Rediscovering the Rider Within

For Anne, horses have never simply been just animals. They have been teammates, teachers and lifelong companions.

For years, she immersed herself in the world of eventing, spending countless hours training, competing and building the unique partnership that exists between horse and rider. Riding wasn’t just a sport- it was part of who she was.

Then, in a single moment, everything changed.

A devastating fall during the cross-country phase of a training event left Anne with a high-level spinal cord injury at T4-T5. Overnight, everyday tasks that had once been automatic required determination, planning and extraordinary resilience. Becoming a wheelchair user meant adapting to an entirely different way of living.

But one thing never changed. Her love of horses.

Today, Anne rides with New Zealand Riding for the Disabled (NZRDA), where therapeutic horse riding has become an important part of maintaining her physical health, independence and wellbeing. She has also returned to competition through para dressage, proving that while her journey looks different, her passion for horses remains as strong as ever.

Working alongside her NZRDA coach, physical therapist and gym team, Anne follows an individually tailored programme focused on maintaining strength, posture, balance and functional independence while continuing to develop her riding skills and confidence.

The movement of the horse plays a remarkable role in this process. As the horse walks, its rhythmic, three-dimensional movement closely mirrors the movement of the human pelvis during walking. Every stride the horse takes encourages Anne to engage her core muscles, improve trunk control and continually adjust her posture and balance. Although she has limited sensation below the level of her injury, the horse’s movement provides rich sensory input, helping to reduce muscle spasms while supporting coordinated movement, breathing and postural control in ways that are difficult to replicate elsewhere.

Returning Anne to the saddle required far more than just determination. Long before her first ride, her NZRDA team carefully trained both horse and volunteers, to ensure every aspect of the experience would be safe. During her early sessions, Anne was physically supported by a qualified coach and trained sidewalkers as she learned to rebalance her body and ride with a completely new understanding of movement.

Drawing on years of experience as an accomplished rider, Anne also worked with her coach to develop a communication system with her horse using verbal commands and whip taps, allowing her to ride confidently despite the physical limitations created by her injury. Their partnership continues to grow through trust, patience and mutual understanding.

As Anne’s strength and confidence have grown, so too have her goals. She continues to refine her dressage skills, build greater independence and challenge herself with increasingly complex riding tasks. The improvements she has made support important everyday activities such as transfers, reaching, maintaining posture in her wheelchair and completing daily tasks with greater confidence and less fatigue. 

Yet for Anne, some of the greatest benefits can’t be measured. 

Time with her horse provides freedom. It provides connection. Most importantly, it allows her to reconnect with a part of herself that existed long before her accident.   

To her horse, Anne isn’t defined by a spinal cord injury or a wheelchair. She is simply a rider. 

Her story is a powerful reminder that therapeutic horse riding isn’t simply about rehabilitation. Through the expertise of qualified coaches, specially trained therapy horses and dedicated volunteers, NZRDA helps people build strength, confidence and independence while reconnecting with the activities and passions that give life meaning. 

Anne’s greatest achievement isn’t that she rides again. 

It’s that she refused to let one moment define the rest of her life. 

Her story reminds us that while life can change in an instant, hope, purpose and possibility are never out of reach.