The team of the UNBROKEN National Rehabilitation Center in Lviv never gets tired of looking for new rehabilitation methods for patients. Now they tried a new type of therapy – hippotherapy. It is she who combines both components of successful recovery: physical and psychological.
“Hipotherapy is a treatment method based on the interaction of a person with a specially trained horse. Such therapy includes both main areas of rehabilitation: psychological and physical.
First, when interacting with a horse, a person receives new positive emotions. Hippotherapy has a good effect on patients with post-traumatic stress disorder. It helps them get rid of intrusive thoughts and relax, improves the quality of sleep and general psycho-emotional state.
Secondly, riding develops coordination. And in the case of our indomitable patients, it puts stress on exactly those muscles that have to work while walking on the prosthesis. And this is very important for people with amputations. Also, thanks to this technique, patients are relieved of their muscles,” explains the physical therapist of the NEZLAMNI center, Roksolyana Shmylo. And he adds that after the first session of hippotherapy, the mood of the patients improved significantly.
By the way, patients of the NEZLAMNI center also play bowling – to restore coordination of movements, shoot with a bow – to strengthen body muscles, and draw – to overcome stress. And also – they fish. These are new types of physical and psychological rehabilitation that have effective results.