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Karin Rosenberg Engelbrecht is a in a bit of a hurry. Not remotely thinking about any kind of riding accident. She wants to do a quick training pass with the newly arrived pony before moving on to the other chores of the day. Karin has ridden the pony without problems before, so she decides that she can do without the safety vest - just that one time. What could go wrong? An hour later, Karin Rosenberg Engelbrecht is in the ambulance not yet aware that six fractures to her spine and a year of sick leave is her new fate.
It is a hectic process that Karin will go through during the next few weeks. Doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals keep a close eye on her. Karin undergoes two major surgeries, is bedridden 24 hours a day and wears a neck collar. She is not allowed to move in any way and all her personal hygiene is done in bed by nurses.
"I don't really remember much from those weeks because I was completely out on morphine"
Karin Rosenberg Engelbrecht
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Karin's situation is serious. Very serious. The many farctures to her spine are severe. At the same time though, the doctors are very surprised that she has not been paralyzed in most of her body - it was obviously an extremely close call, they tell Karin.
Fortunately, this is not the case, but the serious accident results in Karin being on sick leave for almost a year before she can start working again very slowly.
“I was told that it was probably not so good for my body to continue my work in the office. I can only agree with that. It would not work at all,“ she says.
Having to give up on her work in the office, where she would have to sit still for most of the day, Karin instead continues with the horses. In a somewhat different way, however.
“The first time I was on a horse again after the accident, I was so scared. I was on the calmest horse, but I was still shaking the whole time”
Karin Rosenberg Engelbrecht
Today, despite her new way of being a trainer, Karin actually has a larger business with even more horses in training, a riding school, housing and riding equipment store. However, she has acknowledged that the days where she would take on very complicated horses are gone. Karin has to take care of herself, and therefore spends much of her time teaching.
She can no longer do sitting trot or canter in the dressage training. Her back is so stiff after operations that it behaves like a brick wall in the saddle. The shock-absorbing function in the injured part of the back is gone. And has also had to say goodbye to jumping. Simply because she no longer has the courage to do it after the riding accident.
Riding accidents are unfortunately frequent. Most girls get hurt.
Number of injuries per year
In Denmark where Karin lives riding accidents are in fourth place in relation to the number of injuries in sports in general. Approx. 7,400 people are taken to the emergency room every year due to riding accidents. Almost 60% occur due to falls from the horse, and 28% of accidents occur while the rider is on the ground. For example during stable work or mounting and dismounting. Girls under the age of 19 are most often injured. Every year there are 1-2 fatal accidents.
The most common injuries
Horse riding is one of the sports with the highest percentage of internal head injuries (6%). The proportion of internal head injuries is fortunately declining due to increased use of the correct type of helmet.
50% of the treatment-required injuries from riding happened due to the rider falling off the horse. 25% of all cases result in bone fractures, while 14% include head / skull injuries.
Source: Sundhed.dk
Karin is of course deeply saddened because of her situation while she is on sick leave. But the hardest thing for her is still to watch her husband succumb to the pressure. He is fully responsible for Karin's well-being. He washes her, helps her to the bathroom, tidies the house and has to maintain his full-time job. After a period, he breaks down, and becomes ill with stress and depression.
“It is so stressful for the relatives. And really hard for outsiders to understand. Clearly the worst thing to experience how difficult it was for my husband,” Karin Rosenberg Engelbrecht says.
After Karin is released from the hospital and comes home even taking a bath is almost impossible. In order to make it possible her schedule for a shower looks like this:
Time passes and Karin and her husband slowly but surely get back on their feet. In the process, Karin has received a lot of rehabilitation and has regained her joy of riding. Today she still works with horses and has the company “Letridning”, where she teaches and has horses in training. She would never ever think of riding without safety equipment. Her dream is that her story can help others to prioritize it as well.
“It is just as natural for me to wear my safety vest as my riding breeches and riding helmet. I hope my story can motivate others to wear vests and what else is available in form of safety equipment. If I can help just one person NOT get into the same situation as me, then I have made a difference, ”she says.
This article was originally published on Malgrétout.dk
