and there is no reason to feel like this.’ This is affirmation.”
Diesel walks over to the gate, and looks back to her as if to say,
“Let’s get to work.”
EQUINE-ASSISTED THERAPY HAS GAINED
traction since the 1990s as an alternate approach to care,
connectivity and communication. However, with little
research and data into its methods and effectiveness,
this treatment is still considered unconventional. As a result, it is
not covered by health insurance and is expensive for out-of-pocket
care. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, “Small
studies and anecdotal evidence have shown equine therapy can
help reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression and impulsiveness
common to many mental health conditions.” However, more research
is needed to determine if and how it works.
Unlike traditional talk therapy between a client and their therapist
in an office, equine therapy is experiential, occurring outside in
nature or a barn. A certified equine therapist or equine coach
moderates the interaction, and the horse becomes a conduit for
the client’s emotional and/or physical release. Those seeking this
type of therapy may be suffering on myriad levels, from adults
coping with a loss or illness to young children tolerating neglect,
unsafe living conditions or poor relationships. Being outside,
“
My goal is to let my
”
clients
be true to themselves...
That’s why horses are so
good. They push us
past our comfort zone.
without restriction or judgment, can have a calming effect that
allows them to feel safe, and some people are more comfortable
opening up here than in a conventional therapy setting.
To get through day to day life, people bury their feelings, says
Elizabeth Winnes, Tamara’s certified equine coach at Release the
Reins in Westport, Massachusetts. “We force inward the feelings
and emotions that are too difficult and heavy on us,” she says, adding
that some people repress their experiences and never find peace.
“When you stand with the horse, all the stuff you’ve buried is right
there for them to see,” Winnes says. “They accept us whether we’re
short, tall, skinny, fat; what they care about is ‘Who are you? Are
you being who you really are meant to be? Are you being authentic?
Is what you’re showing on the outside congruent with what you’re
feeling on the inside?’ ”
Depending on the client’s willingness and comfort level, some
walk horses around the paddock or ride them, while others simply
occupy the same space. Most clients don’t have to say a word to
communicate with a horse. As fight or flight animals, they read
body language, picking up on others’ fear, anger, openness and
friendliness and mirroring back those emotions.
Winnes subtly directs Tamara during her session, setting up
scenarios, offering props and asking questions as a passive guide.
Diesel often will be nearby but not necessarily engaged, and when
Tamara starts discussing or feeling hurtful emotions from her
past, he comes over.
“It’s not good to hold things in, especially if you pile stuff on top
of stuff — who knows what will happen,” says Tamara, who suffers
from PTSD, anxiety and depression, resulting from years as a victim
of domestic violence and homelessness.
“When I manifested my abuser in a teddy bear, I threw the bear
across the paddock, I dismissed him,” Tamara says. “When I did
that, Diesel bumped up against the gate, he was encouraging me,
telling me it was going to be okay. Then I took the bear into the
pen, and Diesel wrapped himself around me, put his head on my
shoulder and hugged me.”
Tamara previously worked with a hula hoop, which for her represented
her personal space. She wasn’t comfortable being inside
it, because she wasn’t in control of her life, she says. Instead she
walked around the bucolic property, along trails through the thick
trees and down to the pond, holding on tightly to the hoop. When
she reentered the paddock, and placed it on the ground next to her,
Diesel came over and gently prodded her with his nose to stand
inside. He walked away when she stood confidently in the space
where she felt empowered. She knew then that’s what she needed
to work on, she says — her inner power, confidence and strength.
“This is no holds barred. My goal is to let my clients be true to
themselves, to allow them to be who they are in a place of nonjudgment,”
Winnes says. “That’s why the horses are so good at it,
and especially Diesel. He pushes us past our comfort zone. To step
into our true self, we need to feel safe. Horses allow that.”
This session allows Tamara to be next to Diesel, working together
as friends, communicating non-verbally with no bridle or method of
control in sight. That freedom allows them both to feel unrestricted.
“Most of our clients are in survival mode. They don’t think about
feelings or emotions. Then when we give them the opportunity to
open up and feel safe, the flood gates open,” says Martinha Javid,
founder and CEO of the Mae Organization for the Homeless in
Providence. She first met Tamara while | | CONTINUED ON PAGE 123
RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l MAY/JUNE 2020 59