Guest guest Posted February 26, 2006 Report Share Posted February 26, 2006 Hi : I can totally understand your feelings about not imagining a life without horses. I feel the same way. I am 52 and have horses at home. The corrals are not as clean as they used to be, but I do what I can. Before RA, although I did not ride competitively like you, I rode almost every day, and also team sorted with friends on the weekends. Since RA has been in my life, almost 8 years now, I have slowed down quite a bit on my riding, but I refuse to give it up completely. I had to give up the team sorting as my balance just would not cut it anymore, but still trail ride. My husband built me a set of steps, with handrails, so that I could mount my horse easier, but now I also need someone to hold my horse while I mount, because if the horse begins to move off, I will loose my balance as I swing up into the saddle and fall off. This happened a few times, and after the last time I hit the ground, hard, I finally gave in and asked for help. The same thing when I dismount. Once I am on, I'm fine, and can handle spooks, and my horse when he is feeling particularly energetic. It's hard to give up these little pieces of independence in our lives, but I will do it so that I can keep riding. I at least once a week, would love to ride more, but I don't ride alone any longer, and my best girlfriend works just about every day. When she gets a day off, or my daughter is off from school, we will try to squeeze in a ride, and the joy of riding is just as intense to me as it ever was. Riding is absolutely the best therapy. I concentrate on my horse and what is going on around us, and forget my pain, until I get off, and I do end up paying for it the following day, but, oh, I will not stop until I can no longer climb those steps. There is a saying " to ride a horse is to borrow freedom " and that is exactly it - freedom to go where I can no longer go on my own two feet because I can't walk long distances, and uneven ground is a killer, but on my horse, I can go up into the hills or along trails and enjoy nature. On one of the last group rides I took, we went up to a part of the Cleveland National Forest which is about a 30 minute drive away, and it was so beautiful, we saw deer, and other wildlife. Something that I could not hike to see, and, therefore, would have missed out on. Don't give up on having horse and riding. Depending on the type of competitive riding you do, you could continue with that for quite a while depending on your medical course with RA. Have someone else exercise your horse when you are unable to do so. Like I said, compromise is the name of the game, and ask for help when you need it. Since enjoying your horse and riding are so very important to you, I am sure that you will continue doing it for as long as you can. Even if you don't ride competitively any longer, trail riding is an option, and you can control where you go, and how long the ride is, in order to make sure that you don't overdo. Just don't give up - people with RA can continue to ride, and I believe such exercise is very good for us, it works on our balance, as well as our emotional and mental health. And it's just so much fun. Best of luck, Kathe in CA I can't > imagine a life without horses. I have ridden since I > was a kid. my > longest time NOT riding has been through my two > kids' complicated > pregnancies. I can live with the idea of losing a > show season while > we get my RA under control. I'm not sure if I can > live with the > idea of giving up riding altogether. Even the idea > of it makes me > want to start crying. I'd rather cut off my right > hand. > --- Randall <krandall@...> wrote: > Kathe " To ride a horse is to borrow freedom. " __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 26, 2006 Report Share Posted February 26, 2006 Thanks, Kathe. It's great to hear that there are people who do ride with RA. At this point, it's actually not the riding I;m having trouble with, but tacking up, carrying things around and the like. (and as I mentioned, I haven't had to do any barn work since things got bad, because he's been over at the indoor ring) I show in dressage and jumpers, though I also show my horse in Show Hack classes at the Arab shows a few times a year. (he's a half Arab) Fortunately, he's a fantastic horse, and I've had him since he was a baby. He's 11 now, and I can totally count on him. While I hope I can keep showing, he's also a great trail riding buddy, so if we can at least keep doing that, it wouldn't be too bad. (though that kind of riding wouldn't do much to keep me fit!<g>) Maybe it's still a good idea for me to get another horse... that way I could trade riding privilegdes for barn work and horse-help. Thanks for writing back. You cheered me up at the end of a BAD day. > > > > > Kathe > > " To ride a horse is to borrow freedom. " > > > > __________________________________________________ > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 27, 2006 Report Share Posted February 27, 2006 Hi : I know what you mean, holding the brushes and picking the hooves is sometimes quite hard to do when my hands and wrists are acting up. I do have brushes that have straps over them to hold my hand on the brushes, also have brushes that are curved better to fit my hand. And my hoofpick has a large wooden handle which is easier to grip. Getting the saddle up on my horse is sometimes pretty hard, but luckily the horses I do ride are 14.1 hands or 15 hands, so I don't have to heft it up too far (I am only 5' so I need a short horse), and my saddle seems to get heavier every time I use it lol. It sounds like a good idea to get a second horse and to exchange riding for help, and you could get a riding buddy too. Your horse sounds great - you are lucky to have one that is not only good in the area, but also on the trail, hard to find sometimes when they are used for competition like you have. Best of luck and keep on riding! Kathe in CA --- Randall <krandall@...> wrote: > Thanks, Kathe. It's great to hear that there are > people who do ride > with RA. At this point, it's actually not the > riding I;m having > trouble with, but tacking up, carrying things around > and the like. > (and as I mentioned, I haven't had to do any barn > work since things > got bad, because he's been over at the indoor ring) > > I show in dressage and jumpers, though I also show > my horse in Show > Hack classes at the Arab shows a few times a year. > (he's a half > Arab) Fortunately, he's a fantastic horse, and I've > had him since he > was a baby. He's 11 now, and I can totally count on > him. > > While I hope I can keep showing, he's also a great > trail riding > buddy, so if we can at least keep doing that, it > wouldn't be too > bad. (though that kind of riding wouldn't do much to > keep me fit!<g>) > > Maybe it's still a good idea for me to get another > horse... that way > I could trade riding privilegdes for barn work and > horse-help. > > Thanks for writing back. You cheered me up at the > end of a BAD day. > > > > > > > > > > > > > Kathe > > > > " To ride a horse is to borrow freedom. " > > > > > > > > __________________________________________________ > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 27, 2006 Report Share Posted February 27, 2006 Hi Kathe, Fortunately I have a lot of experience protecting my hands already... I have had a joint replacement due to osteo arthritis problems, and had two other hand surgeries due to an accident. So my tools are already hand-friendly. Oliver is a lot bigger than your guys... He's 16.1. But at least it's English saddles I have to get up onto him. (I'm a lot taller than you too... I'm 5'9 " ) The biggest problem I have is doing the girth up. He's also really good about standing still at the mounting block for me to get on and off. He's always been trail ridden regularly, as I think it's good for show horses to have down-time to. He loves to show, but he loves heading out on the trails just as much. Right now, since starting on prednisone, I seem to have been able to ride most days. My hips have been an on-going problem, but it doesn't seem to change whether I ride or not. The rheumatologist is going to inject them tomorrow, so hopefully that will help. When I'm feeling more positive, I figure anything can happen to anyone at any time, so I might as well continue life as normally as possible FOR ME until I can't. > > > > > > > > > > > > > Kathe > > > > > > " To ride a horse is to borrow freedom. " > > > > > > > > > > > > __________________________________________________ > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 27, 2006 Report Share Posted February 27, 2006 That's a good attitude to have, . That's all any of us can do. Enjoy your riding as long as you can. Sue On Monday, February 27, 2006, at 09:39 PM, Randall wrote: > > When I'm feeling more positive, I figure anything can happen to > anyone at any time, so I might as well continue life as normally as > possible FOR ME until I can't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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