FAQ's
Frequently Asked Questions
Read through the answers to our most frequently asked questions:
Equine Assisted Mental Health is a healing treatment that combines credentialed mental health professionals and one or more therapeutic horses. Through being with the horse, grooming the horse or other beneficial activities, clients are supported and guided in learning more about themselves, working through difficulties, and improving communication and relationship skills.
There is a growing body of evidence that supports that equine assisted mental health sessions have been effective in treating individuals with personal and psychological concerns, including:
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Eating disorders
- Bullying – both for the committer and the victim
- Substance abuse and addictions
- Depression and anxiety
- Stress
- Autism and Aspergers
- ADD and ADHD
- Relationship difficulties
- Attachment issues, including adoption adjustment
- Low self-esteem
- Negative behavioral issues.
Horses value and respond to authentic connections, so we are encouraged to feel safe and embrace all of who we are in their presence. Horses are naturally grounded, aware, and connected; being around them encourages us to be the same. They value trusting relationships with their herd, which can include the people around them. They are exceptionally perceptive of people’s feelings and use that information in order to decide how to behave.
Horses provide space for us to be in line with our true natures and allow us to try new things without incurring judgment. They offer unbiased, effective, and immediate feedback to us in response to our behaviours and our choices.
Horses are experts at reading body language and perceiving human emotions and, therefore, respond to each of us as unique individuals. This special relationship provides an opportune setting for people to learn more about themselves and their patterns in the relationships they form.
The gentle, nonverbal character of horses means that working with them is experiential, creative, and necessarily genuine.
Equine assisted mental health sessions offer so much to participants.
Many people comment that, after a session, they feel calmer and more grounded. They feel clearer about their way forward in situations and better able to navigate tough decisions by gaining much-needed perspective on their lives. Relationships are richer with improved communication, and frustrations are more manageable.
Sessions with the horses teach you a lot about who you are at your core, including how you relate and communicate with the people around you, how you handle problems, where you get stuck in life, what you believe about yourself, and how you might hold yourself back. The sessions also provide you with many skills in mindful living, stress reduction techniques, tips for quieting your inner critic, self-awareness, communication skills, boundary setting, and living authentically.
Horses ask us to show up authentically even when it means we are messy or emotional. Horses can feel if we are not at home in who we are and support us to find the way back to ourself. They provide a safe, gentle and unconditional space for us to fall apart and share our truth, they allow us to really be where we are at.
Everyone who desires a richer life experience can benefit from this type of therapy, even those not interested in horses or those who’ve been afraid of horses. An important facet of the therapy is how you respond when you are in the presence of a horse. Simply being with horses reveals distinctive and significant qualities in each of us. The horses also provide a healing space to just be you and to explore what that means for you.
If you are seeking clarity, direction, and insight this therapy can be useful as a coaching tool. It can also be deeply therapeutic and healing. Research and clinical studies have found Equine Assisted Mental Health sessions to be particularly effective for individuals suffering with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), war veterans, survivors of abuse and trauma, and people battling eating disorders.
Due to it’s unique therapeutic approach, equine assisted mental health sessions are able to support and assist people of all ages with a wide variety of concerns, including:
- Eating disorders
- Bullying – both for the committer and the victim
- Drug and alcohol problems
- Depression
- Stress
- Anxiety
- Autism and Aspergers
- ADHD
- Relationship difficulties
- Attachment issues – including adoption adjustment issues
- Low self-esteem
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Behavioural issues
- Learning issues, and more.
If you are seeking clarity, direction, and insight, this therapy can also be useful as a coaching tool.
Horses provide unique, unconditional support and a safe space for you to share your feelings and concerns.
Working with the horses in equine assisted mental health sessions can help you to develop:
- Effective communication skills
- Healthy coping mechanisms
- Skills to support healthy nourishing relationships
- Confidence
- Self-worth and self-esteem
- Self-awareness
- Self-regulation and responsibility
- Skills for life
- Leadership and parenting skills
- Compassion and self acceptance
You can expect to feel safe and supported throughout the session, both by the therapists and the horses that are there for you. A qualified counsellor who specialises in equine assisted mental health will facilitate your session.
Together, we will begin to focus on your goals for therapy at a pace with which you are comfortable; you are the priority. You will meet the horses with the counsellor and the session may involve you grooming the horses, leading the horses, playing with the horses, simply being with the horses or even engaging with the horses from outside the paddock. You are invited to explore and engage at your own pace and your safety and comfort are our top concerns.
Sessions will take place outside in the fresh air, and one or more horses will participate in the session. The horses are specially trained to be calm, safe horses. You will come to see why we so value their authentic contribution.
Now is an amazing time to be exploring the field of Counselling and Equine Assisted Mental Health as a new career. Growth within the counselling industry is strong, and the need for qualified counsellors in Australia has never been greater.¹
Our society is experiencing increased mental health issues, with more people requiring assistance from skilled counsellors. These interactions make being a counsellor such a rewarding career choice.
Counsellors have the ability to make a real difference in people’s lives.
Imagine being able to provide support to a group of young teens struggling with drug and alcohol issues, or to a woman who has just lost her husband and is dealing with grief and loss; or a young man coming to terms with his sexuality.
The counselling industry in Australia is predicted to continue to grow rapidly, and counsellors’ skills are in high demand in many areas of the workforce. Government statistics support strong employment prospects, with projected employment growth to exceed 23% over the next five years.
