Behind the Scenes of Equine Therapy: The Role of the Equine Specialist

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[00:00:56] Grab a drink, take a deep breath and let's get real. All right. Welcome everyone. Today, we're going to have part two. We kind of talked about the horse selection and how we get horses for the program, what it takes for them to qualify and where we find equines to partner with.

[00:01:23] Today, I would like to talk about what it is to be an equine specialist in mental health and learning. And what does it take? What are the qualifications, certifications? And what are some of the job roles? What do you have to do pre and post session? Today, we have Johanna and Lindy and Liz here with us. And we're just going to kind of talk about it.

[00:01:48] And so you can so the audience can get a glimpse of behind the scenes. Yeah. Behind the scenes. So what is an equine specialist? I know that's a tough question. Yeah, for sure. For me, I am.

[00:02:13] I feel like I am support for the coach or the therapist and also for the horse. So the definition for equine specialist, because I'm analytical and literal is equine specialist in mental health and learning. And I feel like it is like Johanna says, it's we are supporting. We have a supporting role.

[00:02:39] We open the door for the therapist or the trauma recovery coach by what we see and how the horses react within relationship. And we just open the door for conversation and for them to be able to dig a little deeper into what is going on in that individual. For someone that has never done this before, and this is the first time that they're hearing this. Yes. What would you tell them? That your job is.

[00:03:06] So I work with horses and I am certified as in path international. So we are. We're basically helping people understand horses and understand that horses actually communicate through body language. And so we like to say that we understand their horse talk.

[00:03:33] What does it mean that a horse talks through body language or communicates through body language? So one of the things that we can notice about horses is they are very clear communicators. They don't manipulate. They don't manipulate. So what I mean by that is if they lay their ears down or if they, you know, start moving towards you, they're moving you because they're hurting animals.

[00:03:59] So between horses, they communicate through their ears or maybe their body as far as their feet or their. I don't know exactly. It's a harder thing to explain when you start thinking about it, but. Tail swishing. Tail swishing. Yes. Some people say, oh, is that like a dog? And I'm like, no, they swish flies, but they also you can kind of tell if they're aggravated.

[00:04:27] They'll wrangle their tail more back and forth. Yes. More aggressive manner. Yes. Yeah. Yes. So an equine specialist needs a certification. So I heard you say path international. That is one avenue. There are multiple avenues out there right now currently and more keep popping up daily.

[00:04:55] And I think it's because the the equine portion of it is starting to become more recognized within the mental health community. Yes. They're doing. I think it's the horses. There's a big study, actually, that I was looking into that they're getting ready to do because they are seeing the value in it and they're starting to see that it's making a big impact.

[00:05:20] And so the when you're a counselor, it we have to use evidence based practices. And the equine part is very difficult because it changes so much with each person. And so they're trying to figure out how they can help that, how they can prove. Collect the data. Yep. So they're having to collect a lot of data. And it's it's coming, though.

[00:05:44] I think, like you said, there's tons of places like path and natural lifemanship. Like there's a lot more that you see on the Internet. Like they're in your certification six weeks. Like, oh, OK. Horses and humans. I've been sending some stuff to Liz and Jen and Johanna with that because they have a lot of a lot of studies and case studies that they're talking about.

[00:06:09] Yeah, I think it's only a matter of time before they figure out how to get it evidence based. And just to kind of touch on that briefly, that's not really why we're here today. But in order to get reimbursement from insurance companies, it has to be evidence based for the mental health clinician. So that's the the role is experiential, which means hands on learning, which is extremely difficult to quantify.

[00:06:39] And that's the role of qualified data. Mm hmm. But I think it's coming, like you said. So there's a there's a certification because the qualifications for you all to do what you're doing. What do you need to be qualified? What are some of the things that you think would be of benefit if somebody were listening and saying, hey, that might be something I'm interested in? What do you think you need to have under your belt?

[00:07:04] Well, I think one is the knowledge about horses and their behavior. And the other thing is in my certification, it's all about building up a connection and how to build up a connection with a horse is very honest and and and true.

