Soldiers returning home to Washington County, Maryland with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI) are finding hope and healing in the last place they might ever think to look — on horseback.
Thanks to the efforts of Jeffrey and Laura Lane-Unsworth, owner/operators of Larkspur Lane Farm, Maryland’s military heroes now have a place to go when deployment ends and the transition back to civilian life begins.
When I first met Laura, it was over a miscommunication — she expecting a telephone interview, me showing up on her front porch for a face-to-face. And while most people would probably have not-so-graciously accepted my offer to reschedule, Laura took a different tact.
She shut the dogs safely away and enthusiastically took me on an enchanting tour of the business end of Larkspur Lane Farm and her brainchild, the Brave HEART Program.
Laura acts as Executive Director of Brave HEART, an acronym for Brave Heroes Equine Adventure and Riding Therapy, whose mission is to create:
“An environment where veterans, military members and their families come together to facilitate healing and strengthen relationships through equine interaction and outdoor activities in a peaceful farm setting.”
Laura’s ultimate goal for her program is to attain PATH accreditation, PATH stands for the Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International. And once Larkspur Lane is a PATH-accredited facility, it will be better equipped to assist veterans with the more specific details of therapeutic riding.
And after just a brief foray around the rolling 22 acres that make up the farm, it’s easy to understand why Larkspur Lane is the perfect setting to carry out such an energetic endeavor. Towering pine trees, wide-open green spaces, and the charming accompaniment of a rooster crowing repeatedly in the background of my recording app as we talked were only a few of the fond memories I took away with me when I left that day.
I also met the horses: Marshall, the buckskin Quarter Horse and Breezy, the Appaloosa. And it was Breezy who ate the biscuit from the flat of my palm.
Having never been around horses, I was a bit apprehensive. Breezy up close was a lot bigger than Breezy ambling her way unconcerned up through the pasture field at a deceptively comfortable distance.
And I’m pretty sure Breezy knew that.
According to Laura, horses, and Breezy in particular, are intuitive animals who have ways of reading people. “She adjusts. She knows if she has someone riding her who is just a beginner, and she slows down.” Laura informed me fondly.
I wasn’t expecting to be charmed by hundreds of pounds of horseflesh. But that’s pretty much how it played out.
How the Brave HEART Program Heals
Laura is quick to explain, “The horses are the therapists … Somehow, just being around them, just laying hands on them — people just feel a connection. It’s hard to put into words, but it does make a huge difference. Winston Churchill said ‘There’s something about the outside of a horse that’s good for the inside of a man,'” Laura quotes, and then adds, “And that’s true for women and children as well.”
And Laura would know.
As a lifelong horsewoman, she’s familiar with the healing capabilities of these majestic animals. She has an award-winning history in Hunter Under Saddle and Huntseat Equitation, as well as a solid reputation as a trainer and re-trainer of retired racehorses for jumping and fox hunting. And along with husband Jeffrey, she has firsthand knowledge of the challenges faced by the families of military personnel returning home.
Jeffrey’s own career as an Army medic spans an impressive 27 years, during which he’s seen multiple combat including Operation Just Cause, Desert Storm, Desert Shield, and most recently Operation New Dawn that oversaw the withdrawal of forces from Iraq. According to Laura, the average readjustment period for military personnel returning home is at least six months, and if you toss an injury such as PTSD or TBI into the mix, some veterans never make that transition at all.
Origins of Horse Therapy
The idea of utilizing horses to help heal the mind and body has been around for centuries, but many trace the roots of modern hippotherapy back to 1952 when Lis Hartel took the Olympic silver medal in dressage.
The fact that a woman and a civilian medaled was a heartwarming moment in and of itself, but Lis, who required assistance to mount and dismount her horse, was carried to the podium by her fellow competitor and gold medalist, Henri St. Cyr. Even more unbelievable — Hartel had been struck with polio in 1944 and told by her doctors that she would never walk again.
Apparently they forgot to weigh in on her abilities to travel by horseback.
Lis took the silver again in 1956 in Stockholm and became a seven-time champion in Danish National Dressage.
Lis, along with her therapist, founded the first ever Therapeutic Riding Center in Europe, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Treatment With the Help of a Horse
The American Hippotherapy Association defines this form of therapy more literally as “treatment with the help of a horse.” It’s used the world over to help correct the symptoms of neuromusculoskeletal dysfunction, including muscle tone, motor coordination, posture, strength and flexibility. Often, improvements are even noted in the patient’s cognitive abilities, respiration and speech pattern.
The type of healing that happens in the Brave HEART Program, however, and that helps soldiers truly return home from the war, is more a combination of hippotherapy and a more modern and specific treatment called Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP).
In EAP, a healing bond is encouraged between horse and patient. Psychology Today calls this relationship a “tool to mirror client’s experiences and facilitate change.” and explains that it works for a number of reasons: Horses can, at different times, be quite human — experiencing emotions, attitudes and moods. Just like people, horses play defined roles in the herd. And lastly, horses are capable of mirroring human behavior and reflecting it back to the client to deepen his or her understanding of self.
EAP can be instrumental in healing an abundance of disorders including PTSD, TBI, depression, anxiety, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), and even grief.
And this is where the determined couple hope to see their contribution make a difference. Though they just received their 501(c)3 non-profit status last June, big things are in the works for Larkspur Lane Farm, including a new barn with a wheelchair-accessible bathroom, outdoor lighting for the riding area to accommodate families after dark, more and continued training for their workforce which is 100 percent volunteer, and ultimately — PATH accreditation.
“We’re very grassroots,” Laura explains. “Every dollar that’s donated goes right back into the program.”
Washington County Farm of the Year
In October of last year, Larkspur Lane Farm won Washington County, Maryland’s prestigious “Farm of the Year” award for the Unsworth’s dedication to conservation, community involvement and a proven dedication to agriculture. And when the assignment came across my work desk from the editor of the local magazine that so graciously grants me a byline, I knew immediately that I wanted to learn more about the Unsworths and their experiences with horse therapy.
And I’m so glad I did.
In addition to the various horses, chickens, turkeys, cats, and dogs on the farm, Jeff and Laura also raise a rare breed of British sheep called Soays for wool and conservation. The sheep are deceptively small and cuddly and have an enchanting way of tugging on your heartstrings at the first meeting.
Which, of course, fits perfectly with the whole theme of Larkspur Lane Farm and the ways in which Jeff and Laura strive to help veterans and their families make the difficult and often painful transition back into civilian life.
At Larkspur Lane Farm, after all, HEART is the operative word.
Contact Information:
For more information on the Brave HEART Program, or to volunteer or to make a donation, contact Laura@BraveHEARTRiding.org.
For more information on Old Line Soays, contact soaysheep@verizon.net.
Read more about Larkspur Lane Farm in the Jan/Feb 2016 issue of Hagerstown Magazine.
Sources:
http://www.braveheartriding.org/
http://www.olympic.org/news/lis-hartel-equestrianism/232513
http://www.horsenation.com/2014/11/17/olympic-girl-power-the-incredible-story-of-lis-hartel/
http://www.americanhippotherapyassociation.org/hippotherapy/introduction-to-hippotherapy/
Lis Hartel, Danish Equestrian Legend, Dies
http://hagerstownmagazine.com/
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