Equine-Assisted Psychology
Psychotherapy is a process with the goal of gaining or regaining emotional well-being and strengthening skills for living each day positively. Like any other process, it requires steps. Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy(EAP) is the inclusion of a horse or horses in psychotherapy.*
Learning best occurs through experience. Milagro EAP uses therapist and horse with the client in carefully chosen, hands-on experiences to produce experiential learning. A therapeutic process takes place as intraditional psychotherapy.
Issues appropriate for equine-assisted psychotherapy include self-management,problem-solving, lack of awareness, anger management, self-esteem buildiing, communication skills, behavior, and verbalization being congruent (not giving mixed messages), creativity, substance abuse,anxiety, depression, adjustment, grief, and loss.
Why horses?
No horseback riding is required. The horses are members of the therapeutic team.** Horses are uniquely able to assist the therapist:
- Horses provide unconditional positive regard.
- Horses are instinctively vigilant and observant. They offer immediate and unbiased feedback to the client based on the client's interactions with them. Horses provide a mirror to the client, allowing introspection to take place.
*Equine-Facilitated Mental Health Association, 1998
**The unique attributes of horses as members of a therapeutic team are described by McCormick and McCormick(1997) who write about clients becoming more receptive to new ideas andbehaviors as a result of their interaction with horses.