We would like to introduce you to more of our equine therapy partners. Doodles, Rose, Hank, and Phyllis all live together in the same pasture. Each is very different from each other but whether they are working individually with a client or together as a herd, they have all had incredible impact on the lives of the clients they work with.

Many clients notice Rose almost immediately. With her golden coat, thick tail, and sassy attitude she is quite eye-catching. Rose is the boss of her herd, meaning that she is in charge of keeping herself and all of the other horses safe from danger. She tends to be cautious around people and situations she is unfamiliar with and it can take a lot to win her trust. Because she is the boss, many clients have seen her move the other horses around the pasture. That sometimes appears to be mean and aggressive to clients. This can open up conversations about everything from healthy boundaries to bullying to feeling misunderstood. Rose is particularly popular with teen girls that are drawn to her looks and distinctive personality.

Phyllis is a quiet, calm presence in the pasture. She may be less interactive than some of her herdmates, so clients sometimes find it a challenge to understand what Phyllis is thinking and feeling. However, many people find that spending time with her helps them to feel less anxious. Tara* had an extensive trauma history and struggled with feeling constantly rejected in her relationships. Phyllis, however, would often choose to stay close to Tara during her sessions, even when more dominant horses tried to move her away. Tara felt comforted by Phyllis's desire to be near her and started to feel more confident in her human relationships, as well. She also found that her anxiety decreased as she continued to work with Phyllis. 

Doodles worked for many years as a show horse and as a therapeutic riding horse for our partner organization, Wings of Hope. He now works exclusively in counseling. He has seen and done a lot of different things in his life and has learned to be laid-back and relaxed in almost any situation. Doodles particularly excels when working with anxious children because he can be patient no matter how nervous or frustrated they get. Jason* was an teenage boy who worked with Doodles to work on managing his anxiety. Jason would work with Doodles every week in the round pen, communicating to Doodles to move in different ways. Doodles was very sensitive to Jason's feelings and would often demonstrate how Jason was feeling through the way Doodles would move. Through working with Doodles, Jason learned that by relaxing his muscles and breathing deeply, not only could he change how Doodles responded to him, but he could also control his anxiety rather than feeling controlled by it.

Hank quickly becomes a favorite of anyone who meets him, whether that's a client or staff member. Although he is one of the biggest horses in his pasture, he is very gentle and seems to love just hanging with people. He is also quickly noticeable because of his light and splashy coloring. Despite Hank's larger size, his clients tend to choose him because he seems safe to them. During his first session, Marcus*, a military veteran, felt immediately drawn to Hank. Having felt disconnected and disinterested in other people, seeing Hank interact with the horses began to motivate Marcus to want to seek his own "human" herd in which he felt accepted. Through interacting with Hank, Marcus began to notice how Hank responded to his moods and became aware of how he may be perceived by others in his human relationships. As Marcus' awareness of himself with Hank began to grow, Marcus reported feeling more connected in his relationship with his wife. Marcus also struggled to go out to crowded stores and other public places. Knowing that he would always be watchful, Marcus observed the horses' responses to potential threats in their environment and began to emulate their way of being both alert while relaxed simultaneously and began to feel safe to spend more time in public places.

There is still time to help Rose, Doodles, Phyllis, and Hank continue their work with clients by becoming an angel and supporting our Be An Angel fundraiser! Just $10 ensures that the horses can participate in the session. Go to http://beanangelecc.causevox.com before midnight on New Year's Eve to make a tax-deductible contribution to the Angel Fund, held by our non-profit partner Wings of Hope.
 
*Client names and some details have been changed to protect client identity

​Bill* was an Army veteran who had served two tours of duty in Iraq. After being discharged in 2009, Bill had trouble readjusting to civilian life. He found it hard to sleep at night and had frequent nightmares. He felt disconnected and detached from his family. Bill angered easily both at home, where he noticed that his daughter avoided him, and at work where he struggled to get along with his boss and coworkers. He began to feel depressed and hopeless. He did not like to talk about his experiences in Iraq and tried to avoid any reminders of his deployments. Bill did not like going to stores or movie theaters. He spent much of his time at home playing video games. Bill’s family worried about him. They tried to talk to him, but he just pushed them away. 

 ​Bill tried various other therapies but these therapies did not help him feel like himself again. With encouragement from his wife, Bill began equine assisted counseling. Upon walking into the pasture during the first session, Bill felt more at ease outside among the horses. He found himself drawn to a horse named Jake. Jake’s relaxed demeanor and friendly nature calmed Bill. Throughout the course of Bill and Jake’s sessions, Bill began to become aware of his own feelings and experiences by watching Jake’s responses to him. Bill believed that he could be himself with Jake knowing the horse would never judge him for his feelings or deployment experiences. Bill would often say that he felt safe around Jake and could let his guard down knowing that Jake would always be aware of any potential threat. While in Jake’s presence, Bill began to feel safe enough to talk with his counselor about some of his experiences.

By watching Jake and the other horses interact and with the help of his counselor, Bill was able to identify strategies that he could utilize to feel at ease in the world again. He began to understand that although he would never be the same person as he was before enlisting, he could find his new normal. As Bill began to feel more and more connected to Jake, he noticed that his desire to connect with his wife and daughter was reignited. Bill began to reach out to friends and family members who he felt had abandoned him. Today Bill feels like himself. Bill now coaches his daughter’s softball team, goes to karaoke with his coworkers, and has become a mentor for other veterans.

