September Is Self Care Month

Happy September!!! I don’t know about you, but I love fall. This is the season where everything starts to slow down a bit. And honestly, I didn’t know there was a month dedicated to self care. But I am happy there is! How often do you put the needs of everyone else above your own? How many times a day do you care for others, before yourself? I am willing to bet, it’s a lot.

And since we are horse people, I though tit would be fun to make a self care checklist for those that are of the equestrian mindset. Those of us who use our horses for our self care.

Equestrian Self Care Checklist

Brush Your Horse Just To Brush Him

Take some time just to brush your horse. Not because you have anything to do, but just to spend some time with him. There is something so satisfying about just the peaceful time you have when you have no plan, no goal to the brushing.

I know I feel very satisfied when I spend time with my horses, just grooming them. And after a busy day at work, coming home and unplugging my brain by grooming a horse or two really helps the stress just to float away. I love it! It may not seem like self care – but give it a try, I think you will find it definitely qualifies as self care. Along with being beneficial to your horse too.

Spend Some Time With Your Horse

Again, this is with no intention in mind. Just go spend some quiet time with your horse. Go walk around his pasture with him. Or turn him out in the arena, or pasture and just go be with him. Maybe use this time to pull some weeds, or put away the jumps in your arena. Or just sit on your mounting block and see how long it takes your horse to come over to you.

Horses are very curious critters. And if you are just hanging out in his space, he will probably come over to you to hang out with you, and see what you’re doing. You are a part of his herd right? So he will probably want to stay close to his herd.

Just as an example, I like to pick the weeds around the edge of my arena. And I let my horses out there and wander around while I do my thing. I have no pressure on them to come to me. And this seems to work wonderfully to get them to come over and hang out with me. Of course when they do I love on them, give them a scratch or two, and then I let them wander away. And the funny thing is, they never wander too far away from me. It’s a wonderful feeling.

Take Your Horse For A Walk

I love doing this. I know Plezant really enjoys it too. We go out on the road, we have dirt roads in our subdivision thankfully. Or I take him out on the trail to explore. He loves to explore. And it’s just so much fun to take him for a walk.

Take Some Selfies With Your Horse

As you have probably seen on my Instagram, or even here on my blog, I take a lot of pictures of my horses. It’s so easy to do because I have a camera with me all the time, on my phone. I’m pretty sure you do too. So while you are tacking up, or walking around with your horse – take a photo or two, or three, of you with your horse.

Then when you get home, you can play around with the pictures either with a photo editing app, like Adobe Lightroom, or even with Instagram. It’s really fun to have mementos or photos with your horse. And you can even print them out if you feel so inclined and put that captured memory on your wall.

Be silly, be spontaneous, and just be with your horse! Capture some memories with your phone!

Go On a Scenic Trail Ride

This is a wonderful way for you to get some much needed beauty in your life. If you are fortunate enough to have a trail close to you, saddle up your horse and go for a ride. Or if you can’t, how about going somewhere that offers trail rides?

Getting out on the trail can be very rewarding to your soul. Take in the sights around you as you ride. Pay attention to the sounds. Even if it is just the sound of your horses hooves walking through the grass. The biggest thing to remember is to enjoy yourself and just be present in that moment with your horse.

Buy Something Nice For Yourself

Now this is kind of a win win, for you and your horse. But if you have had your eye on something special, go for it. If it’s on sale, bonus points for you.

I used to buy stuff all the time, so it was never special. I would justify it by telling myself it was for a video, or for a review post. But over the years, I have bought so much horse stuff, it wasn’t really special anymore. It was just stuff. But in the past year, I have been buying a lot less. Mainly because I have everything I could possible need for my horses. But also because I have so much stuff, trying to figure out what I have, and where to store it was becoming challenging. So I have really downsized my horse equipment stuff.

But this past summer while I was at a horse show, I saw a gorgeous pair of stirrups. I really liked them. I liked them so much, I took a photo of them while I was at the horse show.

They were so refined, and delicate looking. I really wanted them. So I did some research, and found out they are made by a company called American Equus. I will share more about them with you soon. But even though they were more expensive than I thought, I saved up and got my own pair. I splurged on myself. And you know what? IT’S OK TO DO THIS!!!!!!

The stirrups were special to me. And I haven’t bought anything like this for myself in a long time. So I went for it. And I am so happy that I did! Not only did I get a great piece of equipment that has helped me with my riding, but it has also made me look forward to riding!

So it’s ok for you to buy something for yourself once in a while. And since it is Self Care September, this is the perfect time for you to invest in yourself, and get something nice for yourself. You do deserve it!

Self Care September For Equestrians

Now you don’t have to use my list for your Self Care September. You can come up with your own list. The important thing is to take care of yourself. Do something nice for yourself, and take care of you. It’s just like the airplane safety announcement, before putting a breathing mask on the ones you love – you have to put the mask on yourself first. Because you have to take care of yourself so you can help others around you. Think about that before you put everyone else’s needs above your own.

And if you want to do something fun for yourself this September, my friend Vickie and I have come up with a September Riding Challenge that you could do with us! I have even ordered some ribbons that I will have the opportunity to share with you, if you are so inclined. Check out the post, and see if this is something you would like to do with us!