[00:07:30] And and if yeah, so I think if you want to apply that in the human world, you need to understand the horse world first. Or a willingness to learn. Yeah. Mm hmm. I mean, a lot of people don't have access to horses like they would need. And I think if you have a willingness and a desire, I think that's very important to you. Yeah. So if you did have a willingness, where could you start?

[00:07:59] Anybody have any ideas? Where could somebody start? You could come and start volunteering at our farm at Stillwater's farm. We have 17 horses out there and we always need some help, you know, feeding or mucking stalls or we also have other animals that you can be around.

[00:08:18] But 17 horses that can take a lot of work and you could really learn a lot just by knowing their schedule and, you know, seeing their environment and how they all react within and, you know, each other. And so that would be a great place to start. I agree. I think hands on experience is the best learning in the beginning. And I remember when I started, Jen, you asked me, how do you want to start? And I said, I would like to start with morning chores.

[00:08:45] I like the mornings and I just like to get to know the horses and I like to get to know this big family of horses that we have on our farm. And it, yeah, it just built up more confidence and the interest of learning more. And you see things differently. Each day is almost different in itself. Mm hmm.

[00:09:09] So you might have something happen that's very profound during one morning chores that you may not experience for several months. So it's, it's ideal to be there. Like I'm going to give you an example. I have a donkey and his name is Jackson and he doesn't like to stay sometimes where he needs to be, which is typically in the triangle pasture.

[00:09:39] And when I go to pull a horse out, he thinks he's a horse as well. And he needs to come in and be in a stall for a while. So, um, he just kinda, as you're trying to pull a horse out, he's going to sneak through and everybody's first reaction is. Oh, donkey's out. The donkey's out. Yeah. And if you're there enough, you're going to see him out at least three or four times a month.

[00:10:07] And you get used to that. And it's not so much. Now it's like, oh, donkey's out. Yep. Oh, hey. He's out there in her front yard. Yeah. Yeah. So that's the kind of experiences that you can gain from volunteering. If it's not at our facility, maybe it's at a different facility. Mm hmm. Um, and it can be a private barn as well. It doesn't have to be a therapeutic barn. Um, just to kind of be able to move horses.

[00:10:35] What's normal for horses? What's a normal behavior and what's not? And how do we deal with the surprise behavior? Because that's our body regulating that big emotion. Yeah. Yeah. So, um, spending some time getting to know horses if you don't have horse experience. If you have horse experience, that just helps you along so much further.

[00:11:01] Um, and then Johanna, I kind of liked what you said about you have to build connection with each of the horses, which means what? What's the best? So for an example, um, I grew up with two horses and I had a very strong connected relationship with them. We had them for about 20 years.

[00:11:28] Um, coming to your barn and having 17 horses all of a sudden changed or changed my point of view, how different relationship to different horses can be.

[00:11:41] And yeah, I think that is, it is important to have different experiences with horses to interact, um, with different animals and to build up different relationship with each horse or with each animal at the farm. Like spending time with them and figuring out like, there's one horse that likes her booty scratched.

[00:12:05] So typically if a horse turned its behind to you, you would be like, Oh, this is a clear communication that they don't want me there. But this particular horse, that's not what that means. She wants her booty scratched and you wouldn't know that if you didn't have that time and relationship and all that. So we have to know each horse and kind of their personality and you have to spend time with them. It all comes down to spending time with them at the end of it.

[00:12:32] I read a fact the other day that horses never forget their purse, like that person, the smells or their voices or anything, because I just thought that was really interesting. And we do, we have to spend time with them because, you know, putting that time in just really builds those relationships and they all have different personalities.

[00:12:53] So I have a horse that I rescued and, or he rescued me and, um, he's very introverted, but, and I'm very extroverted. So it's kind of funny how it works, but I can, um, I can call him out in the pasture and he comes running down and I've spent some time with him and he's, you know, um, well at first when I, when I first came out to the farm, I remember talking with Jen and she was like, I'm not sure if he'll be a therapy horse.

[00:13:22] He's been very, he's had a lot of trauma in his past and we think that maybe he was mistreated or something. We don't know exactly his story, but, um, but anyway, I worked with him and came out and spent time with him every single day and brushed him. Um, and now he's one of our, I would say leading relationship horses in our therapy program. So I feel very proud that he's definitely in the top five built trust. And he really loves, it's like he's found his purpose.

