Horses and Therapy
Equine Facilitated Mental Health can be successful when traditional talk therapy is not effective. The treatment is not Therapeutic Riding, but it is groundwork with the horse facilitated by licensed therapist that is trauma trained & highly credentialed in incorporating horses into clinical therapy. Therapy is relational and works with trust and connection.
A focus on DBT skills as well as building relationship, connection, problem solving, grounding and communication skills. Plenty of practice for assertiveness, setting healthy boundaries, being in the moment, asking for what you need and reducing anxiety. These clinical interventions utilize a hands-on experiential approach where clients are given the space to project and analyze their situations, make connections, and find their own solutions. These sessions tend to be deeper, more profound, and longer lasting.
Clients learn & practice new behaviors and perspectives in a safe, supportive and outdoor environment. The basis of the model is a belief that all clients have the best solutions for themselves when given the opportunity to discover them. Therapy focused experiences allow clients to explore, problem-solve, overcome challenges and discover new life skills with hands on practice with the horses.
Horses accept people without judgment. Our hands on approach gives clients the space to project and analyze their situations, make connections, and find their own solutions. Since the solutions to trauma are personally experienced in conjunction with intellectual understanding, they tend to be deeper, more profound, and longer lasting.
The horses interact with the clients without regard to skin color, ethnicity or gender identity. The peaceful, quiet environment at this wellness ranch is ideal to be able to be grounded and engage in therapy without being triggered or distracted by noises or other activities or people that are typical at office facilities.
The therapy is relational, works with connection and communication with a focus on learning new life skills and relationship behaviors. Clients then get to practice these new behaviors and relationships through their interactions with the horse.
Clients learn awareness, reading body language and to set boundaries, communicate, trust intuition, be in a healthy relationship and reduce anxiety doing mindfulness activities with the herd and learning natural horsemanship techniques along the way.
