'Horse Boy' better after seeing shamans

[Ernie M]

Please read:
‘Horse Boy,’ family find respite from autism in Mongolia

Rupert’s 3-year-old son, Rowan, ran under a horse, and according to his father, the mare didn’t spook and was submissive. So it appears Rupert believes in a supernatural “direct connection”

Hippotherapy, or riding a horse, is supposed to be therapeutic, according to autism experts, because the movement is “variable, rhythmic and repetitive.”

So Rupert took his wife and son to Mongolia to ride horses and see shamans thinking it would help reduce autism. Rupert said his son came back free of three dysfunctions in paragraph 26. I had a hard time clearly understanding the “three things,” but I think they were, 1) incontinence 2) neurological firestorms (tantrums) and 3) maybe if you read the article you can tell me what the third item is/was?

Be sure to watch the video in the article. Maybe a glimpse of Rupert will provide some insight.

Notice the boy (Rowan) is laying on the horse and says, “He’s a nice horse.” The horse was a female, a mare, named Betsy. Perhaps the “direct line to her” Rupert mentioned wasn’t so direct. And not to be rude, this is just an observation, but does it look like Rowan might be wearing a diaper under his blue jeans? Is there puffiness in the pants? This might put a damper on the incontinence claim.

I’m not saying being alone with family in a different environment isn’t therapeutic, or that riding a horse horse as part of hippotherapy doesn’t help an autistic person (I’m not certain this works or doesn’t work, or if it works to what extent) but seeing a shaman???

Maybe Rupert should have taken his wife and son to Florida. There, he could have visited the JREF and spoke with Randi- instead of traveling to Mongolia, riding horses, and seeing shamans?

 

[Limbo]

"For autism families, Isaacson encourages parents to simply follow their instincts and listen to what their child shows them.

"In our case, it was horses in Mongolia and these shamans," Isaacson said. "It could just as easily have been bicycles and, you know, steam trains. And if it had been, we'd have done a steam train journey. We'd have done whatever Rowan seemed to be showing us he wanted to do, because that was where he was intrinsically motivated."

I imagine that these people don't much care what you or JREF think, Ernie.

 

[Ernie M]

It appears Rupert Isaacson and his wife provide a loving and nurturing environment for Rowan, and have the financial means to provide various types of therapy for him as well.

But for

parents to simply follow their instincts and listen to what their child shows them.
[...]

can lead to problems. For example, what if a parent thinks their child would benefit from "psychic" advice? For one example, they should look at Robert Lancaster's stopsylvia.com Web site and see what harm a "psychic" can cause.

Or, the parents should take a look at Tim Farley's what's the harm? Web site to read about financial and emotional woes, injury and death; that have resulted from misguided beliefs.

Rowan's parents "never abandoned more orthodox treatments for Rowan's autism," but I am pointing out that it's my opinion that Rowan does not have a supernatural connection to a horse just because he didn't get trampled when he ran underneath one, and I don't believe a shaman is going to genetically correct Rowan's autism.

It's possible there might be a soothing psychologically-based "placebo" effect that takes place in Rowan's mind derived from seeing a shaman, but I feel the parents would be better off if they fully understood "applied behavior analysis," such as in this example.

I imagine that these people don't much care what you or JREF think, Ernie.

Well, somehow the parents should be able to separate fact from falsity if they want to properly care for their autistic son.

 

[kerikiwi]

I guess my dog has a supernatural connection to my horses, because he has been known to take a short cut under them and not get trampled.
Horses are not savage beasts out to harm people at every opportunity.
The placebo effect could well be taking place in the parents' minds.

 

[Steelmage]

From what I have understood about horses from people who ride them, is horses try not to trample anything if they can help it. It is probable an instinct of the horse.

 

[kerikiwi]

From what I have understood about horses from people who ride them, is horses try not to trample anything if they can help it. It is probable an instinct of the horse.

Exactly. Uneven ground means they are more likely to fall. Falling means they are more likely to get eaten.

 

[Harpyja]

I wouldn't expect the horse to trample him. I used to volunteer at a similar "therapy horse" center, and I have a novice's experience with tacking a horse. Other than going directly behind the horse - which would be a bad idea, in case the horse spooked and decided to take out a few of your ribs - we otherwise didn't have to worry too much about getting injured. In fact, many times I'd have to reach under and around the horse to get the saddle on, and I never felt like the horse would be spooked. Therapy horses tend to be docile animals to begin with.

 

[Azrael 5]

I read this interview some time ago, the aprents spent a lot of money IIRC and as the biy is still autistic I would say it wasn't much use.

 

[ChongLee]

Is it true that horses won't step on people when they all lay down on the ground?
... Kinda of like the scene from the movie "Ghandi".. .?

 

[Freethinker]

I've personally seen some mild to moderately disabled children and young adults seem to "Open-Up" and become more outgoing and engaging with other people when exposed to horses in a controlled situation. I can't say it works for all of them, whether there is any lasting effect or benefit, or if it's horses particularly or animals in general. For them, as it would be for many people, it is a very novel situation. Dealing with autistic children or children with other disabilities is stressful for parents, and if an activity makes the kids smile, it's a good thing for both parents and children.