I first heard about about Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) from the woman of my life. I’m slightly biased, of course, and she crazy about horses. Even so, it sounded great. What stirred my interest, nay, peaked my ears, was the clarity and enthusiasm with which Sandy described EAP for me. Plus, if I didn’t go for it, I’d be a complete ass – among horses :-) So we decided to develop this EAP thing together. “Working with horses” holds great promise in both our work - psychiatry, behavioral science, and marriage and family therapy for Sandy, and helping people with recovery and personal growth for me. We are excited at the prospect of spreading the benefits of working with horses all the way to Atlanta and, possibly, Switzerland. In the meantime, EAP is still an insider secret. Let’s get started with information about it.
EAP brings horses and humans together, so we can quickly learn its not about the horse. Instead, by adding a horse to the therapy session, we are lovingly confronted by 1,200 pounds of pure honesty. Horses don’t lie. If a horse is interested in us, or likes what we are doing, he may point his ears towards us in curiosity or walk over and stand beside us. If a horse feels threatened or displeased with us he may pin his ears back, indicating we should exercise caution. His communication is clear and congruent. Being around horses can help us learn to read non-verbal behavior, both animal and human. Since much of our communication is non-verbal, this is an important skill. As is honesty. The more we hang out with horses the more clear and congruent we become and the more likely we are to recognize a lack or absence of congruence in others.
For more information about EAP and what it’s all about, check out these videos:
HorseSense, www.HorseSense.co.il, an Israeli based company, uses the many ways horses can facilitate growth and development for participants to achieve greater self-awareness, collaboration, and communication, i.e. for becoming more effective leaders and managers.
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Inward Bound uses horses for counseling and team building for couples, corporate teams, and children.
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