Bill represents millions of veterans who are suffering from the emotional trauma of serving the country in more than a decade of war and as well as veterans from wars past. We have all heard stories of the trauma these veterans endure and know all too well that many of them are suffering. We would like to think we have the resources to serve these veterans and help ensure that they have a guided path back into civilian life. The sad truth, though, is that our mental health services fail to reach too many like Bill.

These veterans are in need of care that is affordable, accessible, and administered in low-stigma settings. It is estimated that at least 30% of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans alone suffer from PTSD, depression, or traumatic brain injury. In addition, approximately 22 veterans a day commit suicide. Many of these individuals go untreated or drop out of treatment prematurely. At ECC, we have found that our clients feel more at ease in our tranquil outdoor setting and are motivated to attend counseling making our dropout rate much lower than other forms of therapy.

Marshall may be the most visually intimidating horse in the pasture. At 1,600 pounds, he is the largest member of the herd. Marshall is known around the barn for using his size to his advantage—he knows how big he is and that humans can’t make him do anything he does not want to do! However, despite Marshall's size, even the smaller clients can get him to cooperate when they communicate in the right way. Horses of Marshall's size are frequently chosen by clients who have experienced trauma. One of Marshall's former teenage clients chose him specifically for his size - he made her feel both challenged and safe while working him. When Zoe* would come for her weekly session with Marshall, she often felt very anxious from her day at school. Marshall would often act protective of Zoe and refuse to allow the other horses to come near her. Through her work with Marshall, Zoe became more aware when her anxiety increased and learned ways to calm herself down.

Corky is one of our smallest horses, but he has a big attitude. He has very specific likes and dislikes that his clients must work to become aware of to have a trusting relationship with him. Corky is frequently chosen by children due to his small size. Jennifer* was one of the children who chose Corky as her counseling partner. Jennifer came to counseling to work on her anger and aggressive behavior towards siblings. Jennifer immediately noticed that Corky was separated from the rest of the herd and stated that she would like to work with him because she likes to be alone, too. Jennifer would process her difficulty trusting people through her discussion of Corky's feelings. Discussing her experiences as Corky's experiences enabled Jennifer to feel safe to process her feelings and identify healthy ways of expressing her anger and interacting with others. 
 
You can help Marshall, Sherlock, Vannie, and Corky continue their work with clients by becoming an angel and supporting our Be An Angel fundraiser. Just $10 ensures that the horses can participate in the session. Go to http://beanangelecc.causevox.com to make a tax-deductible contribution to the Angel Fund, held by our non-profit partner Wings of Hope.
 
*Client names and some details have been changed to protect client identity

Star and Coco have become the unofficial mascots of Equine Connection Counseling. Most of the pictures on our Facebook and Instagram feature these special miniature horses. Who better to be the (adorable) faces of ECC than the equine therapy partners that work with almost one quarter of our clients each week?

When Star and Coco first arrived at the barn, few would have guessed that they would become the affectionate, patient, intuitive therapy partners that they are today. They had gotten used to spending more time with other horses than with people and were suspicious of almost everyone that approached them. It took several weeks of attention from Dr. Sheade and the equine specialists for Star and Coco to start enjoying the company of humans.

These days, "the minis" are known for their calm and nurturing attitudes, especially with anxious and depressed children. As many horse people will tell you, horses tend to be scared of loud noises, flapping fabric, and large moving objects. For Star and Coco, however, those types of things are a normal part of their job. Not only are they unafraid of bop bags, flying balls, and feather boas, they will approach a child playing with those things out of curiosity. Star will allow a child to dress her up with that boa and some bows. Coco's favorite toy is the sandbox -- when a child is playing in the sand, Coco will stand right next to them and blow sand around with her nose.

A great example of the impact Star and Coco can have is their work with Sam*. Sam's dad serves in the military. His parents brought Sam to counseling because he had difficulty getting along with kids his own age and often felt sad and angry. He had years of problem behaviors including tantrums and trying to hurt himself. When he first began working with Star, Coco, and Dr. Sheade in play therapy, he was very unaware of himself and how his behavior affected those around him. After a few weeks, he began to notice that Star and Coco wanted to be close to him when he was calm and quiet--and he felt comforted by their presence. Sam learned how to make friends by befriending Star and Coco. He brushed them and fed them snacks. Soon his parents began reporting that Sam was acting more nurturing toward the family dog and that he had started making friends at school. Today Sam continues to do well and is finding healthy ways to relate to others.

Sam is just one of the dozens of children that Star and Coco have had a positive impact on. They help kids learn empathy and self-regulation. They provide nurturing and acceptance to children who have experienced abuse and neglect. The provide fun and laughter to kids who are often sad and lonely. As Dr. Sheade likes to say, Star and Coco are two in a million.

If you want to help Star and Coco continue their amazing work with kids like Sam, you can donate to the Angel Fund to provide affordable equine assisted counseling to clients with financial hardship. Go to http://beanangelecc.causevox.com to make a tax-deductible contribution.

*Sam's name has been changed to protect his identity.