(¹ www.joboutlook.gov.au, 2016)
A qualification in counselling and equine assisted mental health will equip you with a diverse set of skills to offer clients and employers. Equine assisted mental health is relatively new to Australia and is growing in popularity as research and clinical evidence of its effectiveness comes to light.
A growing body of anecdotal evidence supports that equine assisted mental health services are widely applicable to children, adolescents, and adults. Significant progress has been demonstrated in individuals experiencing grief or loss, struggling with addictions or dependency issues, plagued by anxiety and depression, suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and people on the autistic spectrum.
Our comprehensive, hands-on approach to horse handling means that you will be qualified to work outside with horses, or in a traditional room-based counselling environment. This integrated approach will enrich both your professional and your personal life.
What is equine assisted mental health?
Equine assisted mental health is an exciting, emerging field and offers potential to both clients and therapists. This therapy is an effective and rewarding way to work with people of all ages, and from all walks of life.
Equine assisted mental health involves the counsellor working with a horse, or a herd of horses, to assist clients in working through their issues and becoming aware of their responses and behaviours. Sessions can provide therapy, support and learning for corporate groups, families, couples, individuals, teens and children.
With equine assisted mental health, no two sessions are the same. Sessions can be very creative and are tailored to the client’s needs, whilst respecting the horse.
You will develop the knowledge and skills required to work as an equine assisted mental health practitioner with clients on personal and psychological issues. This includes learning how to build rapport and create a safe therapeutic environment for clients to explore and work on issues. It also involves learning how to safely, meaningfully and therapeutically bring the horses into the work in a way that supports the clients healing process and also honours the horse.
You will learn how to help the client to become aware of patterns, beliefs and behaviours that no longer serve them. You will have the skills to work somatically to invite the client to start to get curious about their body and to learn to live authentically in the present. You will develop the skills and knowledge to work in a trauma informed way to support people through crises and to safely hold space for their experience. You will also learn a lot about yourself!
You will learn the 6 pillars that underpin the EATA model of training and practice. These are listed below. You will also learn how to supervise and support your clients handling horses and how to maintain safety and integrity for your client, your horse and yourself.
The 6 pillars of the EATA model of training and practice include:
- A basic understanding of neuroscience- understanding the brain and the nervous system
‘Regulate, then relate, then reason’. Bruce Perry - Trauma theory and trauma informed practice- understanding how individuals are impacted by trauma and principles of trauma informed care
‘Trauma creates change you don’t choose, healing is about creating change you do choose’. Michelle Rosenthall - A theory based and experiential framework: which involves understanding and applying relevant personality and development theories, learning theories and therapeutic modalities
‘The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge’. Bertrand Russell - Body based self awareness
‘Bodily awareness includes a sense of bodily presence (awareness of one’s body as being here), the sense of bodily ownership (awareness of one’s body as being one’s own), and the sense of bodily agency (awareness of one’s bodily capacity for action)’. Frederique de Vignemont - Relational practice- attunement, honouring difference, cultural sensitivity, cultural humility, cultural awareness and safety
‘A humanely involved process of respectful, compassionate and authentically interested inquiry into another (and one’s own experience’. Gweneth Hatrick Doana - Equine handling, care and connection.
‘Horses are very keen on body language, and what I refer to as “presence” and expression. They know quite a bit about you before you ever get to ‘em’. They can read things about you clear across the arena’. Buck Branaman
EATA is Australia’s first organisation to offer the Equine Assisted Mental Health Course with a nationally recognised qualification; the CHC51015 Diploma of Counselling is awarded to graduates upon completion of the course.
The need for highly qualified, competent and safe equine assisted mental health practitioners drove the thoughtful creation and thorough design of this course. Time and commitment are required to excel at equine assisted mental health, which is why the structure of our course’s provides so many face-to-face contact hours to support you in developing the skills you will need. Through direct, daily contact with the horses and practice with real clients you will feel your competence and confidence grow, preparing you to excel in the field.
In order to provide you with the most solid foundation possible, our unique course integrates skills from different modalities and combines these skills with the proficiency to work alongside horses, allowing ample time to practice and learn in a hands-on environment.
This approach ensures that you, as a practitioner, have many tools to draw upon, including horsemanship, a variety of counselling techniques and modalities, art therapy, Gestalt therapy, trauma informed practice, somatic practice, nature based activities and mindfulness techniques.
The 6 pillars of the EATA model of training and practice include:
- A basic understanding of neuroscience- understanding the brain and the nervous system
‘Regulate, then relate, then reason’. Bruce Perry - Trauma theory and trauma informed practice- understanding how individuals are impacted by trauma and principles of trauma informed care
‘Trauma creates change you don’t choose, healing is about creating change you do choose’. Michelle Rosenthall - A theory based and experiential framework: which involves understanding and applying relevant personality and development theories, learning theories and therapeutic modalities
‘The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge’. Bertrand Russell - Body based self awareness
‘Bodily awareness includes a sense of bodily presence (awareness of one’s body as being here), the sense of bodily ownership (awareness of one’s body as being one’s own), and the sense of bodily agency (awareness of one’s bodily capacity for action)’. Frederique de Vignemont - Relational practice- attunement, honouring difference, cultural sensitivity, cultural humility, cultural awareness and safety
‘A humanely involved process of respectful, compassionate and authentically interested inquiry into another (and one’s own experience’. Gweneth Hatrick Doana - Equine handling, care and connection.
‘Horses are very keen on body language, and what I refer to as “presence” and expression. They know quite a bit about you before you ever get to ‘em’. They can read things about you clear across the arena’. Buck Branaman
