Maternal Mental Health. Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy
Why Horses... And How Does It Work?
The use of including animals in therapy has been studied for some time. There is a growing body of evidence that human-animal interactions promote emotional and physical wellness. Many people experience a feeling of safety with animals, including horses, which may or may not be present in their human relationships. From this feeling of safety and acceptance, much can be accomplished.
Here are a few reasons why horses are so uniquely powerful in aiding therapeutic growth:
- Increased awareness of your nervous system
- Better able to regulate your nervous system
- Learn how to connect with yourself and others in a way that honors both parties
- Practice making requests in a relationship (yes, the relationship with your horse is a real relationship), as well as practice setting boundaries
- Actively work through attachment and relationship wounds
When you spend time around horses, you may find yourself adopting and living by these values:
- Being present and living in the here and now
- Being embodied (i.e., the act of being in/connected to our bodies)
- Living authentically and congruently (no more hiding parts of yourself!)
*For those of you who like to dig a little deeper, I've written a little piece that goes into greater detail around the effectiveness of equine-facilitated psychotherapy: Not Just Horsing Around
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Journey Together Horse Ranch offers Individual, Couples, and Group Therapy specific to Maternal Mental Health.
What Does a Therapy Session with a Horse Look Like?
That's the thing about working with horses - when you work with them, you are developing a real relationship. How you go about developing that relationship is up to you and your horse. Nonetheless, there are some general ways to facilitate connection, such as:
- Observing and meeting the herd - introduce yourself and get to know each horse and his or her unique personality. This is a practice of being present and embodied.
- "Horse activities" - haltering, leading, lunging, grooming. Guess what? It's NOT about the activity or accomplishing the task. It IS about asking for connection. It IS about showing up congruently and authentically, and it IS about resourcing your nervous system in order to communicate effectively.
- Mounted work: Being in full connection with the horse and the horse's movement can be a powerful experience. Mounted work is reserved for when the relationship has reached a mutual level of trust and safety.
- Experiential learning and play. Play is one of the best ways to support your nervous system that as adults we all too often neglect! The reason equine-facilitated psychotherapy is so powerful is because what we do is experiential. It's not about acquiring cognitive knowledge and insights. It's felt and experienced on a somatic level, which gives way to deeper learning.
