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Nov 20, 2009 9:29 pm US/Central
Families Finding Medical Treatment Through Horses
KELLER (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
Kristen Henry's twin sons have dodged more medical bullets than anyone should ever have to face.
In an interview with Kristen a while back on a sunny day at Rocky Top Ranch, it was clear she was a mother who has traveled a very tough road, and has become extraordinarily strong as a result.
She talked about her twin boys, Jarod and Jacob, and the enormous challenges they faced after being born at 26 weeks. Both boys were on ventilators for a couple of months at a time early on. In and out of the ICU like people show up for work every day.
The boys were just two pounds each, and faced a lengthy list of life threatening problems. Cerebral palsy, lung, heart, orthopedic, and neurological issues. Kristen and the family was called countless times to their bedsides to say goodbye, but the boys never left.
At three years of age, they weren't walking. And at 4, Jarod was paralyzed from the shoulders down because of an allergic reaction to medicine.
Kristen Henry had the boys in every kind of rehab and therapy program you can imagine. But one day, out of the blue, someone pointed out the place that sits at the end of a long dirt driveway, and the horses.
It is Rocky Top Ranch in Keller. A therapeutic riding center. In short, horses that can have an almost magical effect on kids and adults who are dealing with a wide variety of physical, emotional, and even neurological challenges.
Kristen was up front when asked about the first time someone pointed out that she may want to consider putting the boys in a program at Rocky top. "I mean it's crazy, the asthma, and all that they have and I'm thinking, we can't even hardly sit up and you want me to put my kid on a horse"
But by this time, the boys were 4-year-olds, and working hard every day at making some type of progress.
She said, what the heck, let's try this and see what happens. But she was skeptical, and as a result, only put one of her sons in the program to see what would really happen.
Jarod, who after an allergic reaction to medicine, was paralyzed from the shoulders down at 4 years of age would be the first to try Rocky Top.
His paralysis took time to wear off, but at the same time, while riding, things began to happen. The gentle rocking of the horses gait, worked in perfect motion with Jarod's hips. The body automatically wants to compensate so as to not fall off the top of a horse. Jarod's body began responding. The same body wracked with countless physical limitations, the same body that was slowly coming out of paralysis, was beginning to see balance.
You can guess the next part of this story. Jacob was next, and he began seeing the same improvements. For their sister Brittney, who now volunteers at Rocky Top, their transformation has been nothing short of amazing.
"Just seeing them progress, seeing that, and the fact that they were not able to play sports and now they are, it's just amazing."
Hippotherapy is something that is gaining a lot of traction in the medical world. Doctors are writing prescriptions for it. Some insurance companies are paying for it. Still, most are not, but it's slowly becoming a very acceptable and encouraged form of therapy for many.
With the weekly rides, with trained therapists at their sides, the boys sit atop the horses, then kneel, kneel with one leg extended in the air, then the other, they twist, turn, ride backwards and even stand up on horseback.
These are kids who have muscles that often aren't getting the signal to balance themselves. These are boys who could only get up and down the families front porch stairs, but sitting down on their bottoms and scooting up or down. But here, something magical happens, and with improved balance, comes improved coordination, improved self confidence, and even better communication.
Therapist Michelle Willis has worked with the boys for two years.
"Somehow, the movement of the horses stimulates the spine, which stimulates the brain, that makes these kids able to walk and talk and have lives. It gives me chill bumps, and it makes my life full."
Doctor Warren Marks is one of the boy's doctors at Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth. He is a very big advocate of hippotherapy. He told us he's seen big improvements in the boys since they started the program. Not only physically, but these boys deal with emotional challenges as well, and there's been marked improvement there as well.
Hippotherapy is nothing new, but yet not widely known. There are a few places in North Texas that offer the service, but for so many who may have never even heard of this type of therapy, it could be something worth trying. As to the cost, rocky top operates on private donations. They have a great staff of volunteers who help keep the costs down, especially in a struggling economy where the donation dollars are dwindling as fast as auto industry.
Of all the riders in Rocky Top's various programs, roughly 20 percent pay as they go, out of their own pocket. But for those who can't afford the cost of the therapy, Rocky Top's scholarship program ends up paying for roughly 80 percent of those who attend sessions each year.
Taking care of a child, or adult who has physical, neurological, or emotional issues, is taxing both on the mental well being of the caregivers, and their wallets. The service rocky top provides is making a difference in people's lives.
When you see a person who lives life in a wheelchair, or has brain damage and can't speak, or deals with any challenge or disorder that they just can't turn off, and then you see them smile, it's heartwarming.
The clients at Rocky Top speak a common, and often silent language. The looks on their faces tell you all you need to know. And to see the boy with a rickety walk because his body is ravaged by cerebral palsy, get off a horse, and suddenly, take confident steps, you know something special is happening.
For more information on Rocky Top, check out their website at
rockytoptherapy.org.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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