With the popularity of the books and movies “Seabiscuit” and “Secretariat,” we know the America loves horse racing. Something about witnessing the power, speed and heart of a magnificent Thoroughbred thundering down the track can really captivate a human heart.

And certainly the story of a horse that “comes from behind” to beat his favored opponent just strides before the wire, uplifts us all in a way that is difficult to describe.

Well, we may have one such horse right now. I’ll Have Another, the plain chestnut colt trained by Doug O’Neill, was not favored to win the Kentucky Derby. In fact, nobody even thought he’d place. And yet, he came out of the blue to commandingly run down the favorite, Bodemeister, in what many would later call a fluke.

More people than ever before are “connected.” Smart phones, iPads, laptops and video games seem the normal things to turn to when forced to wait for anything these days, even if the wait is only 3 minutes.

These connection devices have easily infested almost every area of our lives and people — so much so that to ask someone to put down the phone, shut off the computer or iPad, or disconnect the earbuds from their ears is like asking them to stop breathing. Most people will complain that without their device, they don’t feel “connected.”

However, nothing could be farther from the truth.

As equine therapy has gained popularity, we have experienced a surge of new books, certification programs, training manuals and even movies depicting different equine therapy and the many benefits it can offer. Along with this movement, studies have been conducted on the efficacy of equine therapy, many of which have become the basis for the written material.

Recently, a new book was written by Anita Shkedi, who, in 1985, founded Therapeutic Riding in Israel. Ms. Shkedi also holds a postgraduate diploma in Health Visiting, a British State Registered Nurse diploma, and a Therapeutic Riding Certificate. Additionally, she is the founding director of INTRA-I.

Shkedi’s book incorporates both her experience as founder of a therapeutic riding center in Israel, as well as her clinical knowledge of the ways in which the brain is influenced by equine therapy.

A few days ago, I blogged about the importance of authenticity in assuring a happy and fulfilling life, and also noted that Neil Pasricha, the author of “the Book of Awesome,” and the 1000 Awesome Things blog, calls authenticity one of the three parts of awesome.

I additionally offered an authenticity challenge to my readers: be authentic at least once in the coming weeks.

However, I also put myself to the same challenge and related that I would work with my horse, Celine, in an equine therapy session to help clarify for me just how I was feeling.

So here are the results of that session:

On the heels of Neil Pasricha’s overwhelmingly successful blog, 1000 Awesome Things and subsequent book, “The Book of Awesome,” many people are beginning to wonder just what comprises awesome. Luckily, in a recent TED talk, Pasricha breaks down this overarching concept into three simple things: Attitude, Awareness and Authenticity.

So, being that a hallmark of equine therapy is learning the capacity to be authentic, I thought now would be an appropriate time to issue an authenticity challenge. That’s right, this week, I challenge you, the reader, to be authentic at least one time. And I mean fully authentic.

Equine therapy has certainly been popular for autism, developmental disorders and now veterans with PTSD, but for clinical therapists, the bulk of cases have to do with relationships. The question then becomes, can equine therapy help improve relationships?

The answer, is yes, and here are three ways:

There are many reasons people do things, and often, these motivations are not obvious to the external world. While we tend to portray motivation as the desire to do something,  motivation can also represent the desire to return to something.

The concept of motivation as a regressive experience was first discussed by Freud, who introduced the concept of repetition compulsion. According to Freud, repetition compulsion happens for two reasons. While both are unconscious processes, the first is lodged in the patient’s physiology.

While most of us think we have a decent amount of self control – we can control our behavior with relative certainty – does this ability to self regulate extend to our physiological lives? Can we determine if we are in fact anxious, depressed, angry or afraid?

In order to do this, we would have to be able to detect what is often hidden under the surface, beneath conscious thought.

Perfectionism drives human performance to elite levels, often helping a person achieve unequaled accomplishments. However, the push to be great can also have a deleterious effect on a person’s mood, and certainly, relationships. Often those around the perfectionist feel disregarded or inadequate. But what if the relationship with the perfectionist involves a horse?

Horses have a unique way of telling us the truth about ourselves, at times revealing parts of our character that are hidden or overlooked. For a perfectionist, a person who spends a great deal of time insuring that character deficits are avoided, this can often be a little disconcerting. On the other hand, the horse’s response to a perfectionist can also be relieving.

“Head toward you, body away.” The petite dressage trainer held her arm out motioning to the timid woman just how to keep her massive 17.2 hand, warmblooded horse out of her space. “See,” she continued, “this isn’t even about being nice or not nice, this is about being safe — you know — you are little and he is huge, and he could really do some damage.”

Buckling my horse’s bridle and gathering the reins in one hand, I headed out to the arena. As I watched just how my once rogue mare now so carefully watched the very feet she wouldn’t so much as hesitate to smash just two months prior, I thought to myself just how that transformation had occurred.