you are interested in a session and this date does not suit as I will be looking to make another visit in November.

If you want more information please take a look at my website
https://hnjequinetouch.co.uk/ or send me a message.

I am ideally located to cover central Scotland but willing to travel further afield to ensure that horses across the country can benefit from the amazing gift of Equine Touch.

09/10/2023

Unfortunately I have needed to cancel this demo - it seems folk are on holiday.
Note to self: avoid organising anything in tattie hols!!

02/10/2023

So excited, my website is now live!!
Please take a look.
https://hnjequinetouch.co.uk/

27/09/2023

Hi, just to be clear that I will not be able to accomodate people turning up on the day, I need to have been contacted before 5pm Monday 9th October to reserve your FREE space.

19/09/2023

Hi Everyone, apologies for the lack of activity recently. I have just safely completed a test drive and am therefore confident to say that my ankle is sufficiently healed for me to be able to resume visits to clients again.
As I had to completely clear my diary, the faster you respond the more likely it is that I can accommodate your preferred time/date!

I am looking forward to being back out and about, sharing the gift that is Equine Touch with our wonderful equines and seeing their responses. It is a fantastic modality.

22/07/2023

Hi, I am planning another trip to the Borders on Thursday 3rd August. I can make space for 1 or 2 more clients either en-route from Perthshire to Jedburgh or relatively near Jedburgh without charging for mileage.
Please get in touch if you are interested or just want to know more about what an Equine Touch session entails for your horse. Pricing is detailed on the pinned post on my fb page. There is also a link to The Equine Touch website for more information about this wonderful modality and the benefits it can bring. .

08/07/2023

Another successful trip to the beautiful Scottish Borders to see a couple of gorgeous equines. helping to reduce tension.

11/06/2023

We often talk about ‘peeling the onion’ with Equine Touch in that we can only start with what the equine first presents us with and gradually, by releasing any tension, get to a point where we can work at a deeper level. It is important not to overload the body in any one session and allow time for it to adjust afterwards before doing more.
I have therefore set my prices to make regular sessions, or repeat sessions to address a particular concern, as affordable as possible.

First / standalone visit £45
Initial follow up following a single session £38
Regular/multiple sessions booked in advance (min 4 per year) £35

Discount of 10% available for 2 or more equines at the same venue, booked for the same visit

Prices include mileage from PH2 to a max of 30 miles or 45 minutes travel time. Mileage thereafter to be discussed at booking. I will try to maximise visits to an area wherever possible to reduce costs (and CO2!) for all concerned.

28/05/2023

This is so true. My beautiful horse is arthritic. Diagnosed originally in her hocks, but symptoms presented as a sensitive back and a reluctance to canter. Finding a way to help her lead me on the path to Equine Touch via the lovely Audrey Anderson with The Equine Touch .
With Equine Touch we always address the whole horse. As per the post, it is difficult to know which is victim and which is criminal which is why a holistic approach is key.
Peeling the onion!

“Ohhh this horse just has a little arthritis in his left hock, it doesn’t seem to bother him too much.”

Horses are prey animals and therefore great compensators; they will create alternative locomotive patterns to continue movement.

So, say this little bit of osteoarthritis causes a reduced range of motion of the tarsal joint. In an attempt to maintain stride length and hide this dysfunction to potential predators (because you never know when a lion could be waiting around the corner... or a flapping plastic bag!) the tarsal (hock) joint is rotated medially (inwards) during the swing phase of the stride. This results in asymmetrical & medial weight bearing through the digit (hoof). This places additional stress through medial hamstring muscles, resulting in muscle tension and trigger points. And this is all something that is potentially going on in the affected hindlimb.

A hip hike/drop can occur at corresponding phases of the stride, placing the sacroiliac joint under stress, resulting in paraspinal and asymmetrical gluteal tone/pain.

Decreased impulsion from the left hindlimb leads to increased weight bearing through the right forelimb diagonal. This can create tension and hypertrophy to the right pectoral muscles and related fascial planes.

The spiral of compensation could continue on further, affecting cervical muscles that become hypertonic as a result of weight shifting, digit shape and size, TMJ pain, head tiling, hyoid dysfunction, asymmetric tail holding...

Check ligaments may strain on the overloaded limb, saddles may slip, mouths may open, head shaking may happen. And that doesn’t mean we have to put on a flash noseband, non-slip saddle pads and wear spurs to get more impulsion from the left hind that is through and through p a t h o l o g i c a l.

Often it can be the case where I see a horse that is a chronic stage of compensation and it can be difficult to find the true cause especially when the horse may appear just overall “stiff”.

I liken the rehabilitation of chronic cases to peeling the layers off an onion; one layer at a time and piece by piece to unravel and rewind the compensation spiral. 🐴

If this sparks a thought in anyone’s mind that actually, their horse may be suffering with this kind of pain presentation — follow your gut, trust that you know what is best for your horse and have your vet, physio, farrier, nutritionist, saddler, trainer all work with you and your horse to improve their comfort 🥰

08/04/2023

Such hard work, the Equine Touch!!
Rosie demonstrating how to process!.

This was her second Equine Touch session, she really relaxes during the session, letting go of tension.

18/03/2023

I was delighted to be asked back to see Lady recently for an Equine Touch session, just to make sure everything is tip top for bringing her back into more regular work after the inevitable winter disruptions.
Lady had been one of my case studies, so it was good to meet up with her again. She really relaxes into her sessions with lots of processing going on.

Her human made use of my current discounted 2 sessions offer, so I am booked to see her again in a few weeks. This is ideal, so we can lay a foundation now, let any changes settle, and then reassess next time. The issues we may find in a session are not always the cause, sometimes they are compensatory issues due to problems elsewhere. Having more than 1 session gives us a better chance of being able to find the source (think of peeling an onion!).

15/03/2023

The lovely Ellis that I had the pleasure of meeting for her Equine Touch session. Ellis is a bit arthritic and consequently can be stiff both in her hinds and across her back from compensating. The gentle moves of Equine Touch help release the fascia and allows the horse to let go of tension held in the underlying tissues.
Ellis held onto all her processing until the end of the session and then spent several minutes continuously yawning-all of which I failed to capture.
Anyone who has had experience of ET, knows we like pictures of the yawns!!