There Is One Place Where I Never Doubt Myself

I have doubts about many things in my life. I question decisions, I rethink plans, and I wonder whether I could have done something differently. There is only one place where those thoughts disappear completely. It happens every time I stand beside an equine with a client.

My professional life began somewhere completely different. I graduated from university as a cattle breeder and, at the age of twenty-seven, I was working on a large dairy farm with around one thousand head of cattle. My future seemed clear, and physiotherapy was certainly not part of it.

Then one evening I watched a television programme about hippotherapy. That programme affected me so deeply that, by the time it ended, I knew exactly what I wanted to do. There was no logical explanation. I simply knew. I changed my profession to become a physiotherapist.

I have never regretted that decision. It has opened doors I could never have imagined. I learnt an entirely new profession and then continued learning for years afterwards.

I have doubted many decisions in my life, but standing beside an equine with a client has never been one of them.

What has fascinated me ever since is how I feel while working. The moment I step beside an equine with a client, everything becomes clear. I know what to do. I know what I need to observe. I know what matters at that moment, and I know what can wait. My mind is completely focused.

I have thought about that many times because it is not how I experience the rest of my life. Outside the arena, I can analyse decisions endlessly. I can question whether a project is worth pursuing, whether I should have taken a different approach or whether something could have been done better. That is simply part of my personality. I like to reflect, and I probably always will.

During therapy sessions, however, those doubts disappear. When I stand beside an equine, I experience an extraordinary sense of calm.

There is something else I have never been able to explain. I have never been interested in sports. Walking for hours has never appealed to me, and I have certainly never exercised simply because I enjoyed it. Yet I can spend five hours beside an equine without noticing how physically demanding the work actually is. Session follows session, and I remain completely absorbed in what is happening before me. I am not counting the kilometres or thinking about how tired I should be. I am observing movement, adjusting positioning, watching the equine’s responses, listening to the client, thinking about the next decision and evaluating the previous one. The work itself so completely occupies my attention that I almost forget about the physical effort. By the end of the day, I realise I have spent hours walking. I never feel drained by the work. Quite the opposite.

I am very lucky to have discovered work that feels deeply meaningful to me. I do not remember finishing the day in a bad mood. Every time it reminds me that I am doing something purposeful, and that makes complete sense to me. I have doubted many decisions in my life, but standing beside an equine with a client has never been one of them.

Now I am curious about your experience. Have you found the place where you never doubt yourself? Is there work that gives you the same quiet certainty? I would love to hear your story.

Věra’s EAS Lens is a space where I share my professional reflections, clinical reasoning, and international experience in Equine Assisted Therapy and Services. Drawing on many years of practice, education, and cross-country and cross-disciplinary collaboration, I view EAS through an expert, critical, and ethical lens. This blog is written for professionals, students, and organisations who wish to understand EAS beyond trends and enthusiasm, and to anchor their work in quality, responsibility, and meaningful practice.

If you are curious to learn more about Equine Assisted Services and how they are understood and practised today, you can explore further information here: https://hipoterapie-kurzy.com/eas/

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