Tree View Stables

03/08/2026

19/07/2026

Today I had one of the best rides I’ve ever had on Bertie.

Which is ridiculous really, because I only actually rode him for about four minutes.

My life is planned down to the last five minutes. Today I had a 40-minute gap to ‘do Bertie’. Normally I’d have been stressing that I needed to get a proper schooling session in. You know the ones… goals, circles, transitions, trying to becomes gold medal winning Olympian before lunch.

Instead, we just… hung out.

I brushed his tail. Kissed his nose. Introduced him to a banana for the first time (hard ‘not on your nelly’ from Bertie). Trimmed his hairy armpits. Picked some manky gunk off his w***y. Tried a few jump saddles on him. I pretty much just pottered around him .

By the time I’d finished faffing, I had about five minutes left. Four by the time I’d actually climbed aboard.

So there was no grand plan.

We wandered round in walk. We ambled over a few poles. We practised stopping. Starting. Laughing at our total lack of steering. And… we breathed.

And then… that was it.

We didn’t improve our medium trot.

We didn’t perfect our canter transitions.

We didn’t unlock some magical new level of dressage.

But we did something far more important.

We added another lovely, relaxed, pressure-free ride to the memory bank.

No stress. No expectations. No feeling like either of us had failed because we hadn’t ‘achieved’ enough.

Sometimes I think we forget that horses don’t care about our training plans or whether today’s session was productive enough to justify our time.

Sometimes they just want to spend time with us.

And if I’m honest… sometimes I think I need that just as much as Bertie does.

We didn’t improve anything today.

Except our mental health.

And I’d say that’s a pretty bloody good result.

17/07/2026

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15/07/2026

You’ll figure it out.

08/07/2026

Somewhere along the way, a lot of us lost the ordinary words for being human.

We stopped saying:

“I’m scared.”
“I feel overwhelmed.”
“I don’t feel safe.”
“I’m embarrassed.”
“I need reassurance.”
“I feel out of control.”
“I’m worried something bad will happen.”

And instead, we started reaching straight for psychiatric or pathologising language.

“I have anxiety.”
“I’m triggered.”
“I’m dysregulated.”
“I’m spiralling.”
“I’m traumatised.”

Sometimes those words are useful. Sometimes they help people feel seen. Sometimes they give language to something that has felt confusing for years.

But sometimes, they can also move us further away from the feeling underneath.

Because “I have anxiety” can become a label.
“I’m scared” is a feeling.

And feelings are allowed to move.

When we work with people, especially young people, emotional literacy matters.

We do not want to pathologise normal human responses to stress, fear, pressure, grief, change, uncertainty or overwhelm.

A child who says “I’m anxious” may actually mean:

“I don’t know what will happen next.”
“I think I’m going to get told off.”
“I feel stupid.”
“I need someone to stay close.”
“I’m not ready.”
“I don’t trust this yet.”
“I feel too exposed.”

This is why slowing down matters.

This is why curiosity matters.

This is why horses can be such powerful partners in emotional learning. They do not ask us to diagnose the feeling. They respond to what is present.

The tight shoulders.
The held breath.
The rushing.
The hesitation.
The need to step back.
The quiet moment when someone realises, “Actually, I think I was/am scared.”

At Equimotional, we care deeply about language.

Because the words we use can either box people in, or help them find their way back to themselves.

Mental health language has its place.

But so do the simple, brave words.

I’m sad.
I’m scared.
I’m angry.
I’m unsure.
I need help.
I need time.
I need connection.

That is emotional literacy.

And sometimes, that is where the real work begins. 🐴💛

30/06/2026