[00:13:52] Yeah. He, he found safety so that he can do a different job. Yes. Yeah. And he loves what he does today. He really does. And he's pretty clear too, when he shuts down, like you, he's done. Yes. Yes. I can relate to that. Yeah. Yeah. And he also, you know, he has voice in choice, which is beautiful. Many of our horses, um, never experienced that.

[00:14:20] So he actually will pick his people. We sure will. Pretty amazing to watch. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. So understanding the horses and, and their personalities and their quirkiness and what is normal for them and what might not be normal. Um, and that really, that's the start of every session. How does that apply?

[00:14:46] Like knowing what their normal is, how would that apply at the beginning of a session? Well, um, for me and I will come earlier to, before the session starts and it's important for me to know that every day is different for the horse and every day is different for me. So how do I show up before session? How, what do I bring for that day?

[00:15:15] What can I just let go before I even enter, um, the barn? Um, and maybe, and then the curiosity of what my horses bring on that day. I think those two are very important, um, things to consider before session even starts. Well, I think of one horse that we have that constantly she faces the corner, but as soon as you slide the door open, she turns to you.

[00:15:44] But if she doesn't, you know, like maybe she's not feeling it today. And, but when you know your horses and you know they're, what they do, what's normal for them, then you can say, okay, she's not turning. This is not her typical. So do I need to like, maybe she's had a rough night? Yeah. Maybe, maybe I just need to check in with her first. And that sometimes also can change already.

[00:16:11] If I give the horse the opportunity to express whatever it needs. Yeah. And I think building up a relationship and having a connection to the horses is also an opportunity to offer the horse. Can I support you in some kind of way? Yes. It doesn't always have to be a no, not today. It can also offer the support of, hey, can we do that together?

[00:16:40] I love that because you're building that relationship with them. So they need to know that you, they, they can trust you. Yeah. You know, rely on me and they can rely on you. We can respect what they're telling us. Absolutely. I think we have. And then that can be a conversation going into a session. Like I wanted to talk to you about what I'm noticing. And then we can have that conversation within that session with a client. And that can be very profound. Yeah. Yeah. I can.

[00:17:07] So allowing the client to say, you know what? I can meet this horse's need today. And you know, we don't have to, we can do something else. Learning to consider the other person in their relationship. Some people don't know how to do that. Which Jen says, sometimes we have to, hey, look at the four legged world. How does that happen in your two legged world? And honestly, it can go very parallel. And they can say, oh, wow.

[00:17:36] We'll say, you know, is that someone in your life that, you know, that reminds you of? Or yourself. Or yourself. Yeah. Maybe you need to take the time to just say not today. That's right. Yeah. Self-care. Yes. So as an equine specialist, so I heard you say earlier, Johanna, that you need to check in with yourself. Why is that important? What happens there?

[00:18:06] Well, we also have a life, right? And we come in the morning and there are things happening at night, whatever happens in our private life. So every day I come to the farm and I need to check in with myself. What happened? What happened this morning? Or what happened last five minutes? Where were my thoughts? What is important to maybe figure out right now before I enter the barn?

[00:18:36] Or is there something that I can let go? Or is there some adjustments I need to do? Maybe for me, it's sometimes some breath work, some other movements, just to release some energies or stress that I don't want to bring into the barn. Yeah. Because if we come charging in, they feel that energy from us, too. And I feel like personally, like if I have back to back sessions, I have to check in with myself because it's like, oh, OK.

[00:19:08] You know what? You guys go down there. I'm going to walk over here and I'm going to come back to it and try to regulate. Yeah. Regulate through it because it's a lot. I mean, we're all bringing energy to that space. Yeah. And I think if I'm not aware of that, then it often happens that the horse will shut down and move into a task oriented mode. And this is not what we want to have in session.

[00:19:35] We want the horse to be with us, to be connected, to be present and to feel safe and have voice and choice. Yeah. To be able to say, you know what? This isn't sitting right. But an important piece of that for the therapy team is I need to recognize, is that me? Because if it is, then I have to communicate and say or I have to regulate.

