Equestrian Mental Health

As an adult amateur equestrian, I am in a unique position to share an understanding of the nuances of the horse world, while also having in-depth knowledge of trauma and mental health.

For equestrians, therapy can help with experiences such as:

• fear and trauma after a fall or an accident

• general anxiety that creates tension when riding

• negative self talk or anxious thinking

• addressing any mental blocks that come up with showing/competing

• PTSD

• grief and loss (loss of horse through death, lease ending, sale, chronic lameness, retirement)

• guilt and burnout from managing the equestrian lifestyle with other life responsibilities

• boundary setting and advocating for your own riding goals and/or your horse’s needs

• goal setting and positive self talk to promote personal growth and progression towards riding goals/life goals

• trauma from harmful or toxic messages from the equestrian world (i.e. body image, toxic coaching experiences, bullying)

How therapy can help you:

I have 15 years experience as a therapist, and specialize in trauma. There are trauma informed talk therapy options to help modify self talk and core beliefs about yourself or the world that may be impacting your riding, relationship with yourself or your relationship with your horse. I also have training in two evidence based trauma processing models (EMDR and DBR), which help your nervous system reprocess and release tension, fear, and trauma that is stored in the nervous system.

How therapy can help your horse:

Horses are extremely intuitive and energy based. The greatest gift we can give our horses is a regulated nervous system and a calm confident human. Doing your own mental health and trauma work can allow you to deepen your relationship with your horse by being tension free and present in the moment with them. This allows us to communicate clearly and intuitively with our horses, and enables them in turn to move freely in their own bodies and minds.