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 CHARLOTTE´s STORY

Today’s situation

 I do coaching and trainingprograms in mental and psysical training for riders and have individuals and groups in classes.The main focus of the training is on horse-riders as well as rehabilitating training especially for those of you with long-lasting pains and stiffness. I have private lessons in riding and body balance/pilates for horse-riding. I breed, train and compete with my horses in show jumping.

 

Background

I have been horseback riding since I was 6 years old and I dreamed of my own horse. In my childhood I went to ridingschool and when I was 19 I started working with horses at an arabian stud. When I worked I got the possibility to fulfill my dream- to buy a horse of my own. My horse, that I loved and had dreamed of to get in all my childhood and youth, died in a terrible accident ( you can read more about it below) and the chock made me quit everything about horses for 5 years. As time went by my passion for horses came to life again and I started my education at Flyinge, University Diploma in Equine Studies with special interest in the riders seat . Today I am a owner of 5 Swedish Warmbloods that I have breed and trained for jumping.

 

The traffic accidents

 In the first accident I had a frontal crash at 90km/h. I got skull damages, whiplash WAD third grade and ((bröstryggen)). I was sick during about a year’s time and had problems with for example memory loss, balance problems and stark pain in the neck and back.

 My horse was hit worst at the second accident. During a ride we were hit from the back by a truck and my horse broke it’s neck and died. I was deeply shocked and was reminded of my old injuries. I had a hard time handling the chock and suppressed the experience and turned my feelings inwards. Unprocessed experiences and feelings also set in the body.

 The third accident, 1999, was also a frontal crash and this time it became too much for my neck and my body. A new whiplash injury was diagnosed, again with the highest classification WAD 3. The muscles around my head, neck and back were in cramps and it felt like I during all times had a too small helmet forced upon my head. The pain was unbearable and I couldn’t even sit up and could only half-lie down. I couldn’t lift my arms and had to drink my coffee through a straw. During the worst perion I had to have both home care and mobility service. It was incredible frustrating and mentally exhausting. We had recently moved out to a farm and both me and my husband had started own companies. I worked as a horse-riding instructor and also trained horses at home. Medical care told me that I had to accept my situation and plan for a switch in career. Much time and energy was spent on visits to the hospital and talks with insurance companies and my lawyer.

 

First step forward

I came into contact with Stefan Edwardsson, authorized physiotherapist with a high degree in orthopedic medicine. www.om-kliniken.com. By then my neck was fully fixated and I couldn’t move my head neither to the sides nor up/down. I was treated with the McKenzie-method which I felt gave results. Every other hour I was to perform a small movement program and I set my clock during the night to be able to do it day and night. After some time with the treatment I got improved mobility in my neck and I started to get new faith in my future. Thanks Stefan!

 

Continuing forward with Pilates!

In addition to lingering pain and decreased mobility I also had a lot of problems with lockings in the back- and neck- spinal column. I was treated regularly by masseus and naprapath Therese Hansson in Skurup who is fantastically knowledgeable and I did my McKenzie-program multiple times every day. I got to see a video on pilates with very simple movements and the girl in the video promised I’d get a new life if I trained pilates daily! In the state I was I couldn’t complete a single excercise fully but with daily practice and focus I finally managed to complete the whole simple program. I tried these movements 15 mins per day and noticed a great relaxation in the musculature after the training. It felt like I just had massage! I started to immerse myself in facts around pilates and eventually I got educated to become a pilates instructor in basic and continual level.

More accidents but... 

I now train pilates daily and am no longer dependant on masseus, naprapath or painkillers to feel good. I have started competing in show jumping again thanks to great support from my trainer Olof Smith, www.oshastar.com. There have been some setbacks along the way. I fell down with a horse and broke several bones in the foot, fell off once and got bleeding in the pelvis and lower back and during summer 2006 I got kicked in the face by a horse. Here, too, it’s the pilates training with breathing and mental focus that have helped me to push on.