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Rocking Horse Rehab
A place of hope and horses
by Sharon Keigher
A magnificent mare carries six-year-old Morgan majestically across the riding ring. Four years ago, Morgan was unable to sit or hold up her head: She had cerebral palsy and encephalopathy. Her therapists said there was nothing more they could do. With nothing left to lose, Morgan’s family brought her to Rocking Horse Rehab to try therapy with horses. Within a few months, Morgan was able to hold up her head. Within a year she was taking steps. Today she walks holding her mother’s hand. Welcome to Rocking Horse Rehab, located in the Essex Equestrian Center, where minor miracles occur when kids ride horses to improve chronic conditions.
The youthful riders look as if they’re taking a horseback ride, rather than receiving treatment. The energy of Rocking Horse makes it easy to forget the children are riding because of their conditions, which range from autism, and cerebral palsy to Down syndrome, traumatic brain injuries or acquired disorders.
Max Brown is a handsome 13-year-old who attends Heritage Middle School in Livingston and comes to Rocking Horse for weekly therapy. Articulate and friendly, Max speaks freely about his spinal muscular atrophy, “It’s a neuromuscular disease, where my muscles are weak and I can’t walk by myself. My legs and body get very tight, and the horse helps work my hips, legs and stomach muscles. After riding I feel more stretched out and comfortable. I’m also tired because I don’t even realize that it’s a workout… But, I definitely look forward to therapy every week, I really like riding horses.”
“The reason these kids keep coming back is the horses! They are having fun and are not aware of how hard their little bodies are working in response to the horses’ movement [which] stimulates the central nervous system, thereby effecting muscle tone, balance, sensory motor systems, cognition, speech and language,” said Sheri Haiken, Rocking Horse founder and Executive Director.
Haiken grew up in Sussex County and has been around horses her whole life. Early in her career as a speech therapist, she took a client to a handicapped riding center. Her client was an autistic child who truly enjoyed the ride and made vocalizations that he never had before. Stunned and thrilled with this breakthrough, Haiken researched the relationship between horses and therapy and found out it had a name: hippotherapy. Haiken took lessons and, impressed with the results, set out on her own. In 1993, she founded her private practice known today as Rocking Horse Rehab.
According to the American Hippotherapy Association, “hippo” is Greek for “horse,” and the use of horse therapy dates back to 460 BC. Current horse therapy requires a trained physical, occupational, or speech therapist to guide the client and the horse through a routine. Horses provide a three-dimensional sensory experience which is very similar to a human walking gait. There is no two-dimensional therapeutic machine that can replicate that experience, physiologically or emotionally.
“The emotional bond was a big surprise to me,” said Kimberly Kones-Abramsohn, an occupational therapist who worked traditional therapy before coming to Rocking Horse four years ago. “The kids affect the horses and the horses affect the kids. When a child is anxious, the horses feel that and respond by becoming very calm. The child feels that and their spirit changes. Kids who are scared of our bunny and fish are often totally comfortable on a horse. They gain greater awareness of the world on a horse.”
Ironically, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has discovered that therapy also benefits the horses. In a study to determine the amount of stress a horse undergoes when keeping a handicapped rider in the saddle, they found that the stress hormone, cortisol, actually decreases. Clearly, the communication between rider and horse transcends conventional wisdom and provides a measurable curative for both.
No one understands the impact of horse therapy better than staff member, Tim Livelli, who has been on both sides of hippotherapy. As Horse Liaison at Rocking Horse, Livelli gets the horse, fits the tack, and then grooms the horse. He’s also a frequent “side walker” who bonds easily with the children attending therapy sessions.
Livelli explains, “I see myself in the kids we treat... When I was born, they declared me a vegetable. I was three months premature and I only had a tenth of my cerebellum. The doctors told my mother that I’d never walk or talk. They told her to institutionalize me. My mother fought like hell to keep me at home and get me therapy. That therapy was able to reroute my brain, and the rest is history. I started riding horses at eight years old and I really made great strides. I later worked as a stable boy to pay for my riding. I finished my education and eventually I found my career here at Rocking Horse.”
Tim’s mother, Marge Livelli is emphatic when she says, “Everything about Tim improved once he started riding horses as a boy. The horses really improved the effectiveness of the therapy. And it’s amazing that he wound up here as an adult. He knows what the horses mean to these kids. And when parents see Tim, he gives them hope; they know how far he’s come. Tim loves this place; he feels that he’s able to give back much of what was given to him.”
“If you like animals and you like kids, you’ll observe constant little miracles, said volunteer Carole Faber. “There’s an amazing connection between the physical part of riding and what’s going on in their brains. I’ve seen so many kids do things they’ve never done before. It’s very nurturing and joyful.”
Parent Lauri Brown said, “The horse gives my son Max freedom. It’s a wonderful thing. He can do much more on a horse than he can do on land, and it keeps up his strength and stamina. He literally counts the days until he rides again. And my daughter [Samantha] rides with the sibling group that has really helped her deal with having a handicapped sibling. Sheri is really great about bringing families together.”
Haiken knew that most kids who needed hippotherapy also needed other types of therapy. Rocking Horse Rehab is the only center in the United States to offer such a unique combination of services. Larry Hall, the owner of the Essex Equestrian Center, saw the results that Rocking Horse produced on horses, and he generously allowed them to renovate and lease the building abutting the back of the ring. With this new space, Rocking Horse was able to add on a menu of services including: therapeutic yoga, therapeutic martial arts, music therapy, and other multi-sensory equine assisted activities with the speech, physical, and occupational therapists.
Equine facilitated psychotherapy is also “on campus” and used to treat a variety of psycho-social disorders including anxiety, depression, and behavioral disorders. The Mighty Mustangs is a one-hour session where the groundwork with horses requires participants to work on social skills such as listening skills, respect, anger management, and problem solving. Hay University is a life skills class for adults with developmental delays.
Parent Time is a therapeutic support group for parents of children with special needs. Siblings are invited to join Saddles and Sunshine, a 12-week therapeutic support group for siblings of children with special needs. These groups are conducted by a licensed clinical social worker trained in equine facilitated mental health. The staff consists of occupational therapists, speech pathologists, physical therapists, a clinical social worker, a music therapist, a teacher of the handicapped, therapeutic riding instructors, and more than 50 volunteers (ages 14 and up). Every small breakthrough elicits smiles and laughter. As Faber said, “It’s extremely rewarding. You give back a little bit and get a lot. It’s amazing when you have a day when the therapist is rejoicing.”
It is a place of hope and horses.
Sharon Keigher was emotionally unprepared for the profoundly powerful experience of unbridled joy and boundless hope that she found at Rocking Horse. She fully intends to return as a volunteer. Her last encounter with a horse occurred a long time ago, with Girl Scout Troop #40 in Gregory School.
Rocking Horse Rehab is located at 12-22 Woodland Avenue, West Orange. For more information call 973-731-8588 or visit the website at www.rockinghorserehab.com
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