Horses Helping Helpers

​Horses Helping Helpers: Health Professionals and First Responders

With our innate verbal and non-verbal communication styles, it's imperative to maintain awareness, ensuring our words, actions, and intentions are aligned, especially for healthcare professionals and first responders. Healthy boundaries and interprofessional and interpersonal skills are essential and can lessen some of the overwhelm in these demanding roles. Equine-Assisted sessions aim to improve non-verbal and verbal interpersonal interactions and increase self-awareness in such interactions. The activities, occurring outside of the clinical setting, shift perspectives and redefine social norms. The clinical setting can still be enacted, positioning the horses as patients, co-workers, or any other metaphors for existing obstacles.
 
Sessions will address critical competencies for health care professionals/students such as:

• Subtleties of verbal and non-verbal communication
• Awareness of interpretation and nonjudgmental thinking
• Implicit biases
• Subjective vs objective data
• The self-in-interaction with others
• Setting boundaries and limits
• Safety and quality
• Teamwork
• Leadership skills
• Exploring ethics, values, and moral dilemmas.

 
Session Structure:
Sessions are tailored to the needs of the group. Groups may choose a ½ day (4 hours), a full day (7 hours), or a 3-day experience. To continue building on previous learning activities, follow-up sessions are available for any of these options and last between 1-4 hours. Please contact us for information about group structure, size, and fees. 

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Corporate Programs

Horses Helping Humans
​in the Corporate World 

Effective interprofessional and interpersonal skills are also critical in the fast-paced corporate world. Professionals are expected to thrive under pressure, meeting deadlines, surpassing goals, and in many cases, managing a team. While it’s natural to not have all of the answers all of the time, the inability to pivot quickly and accurately could cost you.
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Our Equine-Assisted corporate sessions act as career training wheels, allowing professionals to interact with horses and explore strengths and weaknesses within responses and reactions, without the risk of judgment or loss. Each session aims to quickly cut to the core of how people perceive and respond to situations in their day-to-day work lives. Participants are encouraged to develop team-building and leadership skills by working to discover viable solutions for various challenges. The challenges emulate real-world occurrences, such as meetings, and other professional interactions, so that the approaches can be easily applied to real-world settings.
 
Sessions will address useful competencies for corporate professionals such as:

• Subtleties of verbal and non-verbal communication
• Awareness of interpretation and nonjudgmental thinking
• Respect for self and others
• Time management
• Teamwork
• Leadership skills
• Overall professionalism

 
Session Structure:
Sessions are tailored to the needs of the group. Groups have the option for a ½ day (4 hours), a full day (7 hours), or a 3-day session. We provide 1/2 day; full day or three day sessions. One-on-one human-horse contact is maximized in smaller groups. Please contact us for information about group structure, size, and fees. 

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Interventions incorporating horses

Psychotherapy Incorporating Horses

Life's unpredictable twists and turns can sometimes lead to more turmoil than we can bear(or handle). Our minds, bodies, and spirits can suffer tremendous stress and strain if we are not mindful and proactive. It’s vital to acknowledge those uncomfortable feelings and take steps to seek solace and rejuvenation. Within that very discomfort lies the opportunity to prioritize self-care, emerging stronger, more balanced, and ready to embrace all life has to offer.
 
Psychotherapy incorporating horses* is a unique and impactful complementary therapeutic modality that addresses emotional, relational, or behavioral challenges over the span of 8-12 weekly sessions. With the help of a certified mental health specialist, clients can healthily process and express their stress, trauma, and triggers, and make strides towards healing. By interacting with the horse, one becomes aware of patterns and can reshape the mindset for improved emotional well-being.
 
Psychotherapy incorporating horses can also be a stand-alone treatment.
 
Following an initial evaluation, sessions can be tailored to address challenges such as:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Trauma
• PTSD
• Loss and grief
• Adjustment disorders
• Personal or Work Relationships 
• Parenting
• Substance abuse
• ADHD

Please contact us for more information about session structure and fees.
*Psychotherapy incorporating horses is the more descriptive term for what has been in the past referred to as equine-assisted psychotherapy (EAP).  

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Herd Meditations

Meditation with Horses​ 

This Step into the tranquil embrace of Herd Mediation. We created this meditation at the beginning of the pandemic to offer a safe and peaceful experience, where small groups of humans can share space with horses and immerse in the grounding energy they embody. Simply being in their presence provides a rushing sensation of deep calmness and awareness. We quietly join the horses at the edge of a grassy field nestled in trees and fully step into the present moment. Their serene, observant nature amplifies the meditative experience, creating a lingering ripple effect within us.
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This is a non-therapy event. No horse experience necessary.  Please contact us to schedule a 90-minute herd meditation for your group.  

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