Having already been practicing as a Body Stress Release practitioner since 2020, I was fortunate enough to attend the “BSR 4 Horses” weekend workshop, held near Stellenbosch, South Africa, with Paul Parker earlier this year. Paul was extremely knowledgeable, having worked with horses for many years, and had also worked with Monty Roberts, the author of the book The Man Who Listens to Horses, which I had read as a child, and where my love of horses began.
Learning some history and background
Day One started with learning about the history of horses, the human/horse connection, the different types and sizes of horses, and what they are used for today.
Horses, unlike humans, communicate very clearly with body language. They are herd animals with a very structured hierarchy. Because of this, in order to work with horses one needs to work with the owner, the breeder, the trainer, and the rider. All have a picture of what is going on with the horse, and the BSR practitioner needs the input of all these people who then work as a team.
The BSR practitioner is not diagnosing any conditions with the horse, but locating stress and releasing it.
Exhilarating practical experience of Body Stress Release on a horse
Day Two involved observing different horses of varying ages and sizes. We observed their gait, proportions, and body language, i.e., the movement of their ears and head.
Each student on the course was allocated a horse and we got to practise a full release on our animal. I found this exhilarating. There was a communication going on between the practitioner and the horse, and it was as if I was being healed in the process of releasing the horse’s locked-in stress.
In some cases, the results were immediate. For example, you might feel a bump on the poll and, when you released the jaw, the bump on the poll straightened. Another example was when the release was finished. The practitioner would pull on the horse’s tail, at which point their hindquarters would relax in front of your eyes and the horse’s bottom lip would quiver in pleasure.
Amazing experience recommended for horses or yourself if you haven’t tried BSR yet
In all, it was a great opportunity to both work with these beautiful animals, and to meet other BSR practitioners in South Africa.
I would recommend this course to any other BSR practitioners wanting to take their practice further in working with animals, and would also recommend BSR to any horse-owners who believe their horses may benefit from this incredible technique.
Tazeen Dutton,
Body Stress Release practitioner in South London
