The Chestnut Mustang Blog: Thanksgiving 2014

This year on Thanksgiving I have so much to be thankful for in this privileged life I've been afforded. This post, though, will be dedicated to my boyfriend, friends, and my family who have all been so supportive of my journey. As some of you know, I was in a very dark place these last few years not being able to ride. Every time I would discuss my past riding experience I would begin to cry and had to push it out of my mind. It got to the point that I had to hide fellow riders on my Facebook because if I saw pictures of them and their horses I would break down crying. I was able to ride a friend's horse here and there and my mood would improve tremendously, but it was always temporary. I took a few lessons and while those were fun, it wasn't the same as having my own horse and that is what I really missed. With the mounting stress of graduate school, things were looking pretty bleak for me now that my passion was gone. Thankfully we are required to be in therapy and I was able to tell all of this to my therapist who suggested that I seriously consider getting a horse again. In her words, "if people can have kids in grad school, you could easily handle a horse."

I had never considered the option of getting back into riding, it always seemed too expensive and that I would have to return to riding as an "amateur," or in my 30s and 40s. The more I thought about the horses, the more I realized I could do things inexpensively. If I were to find a less expensive horse, less expensive boarding, no competing, and less expensive equipment I might actually be able to swing this. I had researched getting a mustang ever since freshman year of undergrad because the desire to have a horse again never left me. Fast forward to 5 years later and the rest is history. However, the support I received from my boyfriend, friends and family has been tremendous. I was hesitant to share my horse purchase with others because I figured they wouldn't understand, that they'd think it was just a poor financial decision. Yet the response I received could not have been more opposite! Everyone understood how my mental health was more important to me and offered to help in whatever way they could.

So thank you boyfriend, friends and family for understanding how important horses are to me and continuing to support my choices. You all have put up with my stress and been very accommodating in so many ways, so thank you! While I still struggle with stress due to grad school, I'm in a much better place and it's in no small part because of all of you :)