Horseplay helps kids heal

MAPLE PARK – When Lily Joungmann first came to Blazing Prairie Stars, the Sycamore 2-year-old couldn't walk, crawl or pull herself up on furniture, a result of a congenital neurological disorder.

Within five months of beginning therapy at the Maple Park farm, Lily, now 5, took her first steps.

"It was amazing," her mother, Jessica Joungmann, said as she watched Lily ride a therapy horse last week. "We didn't know if she would ever walk. To see what she's accomplished is beautiful."

Such stories abound at Blazing Prairie Stars, a therapy farm that uses horses to address developmental, physical and emotional challenges and disabilities in children.

Riding a horse develops weak muscles, improves balance and gives children who can't walk or crawl a sense of how normal movement should feel, physical therapist Loren Gineris said. And because of the bond children develop with the animals, they are willing to try things they would resist in a more clinical setting.

Gineris pointed to 3-year-old Maya Townsend of Geneva, who has a rare neurological disorder that affects her center of gravity. She used to lean back in her walker, unable to take steps, said her mother, Isabelle Townsend. Last week Maya giggled as she stood on the back of a moving horse with both her hands on her head. A volunteer walked along on one side and Gineris on the other, shouting encouragement.

"If I had asked her to do that on a ball, she would have cried for her mom," Gineris said. "But she loves that horse. She will do anything for that horse."

Blazing Prairie Stars is not about learning to ride horses, farm owner Cathy Raack said. The goal of the comprehensive therapy program is to increase a child's ability to function in society.

"This is not a pony ride. This is therapy," Raack warned. "Don't kid yourself about how easy it looks; that's hard work. They're working hard. But they're smiling."

Raack, a licensed speech therapist, was inspired to found the therapy farm in the 1990s after her horse, Sabrena, helped her to get through a period of blindness. Through riding Sabrena, Raack was able to get past the disorientation that came with not being able to see, and began moving more confidently. After corneal transplants restored her vision, Raack bought 16 acres in rural Maple Park in 1996 and built the therapy barn in 2000.

Today, more than 100 children receive occupational, speech and physical therapy at Blazing Prairie Stars. Therapy takes place in a clinic setting and outdoors and includes nature-based activities like riding horses, digging in a vegetable garden and catching frogs.

"Kids learn from the natural environment, from digging in the dirt or playing in a pool," Raack said. "They climb gates and throw hay to the horses; they do the things kids do."

Last week, 5-year-old Jeremiah Diehl of Elgin laughed as his horse, Mike, trotted around the ring.

"Remember the first time he did that? He cried," said his mother, Michelle Diehl. Since Jeremiah began his weekly therapy visits in August, his parents have noticed huge strides in his behavior and occupational skills, she said.

"He used to not sleep. We would only get three or four hours of sleep a night, and now we're up to six or seven," she said. "He used to not dress himself, and now he can do his shirt, pants and shoes. His attention span is better; we can read a book now instead of two pages. He sits and plays instead of just running around."

The horses can also help children with mental or emotional disorders, Raack said. They are sensitive to human emotions, so they will encourage children who calmly approach and walk away from those who are behaving loudly or erratically.

"They teach children how to have appropriate behavior," program coordinator Debi Greaux said. "They have to calm down and engage to work with a horse. They work on social skills, eye contact and problem solving."

Riding increases muscle strength and reinforces neural pathways in the brain so the child is better able to achieve the same result off the horse. When 7-year-old Amy Sinisko of Geneva began riding in September, she had never sat up on her own due to hydrocephalus. Now she is able to sit up with some help and is trying to stand, said her mother, Carrie Sinisko.

"We didn't think anything would really come of it. Now her doctor's already talking about sizing her for walkers," Sinisko said with a note of wonder in her voice. "And she shows enjoyment. If we say her horse's name, Ike, she starts giggling. We know she enjoys it."

Know more

Visit Blazing Prairie Stars online at www.blazingprairie stars.com or call 630-365-5550.