As a horse person, we tend to overlook our own injuries and keep going. Sadly, I have done this so many times! This summer has been very hard on me! Ironically, I’m dealing with old injuries that have caught up with me vs new stuff.
What is the issue? Well, we are a stubborn group of people. We love our animals. We prioritize them over ourselves. I was told by my husband to enjoy my runs (barrel racing) because I don’t do it for the payout. If I did it for the payout, we would be living under a bridge with a horse and a dog. True story! My body and brain simply refuses to not take care of my horses. One week after having total hip repair (not replaced) I was out feeding and blanketing my horses because we had a sudden cold snap. Y’all, I was on crutches and a very strict “do nothing” order. But I didn’t want them to be cold and they needed hay! My horse (Gabe) decided to kick at me and took out my right knee while I was on crutches that day. Yup! This was back in 2014. I had zero regrets. Stupid. I know.
Moving forward… my knees have taken a lot of abuse. I’m a barrel racer but mostly it’s been random stuff. My hip stability depends on my knee. My back depends on my legs. This summer I began having hip pain and knee pain. Then I dropped a metal water trough on my foot. All on the right side. Sigh. Instead of resting, I kept going. Bad move. What could have been 4 weeks of down time has now turned into a series of MRI’s, possible surgery and physical therapy. With all this going on, I developed bone spurs in my shoulder that are attacking my rotator cuff. ALL ON MY RIGHT SIDE. Sigh.
Now let’s talk about how and why. How did I go downhill? I kept going vs resting. Why? Because my brain said go when my body said stop. I love my students, my horses, and my life! Being grounded by doctors and my physical therapist has really sunk my ship so to speak.
What is next? It’s time to take care of my body. I’m still going out to feed my horses. Taking care to not carry things beyond what I can carry. I cannot throw a saddle on a horse. I cannot walk or jog while giving lessons. Even putting a bridle on a horse is painful. So I shall stop. For now. I have an MRI for my shoulder coming up this week. This will be MRI #7 this year. Yes you read that right. Did I mention that I had two ER visits this spring? Not accident related? Yup. Did I slow down? Nope! See the pattern?
As much as I love what I do, it’s time to slow down. Actually I’m past the opportunity to just slow down. Now I have to stop. It’s sad. I don’t like it. But I have to take care of myself! I will get things fixed, do my Pt and come back stronger! I will be mindful of my limits! I will give my horses kisses and their feed but leave the rest to my hubby. I WILL HEAL. God has a plan! I got this!
Rachael's Equine Services 