[00:20:03] I have to put something in place to bring it back to, OK, I feel regulated. I'm within my threshold because things happen in session. Even when we do observation, sometimes the horses, quote unquote, may not be behaving the way that we anticipate them to behave. And we are going to get stressed that we're going to get heightened. We're going to be hypervigilant. So what do we do in those situations?

[00:20:35] Breathe. Breathe. I heard you. Yeah. Yeah. Because I'm just sitting here imagining that. Yes. Breathe and regulate and just use the tools that we've learned. And then sometimes for me, it's also like just being honest. And I had a riding student last week and she wanted to ride a horse that I did not use in lesson yet.

[00:21:02] So I was very, very nervous and could feel that I'm tense. And I felt the horse was a little similar until we were outside of the barn. And the horse and the girl were fine, were amazing together. And I was like, oh, that was probably me in the barn. And I was just honest. I was honest with the girl. I said, you know what? I think it could be me because I was a little tense.

[00:21:31] And this is why. And then we're going to be able to do this. And I think that's important. And not just in therapy sessions, but your riders as well. How do we engage or share this information to everyone? Because I think it's important. I wish I had learned some of this when I was younger.

[00:21:58] And, you know, the emotional piece and how to regulate and how to take that breath work. Yeah. Yeah. So understanding what's happening to you in session or during session or what's normal for the horse or what's not normal behavior for the horse is key to the therapeutic process. Yes.

[00:22:23] And how do we have those conversations in session? So I heard you say earlier, we kind of open the door for the therapist and client to walk through. What might that look like? Anybody have any ideas? Man. Tough crowd.

[00:22:48] I feel like that when what Liz said earlier, we just bring it back to being aware and we'll say, I just noticed a shift with that horse. I saw the horse walk away. Is there something that's changed inside of you or, you know, what changed? So we kind of take it back and ask the client a question and also kind of relate it with the horse and what was happening right then in that moment.

[00:23:17] I think we have to be aware of that. Yeah. I think part of that. So how do we know when we're staying in our lane? Right. Yeah. I think it's a it's a fine line. It is very much. So it's a dance because, you know, the counselor has and the coach, they have different training.

[00:23:40] And so, you know, you guys are bringing it to our attention and it's like, hey, I noticed a horse walked away each time you guys started to talk about a certain subject. Or even just I noticed the horse walked away. And then the counselor coach can decide, do they want to pick it up or were they going a different route?

[00:23:58] And that's the dance that I think you learn with your equine specialist, because it may not what seemed important or that you noticed may not be where that person's going, that provider's going with that client. And that's OK. Right. That's fine. Absolutely. You noticed it. That was your job to bring it forward. And then however they move with it is how they move with it. That's right. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:24:25] I think another important thing could be like, I feel like I am the bridge between the client and the horse. So I try to just bring them, connect them in whatever way they need to be or whatever the client and the horse, their personalities.

[00:24:48] But I try to translate or build that bridge, that connection between them so they can meet in a fair way. I love that. The bridge. I feel like that's a good explanation of it as well. Well, I feel like for clients who don't really know horses, it's very uncomfortable to build a relationship with a horse. They're like, what do you mean? Just to build a relationship in general. In general. Right. But then you're with a horse and you're like, you need me?

[00:25:18] I'm going to talk to it. And so you guys kind of help with that too is like, well, what if you try this? What if we try this? And even before like observation, what do you see? What is the horse or just what is the horse? Yeah. Expressing. What do you notice? Yeah. Yeah. So I would like to kind of go back to safety.

[00:25:45] What happens in session when there's safety issues or you see something that might be unsafe? What happens? Our mechanism cannot. Like we build up a wall. We save ourself. Yeah. If we don't experience safety around us, then we try to build up that safetiness.

[00:26:13] And that's often with being closed up. Mm hmm. So if you all were to see something where you needed, maybe the horse was behaving inappropriately. What happens then? Can you clarify inappropriate? Because my brain just went in a whole different route. And I was thinking about the horses in the arena last week.

[00:26:41] But are you meaning inappropriate as an unsafe? Inappropriate as in unsafe. Okay. Or inappropriate in other manners as well. Because sometimes there are geldings and mayors together. Right. So what happens then? So I'll let them answer and then I can tell you my answer. So I'm just thinking of a situation that happened with our team building. One of our mayors, she got a little bit bigger than us.

