Equine Assisted Psychotherapy
(also referred to as Equine Facilitated Psychotherapy)
Some of our human challenges can be difficult to verbalize – we don’t always have the words to explain what we are feeling. Because horses are naturally authentic, empathetic, and fully present in the moment, they can help us to acknowledge and to truly experience our true feelings, rather than trying to rationalize them from a logical point of view. In this way, they can help us to heal on a deep level: from our hearts, as well as from our minds.
“…Horses [are] highly effective in helping people reintegrate mind and body, increase awareness of unconscious behavior patterns, and develop the self-confidence, stress management, and assertiveness skills that lead to increased success in relationships, career, school, and parenting” (from The Tao of Equus by Linda Kohanov).
Please also visit www.equinecenteredcounseling.com to find out more ways that horses can help us heal.
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapeutic Approaches (CBT)
The foundation of CBT is the idea that our inner thoughts cause our feelings and behaviors, rather than external things such as events, people, or situations. One of the most important aspects of CBT is collaboration between client and therapist. Clients are seen as the “experts” of their own lives so the therapist can help them heal by drawing out their own inner wisdom and to create their own, concrete goals.
Aspects of Play Therapy
Children do not yet have the cognitive ability to express themselves verbally in a “logical” way, so playing is a child’s natural means of expression. During play, children act out their feelings, bringing unconscious or hidden emotions to the surface where they can face them and work them out. Play therapy, therefore, is highly successful in assisting a child to cope with emotional stress or trauma. The main aspects of play therapy can be taught to parents so that they can practice child-centered, non-directed play with their children, as well. Although the process is guided by the therapist, the family is the ultimate agent for positive growth. Play therapy can also be utilized with teens and adults, especially through art and role-playing.
Reality Therapy
Reality Therapy maintains that all people have basic needs that they constantly strive for, consciously or unconsciously. These basic needs fit under five headings:
- Power (which includes achievement and feeling worthwhile as well as winning).
- Love & Belonging (this includes groups as well as families or loved ones).
- Freedom (includes independence, autonomy, your own 'space').
- Fun (includes pleasure and enjoyment).
- Survival (includes nourishment, shelter, sex).
The goal of Reality Therapy is to help people re-connect, so clients are taken through a journey of exploring these 5 basic needs: where those needs are being met, and where they are not.