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Brains, Relationships, and Horses

1/26/2016

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F​irst things first: what we are discussing today is only a teeny, tiny piece of a vast and complicated body of information. If you are interested in learning about these things in more detail, you can find a list of suggested books and resources that explain the brain and interpersonal neurobiology much better than we can here!
 
When humans have a social interaction, there are measurable changes that occur to our brains and nervous systems. These changes in our brains are part of a growing field of scientific research known as interpersonal neurobiology (IN). IN has contributed a lot to the type of equine assisted counseling practiced by the ECC counselors. It is thought that the same neurobiological effects that people experience when interacting with other humans also happen when interacting with other social animals like horses.
 
All animals, including humans, have mirror neurons. Mirror neurons are a type of brain cell that helps us recognize and empathize with emotion in other living things. There are millions of them in our brains. They enable us to feel sad when we see someone cry, embarrassed when we see someone humiliated, or happy when we see someone smile and laugh. In interpersonal neurobiology this is known as resonance. Researchers and clinicians suggest that the way our brains and bodies respond to another person’s emotional state facilitates the awareness needed for our brains to activate new neural pathways—which in turn enables us to learn new ways to self-regulate and manage our emotional experiences. So when a counselor interacts with his or her client in a way that is empathetic, open, and accepting, they are essentially giving the client’s brain an opportunity to learn self-awareness and self-acceptance.
 
Some people have theorized that horses have millions or billions more mirror neurons than people do, making them experts at understanding nonverbal communication. All those mirror neurons enable horses to empathize even more than people do. In counseling, the horse can pick up on emotions that human clients and human counselors might not be aware of yet. It also means that humans and horses can engage in social relationships on a neurological level; although facial expressions and language might be different, the horse’s and human’s brains can respond to each other and build a relationship. When we consider that IN is based on the idea that a counselor’s empathy and non-judgment can help a person to heal, imagine how much someone can gain from interacting with an animal that has an even greater ability to be empathetic and accepting.
 
A lot of the field of IN is based on what little we know about the human brain and a lot of theory by experts. However, more research is being conducted all the time and there is an ever-growing body of information about things like mirror neurons, resonance, and the social brain. If you would like to learn in more detail about these topics, we suggest looking into the resources below.
 
  • Dr. Dan Siegel: http://www.drdansiegel.com/
  • Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation (Dan Siegel)
  • A General Theory of Love (Thomas Lewis, Fari Amini, & Richard Lannon)
  • Born For Love: Why Empathy is Essential -- And Endangered (Bruce Perry & Maia Szalavitz)
  • Made for Each Other: The Biology of the Human-Animal Bond (Meg Daley Olmert)
  • Affective Neuroscience: The Foundations of Human and Animal Emotions (Jaak Panksepp)
  • Zen Mind, Zen Horse: The Science and Spirituality of Working with Horses (Allan Hamilton)
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Relational Equine-Partnered Counseling with Veterans

11/11/2015

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PicturePhoto Credit: PATH Intl.
In August, ECC President and Founder Hallie Sheade earned her Ph.D. from the University of North Texas. Her dissertation examined the effectiveness of her model of equine assisted counseling (called Relational Equine-Partnered Counseling, or REPC) in treating veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We hope that by sharing an overview of the study and its conclusions you can better understand what we do at ECC.

REPC is based on the idea that people want to build positive and nurturing relationships, which facilitate growth and healing. Through the relationship with the horse, clients have the opportunity to create a new pattern for relationships and experience security needed to process and heal from trauma. Activities and techniques in REPC are designed to target specific goals such as relationship-building, self-regulation and mindfulness, and creativity. These activities may include choosing a horse, haltering the horse, leading the horse, grooming the horse, being with the horse, moving the horse, bathing the horse, and relaxation activities.

Participants in the study were military veterans with war zone-related trauma. Each veteran was asked complete a baseline phase prior to starting equine assisted counseling, during which they were evaluated each week using PTSD assessments. The second phase was to participate in REPC equine assisted counseling sessions for up to 18 weeks. The third phase tested each person’s PTSD symptoms for several weeks after counseling ended.

Some of the conclusions and implications of the study are:
  • Participants perceived interactions with the horses as beneficial to them or as an important factor to their improvement.
  • REPC may be beneficial in reducing severity and symptoms of PTSD after a triggering event, meaning participants who were “triggered” felt better more quickly while participating in REPC.
  • Participants appeared to be highly motivated to attend sessions with the horses.

Dr. Sheade’s research is one of the few studies on equine assisted therapies with veterans. More research on the effectiveness of equine assisted counseling is needed. REPC is a unique, innovative approach to the field and we hope to do more research in the future.


Happy Veteran’s Day! Thank you to all veterans and their families for your service to our country. We are proud to serve you!

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Seeking Veterans with PTSD to Participate in Research Study

4/22/2014

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We are currently seeking participants for a research study to determine the effectiveness of equine assisted counseling in treating veterans with war zone-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). 

All counseling services will be provided free of charge and participants will be eligible to receive payment dependent upon length of participation. 

Please check out the flyer below for more details.
ptsd_study_flyer.pdf
File Size: 18798 kb
File Type: pdf
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For more information or to inquire about participation, please call us at 682-334-3784 or fill out the contact form below.

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    Dr. Hallie Sheade is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Founder of Equine Connection Counseling. She is  contracted to write a textbook on best practices in equine assisted counseling for Routledge, an academic publisher.

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