[00:27:10] And what I mean by that is, is that she started rearing up back on her hind two legs, the back two legs. And so we have to get as ESs and the team, we have to get bigger than the horse. And what I mean by that is, is we have to stand up and look like a little red panda and hold our arms up. And inside of us, we have to be aware of who we are and try to get bigger than them.

[00:27:36] So we also have to say, okay, that's not really appropriate for this time. So we try to also be calm and try to help them to be calm as well because they can feel us right within four feet of each other. So can I tell you that I had a different perspective of that? Okay. So my perspective is that horse was scared and she reared up just trying to get away. And which is why I said, just drop the rope, let her be. And she was fine.

[00:28:05] I don't think she was trying to make herself big or do anything in a dangerous way. I think she was scared. And I think... Which means she is dangerous. Right. Yeah, she was dangerous to the team 100% or could have been. But I don't think that...

[00:28:24] I think just letting her go and letting her move away was, I thought, was the safest option in that sense because they were all in a line together. And so she needed to be able to move. She was... There was too much going on for her. But there was another instance that we did have to put our hands up because she was running around.

[00:28:48] So just to be aware of what that horse might need, her age, her abilities, and saying, hey, you know what? This is not an aggressive behavior. This is a behavior for safety for her. It was fear. And I think that we re-strategized and she went to the end and she did perfectly fine. She did. I mean, it was just what did she need? And she needed to be... She needed to not feel contained. That was my kind of perspective. And let me clarify.

[00:29:17] I wasn't trying to get aggressive with her. I was just letting her know that, hey, it's okay. I know you feel scared right now, but we don't... She needs to be in her space and, you know, and so... I think it all comes back to the safety first. So we as an equine specialist have to know when it's not safe anymore and have to interfere before it gets unsafe.

[00:29:44] And I think what you wanted to say is in a trauma response from a horse, so they cannot see. The visions will go smaller. And with you getting physically bigger is an awareness of here are people. Right. Right. And that's... I believe that's a conversation that maybe other people don't... They're not, you know, aware of how horses can get that big.

[00:30:13] And then all of a sudden they feel unsafe and we're just stepping in to say, it's okay. You're okay. You're safe. And then we just have that conversation and then it, you know, happens. And they walked her around and let her kind of regulate and... So that goes back to knowing horses, knowing what they... How they speak. Right.

[00:30:34] And also knowing this particular horse as opposed to, you know, another horse on the property doing that might mean a whole different story. Very true. Yeah. Very true. So you all have, as an equine specialist, the authority to remove a horse. And that is your call. If you're in session, your job is to keep that horse safe. Yeah.

[00:31:04] Yes. As well as keeping the therapist, coach and client safe as well. Right. Yes. Correct. Yeah. So have you all ever had to remove a horse from session? I believe I did once or twice, I believe. Because we could tell, I remember one time there was a horse that was completely shut down.

[00:31:31] And we said, no, he's had his time and he's done what he can and he needs to go rest and get some self-care. Yeah. So it's also your job to identify when horses need self-care, what they need. Do they need to be out? Do they need to be in their stall? Do they need their buddy? Right. So that's all stuff that you all kind of learn as you're working with each of the equines. Usually you can tell by their eyes.

[00:32:02] I was always told when I was a little girl that you can tell a lot about a horse from their eyes. It's the window to their soul. Yeah. So whenever you see them and it's kind of dark, it's like, no, they're done. It's kind of like people too. Yeah. So we have the opposite ends of the spectrum as well. We have shutdown and then we have survival. Would you like to share your story? I would like for you to share it if that's okay.

[00:32:32] Are we talking about the workshop? Yeah. We work together at a workshop. Have I heard this story? Well, it was our first day observation and it was a workshop. So we had, how many horses were out there? Nine. Nine horses out in the square. So it was a bigger space. It was a field. And we had put them out early to allow them to get comfortable with each other because we knew there might be some conversation. Yeah. Some personality adjustments.

