Equine therapy is a treatment that is applied with the help of horses that has become a solution for families that for years have sought to promote a better quality of life for their relatives with neurological and physical disabilities.
This is the case of Ana Escobar, mother of Emerson, a child with autism and who is part of the National Equine Therapy Program “Anabel Tinoco de Meza”, and which, since 2021, has been resumed by the Salvadoran Federation of Equestrians (Fesades ).
“I feel very grateful to this program. I believe and have great confidence in equine therapy, I give my testimony that it is effective. My son, when he joined, had little physical mobility and now he is a very active child, ”says Emerson’s mother.
According to Ana, her son, who is currently ten years old, after receiving equine therapies has allowed her son to grow and have a more sociable life with a better state of mind.
“He, with just three years of age, began to show limits in his language, he was no longer evolving and it was difficult for him to move, a situation that scared me a lot. Over time I met a mother who told me about equine therapies, ”he said.
In such a way, that in 2018 through the San Andrés Foundation, which at that time was running the Program, Emerson began its process in therapies with horses. “He has made impressive progress, both in his mobility and in the socializing part, now he enjoys playing and living with other children,” explained Ana.
It was like this, that from that moment on, Ana decided to keep her son in the program, so she opted for a scholarship that allows her to receive treatment three times a week at the facilities of the San Andrés Equestrian Complex, headquarters of the Fesades.
“My son has a scholarship to attend the equine therapies more than one day a week. When I started wearing it for three days, I noticed a very significant change in it, it is as if that movement on the horse was a connector that makes it react and it is at that moment that we take advantage of it so that our family member evolves”, expressed Ana.
Emerson is one of the 10 patients who work directly in the pre-sports phase, which consists of allowing the rider to ride alone, always with the advice and indications of a professional.
“He, bless God, is in pre-sports, that tells me that we are on the right track, taking into account that Emerson started the equine therapies without having a medical diagnosis. So for me this opportunity that my son has had has been wonderful, equine therapy is a miracle, I thank God for everything we have learned”, said Ana.
