Caitlin Stokes – Owner of Roots and Reach.
Roots and Reach is the culmination of many years of passion, dedication and learning in my life. Horses have always been a part of my life, being lucky enough to grow up on a smallholding in the hills outside of Stirling, Scotland. My weekends were filled with pony club, competitions and fun – including trips to the pony club eventing and tetrathlon championships and selection as Team Captain of the GB PC tetrathlon team – and as all horsey children do, I dreamed of winning Badminton horse trials.
As a teenager, I had a wonderful horse called Ute who could jump the moon, but had always struggled with connecting for the dressage. We looked at many different things including tack, teeth, feet, and then found someone who did sports massage. I was hooked. Then and there I decided I wanted to be an equine massage therapist. As I had to be 21 to complete the equine massage course, I focused on the things I could do. During my last year of school, I completed my first human massage course – Swedish massage. From years of riding and playing the piano, I developed great feel through my hands and body, and realised I had a natural flair for massage. It came very easily to me to find areas of tension and differences under the skin. During my time at University studying Psychology and Sports Studies, I decided to use the skills I had gained in human massage and started work at a local clinic, The Natural Healing clinic (now The wee Yoga Room). This was the real start of my development and passion for the human body.
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University was a wonderful time in my life. I spent most of my free time within the Equestrian club and held the positions of Secretary, Team Captain and President. I was heavily involved with the team competitions which involve dressage and show jumping on unknown horses. After being drawn the horse you will ride, you have just a short warm up to acquaint yourselves before your performance. I found I was able to adapt extremely quickly and get on with a variety of different horses, earning my a trip to the championships three years in a row and a bronze medal in showjumping, a 4th overall and recognition for sporting achievement of the year. I loved the challenge of developing a partnership with a new horse, something that has stayed with me and helped in schooling, backing and competing numerous horses.
After University, I completed the equine sports massage course with the late Mary Bromiley MBE and started my business as an Equine Sports Massage Therapist and rider. I continued my human work during this time and I decided to further my studies and completed the Sports and Remedial massage qualification. At the same time, I joined the Army reserves as a combat medical technician (CMT). The combined knowledge from these courses not only opened my eyes to how to assess the body, but the traumas that can be afflicted and how these are dealt with in frontline healthcare.
It was a busy year for humans and horses. After attending a classical dressage on Petra with the wonderful Manuel Jorge de Oliveira, I was offered the opportunity to be a working pupil at the Oliveira Stables in Germany. What an experience. Riding horses that had been trained in higher level dressage and with lessons every day I gained a deeper understanding and love of working the horse correctly and the development from the basics to top level with finesse and harmony. I spent three months out there before returning to the UK to continue with my own horses.
Through my time in the reserves, I met my now fiance Scott. He was working as a Healthcare Assistant (HCA) based out of Catterick and is the reason I eventually moved my practice to the North East. In 2017 he had corrective surgery for his knee that unfortunately did not go to plan. After a further 12 operations and many trips to hospital to try and save his leg, it was decided to amputate his left leg above the knee. We were relieved to finally have a conclusion reached and were able to move on with our lives, looking forward to rehabilitation and what else lay ahead. This period in my life further developed my interest in trauma and how massage can be of benefit.
To help Scott’s rehabilitation and satiate my curiosity, I enrolled in a ScarWork course in london. It was a new method specifically designed for work with scar tissue and revolutionised my practice and view of the human body. The simple, gentle techniques work with the scar tissue to promote healing and help integration with the surrounding area. A visible scar is like an iceberg, with unknown depths of tension and restriction underneath, all having a wider effect on the rest of the body. The results I have had from this work has been wonderfully rewarding including reduced pain, better sleep, regained function and feeling, increased prosthetic comfort and more. Scott was a willing guinea pig for my earlier ministrations and is a constant support for my appetite to learn.
Scott was chosen to represent the UK for the 2018 Invictus Games to be held in Sydney. At this point he was still in the early stages of rehabilitation and needed assistance with day to day tasks, so I supported him through the training and competitions as his carer. It was a once in a lifetime experience, not only did Scott come home with three medals, but a fiance too having proposed at the closing ceremony in front of a worldwide audience. Just as well I said yes!!
Since then, life has slowly but surely returned to a new level of normal. I was able to spend time competing my own horses again, and in 2019 returned to Novice Level with my lovely old mare Western Adagio or Petra as she is better known. Plans were upended a little in 2020 with Covid-19, but it has given me the time to find a suitable youngster who I am excited to get underway with and move up the ranks when competition finally opens up again.
At the end of 2019, I was delighted to be accepted onto a Masters in Amputation and Prosthetic Rehabilitation. I am currently doing this part time alongside my clinic and equestrian clients. I am proud of the business I have created and am always striving to learn and improve my services for all my wonderful clients. I look forward to meeting you!
Caitlinx
Caitlinx
Roots and Reach 