[00:33:02] And we were watching and it was like this one particular horse was just, you know, chasing a bunch of them around. And by the time we got out there and then all the energy from the veterans and the, you know, all of us were out there because there was how many at that point? How many people? Yeah. Ten of us. Yeah. So nine horses, ten people. And it was just, it was a lot of energy. Mm-hmm.

[00:33:29] And, you know, we all kind of stayed together and moved. And you just saw this one horse was just chasing all these girls. And it was very beneficial to the observation, but it was, you had to be very aware because at one point they tried to cut through, run through the group. And dear Jen over here was like, I'm going to have to get him.

[00:33:56] So I made the call that he needed to be removed from the group because at this point. It's unsafe. It's unsafe. Right. And there's no therapeutic process at that point if we're all in survival mode. Yeah, we're all in a huddle trying to stay safe. Mm-hmm. So Jen went and got her halter and her lead rope and she approached him and he'd run off. And she was very patient and consistent with them. And they did their little dance.

[00:34:25] And there came a point she walked down to the group and she asked, you know, like, what are you guys noticing? And they're like, well, he's not wanting to come. And I said, but he's watching her. And he kept, like, looking back. But he was staying with that group of girls and he kept looking. And she said, I'm going to try it one more time. And she walked up to him and he came to her. And it was amazing. But, whew, it was a lot.

[00:34:51] Then me and Jake took him out and we went through the bottom, took him to the other pasture. And he ran that pasture back and forth, back and forth. But it made a profound effect. Like impact on the, it was a great conversation. But it was high stress. Because he had to be removed for what he was doing. It was high stress.

[00:35:15] So, as an equine specialist, I was not in that role during that particular workshop. I was in the coaching role of it. Liz was in the equine. However, she has the relationship with him. I do. And so, it was at that point, as we were in that process, I was like, we need to remove him. And it's okay. Hey, we can 100% as an equine specialist.

[00:35:44] We have the authority to go ahead and say, you know what? For his safety, as well as the groups, this is the decision that we need to make to move forward. Yeah. I respect that. I removed a horse on request of the client. The client said, I need this horse to be out. And that is also a possibility, of course.

[00:36:08] That we, if the client needs to be removed a horse, then we sure do that. Yeah. It's not your job to say, oh, let's give it a few minutes. You know, it's, no. Let's go ahead and take care of it. Well, and for them to ask, I feel like, depending on the client, that could be pretty big ask. And we always tell our clients they have voice and choice. As well as our horses. That's right. Yeah.

[00:36:36] So, those are the principles that we use for sure. So, you all are in charge of the horse. You're in charge of the welfare of the horse. You also are in charge of your own stuff. That, I think, is extremely difficult. Oh, yeah. Because it can ooze out. It can ooze out sometimes.

[00:37:03] I think being mindful and aware and just taking care of ourselves. Well, you guys have to hear some pretty profound conversations. Yeah. Yeah. Like, you have to be a part of something that is difficult to hear. And I think that, you know, your own stuff can come forward. I mean, it even comes up, you know, for us. And it's like, you have to be able to notice it and process it with, you know, whether it's

[00:37:31] your coach or counselor, you know, whoever. Or even us as a team. As a team, yeah. So, I think, yeah, our, the other important part is the after work. Like, when you put your horse up. And so, what do I need? Do I need to process that? Do I need to lay on the ground? Yeah. That's real. Or hug a horse. Yeah. Yeah. But maybe other horse. A different one. Depends on how that situation went. Very true.

[00:38:00] To be mindful on what do I put on that horse that also experienced often heavy, heavy things. Emotions can be very strong in a session and we have to understand they feel it too. Yeah. And if they're pulled for three sessions that day, we have to understand like that last one was heavy. Yes. Exactly. Very much so. I feel like I try to learn a lot from each session and try to grow for, you know, to be better. Because you're right.

[00:38:30] Every single session is so different. And yes, we do hear a lot. And we just need to be very mindful of what we've been through and how we either relate or you just have to really, I think, respect the entire situation and treat it as a case by case basis for sure. And I feel like we do. We just have to be mindful and aware of our own journey and where we're at and lots of self-care.

[00:38:59] That's really we all as a team. We all encourage that so, so much because it's so very important and everyone really needs it. Including the horses. Including the horses. Including the horses. So what does self-care look like for a horse? Roll in the sand. Oh, yeah. Yes. Yes. I think nourishing like food, hay, water, all the basic needs. Yeah.

