Authenticity, alignment and intention are the magic keys to heightened communication with your horse, writes Missy Wryn.

I think we can all agree that communication is complicated at the best of times. When you add interspecies, human-to-horse communication, we soon discover our good intentions are often not enough.

The range of communication we receive from a horse varies from a white-eyed look of panic to a ‘talk to the butt’ stance. I hear all the time things like, ‘I love my horse but she just walks away,’ or ‘my horse won’t let me touch him on the face / catch him’ etc. So how do we communicate with our horses in an effective way? How do we maintain our compassion and patience when our horse doesn’t seem to care less that we love them, or responds in a dangerous way when we only want the best for them?

There is a myriad of training techniques that can provide you with some answers to these basic issues, but there is also a form of invisible communication you can add to your toolbox that will deepen and strengthen your rapport.

Did you know that your brain is like a radio receiver and transmitter? Research has found that your brain has an energy field range of about 10 feet from your body, receiving and sending a vibratory energy frequency (VEF). You may have experienced this form of communication with a loved one. You may automatically finish their sentence or say something they were just thinking – in both these cases you are on the same vibratory energy frequency, sharing a neurotransmitter energy field.

What is really fascinating is the neurotransmitters that are in our brains sending and receiving the VEF are not all in our heads! Every organ in our body has neurotransmitters including the skin, which is the largest of our organs. By communicating with our entire body’s VEF we can really get a message across. Horse’s have neurotransmitters in their organs too so the question begs, what is your body saying to your horse on a VEF level and how can we use this transmission to improve our communications with them?

If you are out of alignment with your intention your VEF is going to reflect that.

Horses need to trust us in order to be safe and calm around us. Say you are trying to work with your horse, perhaps demonstrating your leadership, but your body is sending a message of worry, anxiety, fear or any number of negative messages. How does your body line up with your intention of teaching your horse that you are their herd leader? Authenticity is the key! Being authentic, while aligning your intention, is the magic key to a deeper understanding and trust between you. This goes for humans too – you know that feeling when you meet someone who you feel you can’t trust but can’t put your finger on why? Well that’s because your body is receiving the message that the person’s intention is not aligned with who they really are (authenticity) – perhaps they are hiding something or telling an outright lie?! They are incongruent.

Imagine how that must be for horses. We may be feeling ‘off,’ worried about our job or paying the bills etc, but go work with our horses and expect them to respond to our loving gestures and commands. Is it surprising then that the horse does not respond as we wish? You must think about what your body is saying versus your gestures and commands. If you are out of alignment with your intention your VEF is going to reflect that. Your horse will feel your lack of authenticity and see you as incongruent and untrustworthy. And what does a horse do when they can’t trust a human? All sorts of unexpected and dangerous behaviours. Horses require authenticity in their leaders and, by the way, so do humans.

So how do we align our intention with what is really going on inside of us? The answer lies in honesty and awareness, plain and simple. Be honest with yourself and check in with your body to see what you are really feeling and what your VEF is transmitting. For example, when I’m struggling with an issue that is non-horse related I recognise that this is going to reflect when I go to ride my horse. I also recognise my horse is genetically wired to require a herd leader at all times, but I want to be the compassionate herd leader nonetheless so that requires me being honest about how I feel. Don’t be scared to verbalise what is going on with you. Tell them – you’ll be amazed what a relief it is to get your troubles off your chest and you may well invoke an audible sigh from your horse.

Our words have a VEF too (that’s a whole other article) which is why I encourage talking when with your horse. Tell the truth about how you feel and what is going on, give it a try and see for yourself. Authenticity, alignment and intention all go into the magic of great communication.

For more information about Missy and free training videos visit www.missywryn.com

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