[00:39:30] Some of them just need that quiet corner just to kind of stick their head in. And others need a buddy. And others need us. That's right. We have one horse in particular that is so, he needs us. And so being able to understand that after a session where he's maybe experienced big emotions, he might need us to rush him, regulate.

[00:39:59] He also, I've never really, very few horses do this, but he does this. He will lick you. Oh, yeah. Right on the hand. Right on the hand. He wants to do it over and over too. Yeah. And so it's being able to allow that space for him to lick us and be okay with it. Yeah. They all have their own little quirks. One throws their tongue everywhere.

[00:40:29] We brought a horse over yesterday to our newer location. And she was out there in the round pen and we were having a session. And our clinician said, hey, can we walk over to the other horse? Because she was just pacing, pacing and pacing, which means she was just going around the round pen and just kind of walking fast. And so we walked over and we just really gave her her space.

[00:40:57] And she was, you know, like calming down all of a sudden. And then she propped her foot up and she started eating grass. And the client went over to pet her and I petted her and the clinician petted her. And she just was just very calm. And it was very amazing for me to watch that because I noticed that that co-regulation was what she needed.

[00:41:20] And I just was like in awe of it because I thought, wow, just a few minutes ago she was anxious and walking around. And she just needed us to go over and say, you're okay. This is safe. Yeah. Being okay to try something as the equine specialist offering it to the team. Hey, can we try this? Would it be okay? It also demonstrates to the client, we care.

[00:41:50] We're going to meet your need. Regardless, you can show up however you want. We're going to try to meet that need or help take care of that. Yeah. So if there's someone out in the audience that's listening that has a heart for serving others and for the healing journey and also loves horses and has some knowledge,

[00:42:19] is there any bit of information that you would like to share that you feel would be important for them to hear? Yeah, I know that's a big question, isn't it? It is. It is. It all comes back to me, to the feeling.

[00:42:38] I think to be out there and to feel the quiet, the horses, the horse breath, just all that around is very healing. And if you have a heart for nature and animals, then this can be a very nourishing place for you.

[00:43:27] Mm-hmm. I think it's just a part of growth. I've noticed that horses brought peace to me since I was a little girl. And I just feel like, you know, they are just amazing creatures that help with our, you know, journey, especially with our mental health and things like that. They're just, you know, they bring a lot of peace. And so definitely. And you can reach out to us. We have a lot of different ways.

[00:43:53] You can look up our website, Walk With Me Healing Steps. And we have a lot of information as well. Yeah. Walk With Me Healing Steps dot com. Our veteran web page is OperationBattleHorse dot org. We have Facebook, Instagram, TikTok. Follow us. Like us. Throw suggestions out there. We love to hear from the community. Or if there's anything they want to learn. Absolutely. And they want us to talk about.

[00:44:23] Yeah. Liz, do you have anything you'd like to offer? No, I don't think so. I think it takes a certain kind of person. You have to be willing to be hot, to be cold, to get dirty, to stink. To be rained on. To be rained on. But I think it's worth it. But I think it takes a certain kind of person. For sure. It's not for everybody. In the regards of working in it. Working. Yep. Yeah.

[00:44:53] I think everyone can benefit from it on the other side. Oh, 100%. But I think working in it, I think it takes a certain commitment. A kind of person. But. You work hard, but it's worth it. Definitely. So. If you're that kind of person. Yeah. Come on down. Join us. All right. Thank you all for joining us today. It was awesome. I love talking about equine specialists.

[00:45:22] The horse piece. And our role is so important to the therapeutic process. Y'all bring a lot of depth to that. And I appreciate it. And thank you. Thank you for listening to the Conquer Your Past. Step into your future podcast. For more information about what you have heard here, visit walkwithmehealingsteps.com. Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe to this podcast.

[00:45:51] And we'll see you on the next episode. You've been listening to The Mesh, an online media network of shows and programs ranging from business to arts, sports to entertainment, music to community. All programs are available on the website as well as through iTunes and YouTube. Check us out online at themesh.tv. Discover other network shows and give us feedback on what you just heard.