 Equine-Facilitated
Psychotherapy & Learning EFP/L |
October 2008
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Upcoming Workshops
The Horse-Human
Connection:
Equine-Facilitated
Learning
Chehalis, WA
Nov 7-9
(nearly full)
HEAL 2009
Schedule
on
HEAL Website
by 10/31
be sure to check for the latest events | |
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Greetings to our HEAL Friends,
It's mid-October already? September flew by, filled with inspiration and excitement for the EFP/L work accomplished by horses and humans across the globe! A huge "thank you" to colleagues Sam Quinlan (LEAP Equestrian Therapy Centre), Angela Dunning (Equine Reflections, Rebecca Lobb, and Francine Phillips for their invaluable support; also to Upper Camnant Centre in Wales and Castle Goff farm in Cornwall for hosting our classes. Deepest gratitude for the participants and horses who co-created each unique and possibility-filled event!
EFL work never grows old as each new situation offers new insights and unique learning. This month offers new perspectives on practicing and facilitating body awareness in equine-facilitated activities, and an introduction to the work of equine artist Kim McElroy.
We really want to hear from you and include your voice in the HEAL Newsletter! Share your perspectives on the healing aspects of the human-horse bond, introduce yourself or your EFP/L business to the HEAL community, or tell about a remarkable experience you've shared with an equine friend. The HEAL community continues to grow and we'd love to help you meet each other through our newsletter and website. Submissions should be 3-6 paragraphs and can be sent to news@humanequinealliance.org. Oh, and we welcome your photos, too. We look forward to hearing from you!
Blessings,
Leigh Shambo, MSW, LMHC
Human-Equine Alliances for Learning (HEAL)
360.266.0778
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Body Sensing and Becoming Present
by Leigh Shambo, MSW, LMHC |
 To be more fully alive in our bodies, is both a gift and a lesson from our equine friends. Horses respond to the delicately shaded, subtle desires and perceptions that arise from the body, rather than the cognitive mind. The key to horse whispering is also the key to healing and self-discovery, and it originates in what author Peter Levine and others describe as "the felt sense".
This is the frustration of many a horsemanship student: watching your horse respond flawlessly to a set of signals given by your trainer, while it all seems to go wrong when you send exactly the same set of signals yourself - that is, exact to the best of your ability given that those signals are not yet "embodied" like more practiced skills such as driving a car, or riding a bike. It is the "feel" informing the process, which the trainer cannot impart directly. More... |
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Soul Work with Horses
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Always
by Kim McElroy
 I am in the wind across the grassesMy spirit rises with the sun in the EastI am as vast as the stars...as free as the heavens...My joy knows no boundaries.Listen for my voice in the falling rain.I am eternity, wisdom, and choice.The cares of the pasthave been lifted from my body.All is healed. I am whole.I am again all I was meant to be.
KIM McELROY is renowned for her equine art. ~ for over two decades her pastels have
graced popular greeting cards and collectibles, pastel originals and fine art prints.
Her visions of horses portray the power and beauty of the horse's form and offer us a
timeless glimpse of its soul.
Copyright 1987 - 2008 Kim McElroy
Read more about Always and Kim McElroy
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Nickers... from You!
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Here is where we introduce our readers to members of the HEAL community, and our readers are the HEAL community. As Leigh mentioned in her note above, we encourage your submissions and want to share your story. In Nickers, we'd like to learn of your association with HEAL or with Leigh, your EFP/L business, or your experiences with horses. Please send us a photo to include, too.
 It's easy to send us a couple of paragraphs. Just e-mail them to news@humanequinealliance.org with your photo, and before you know it, you'll be a familiar face and name to all of us.
We truly look forward to hearing from you!
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When Leigh arrived in England, one of her hosts showed her an article which featured Leigh and HEAL. Here is that article:
Earth Medicine
from Kindred Spirit magazine
From the Horse's Heart
It is the animal that can claim the most diverse role in human evolution. From the heavens above to the pages of fantasy and mythology, they have been used as vehicles of warfare, entertainment, transport, even as a source of food. However, in more recent times horses are finally being recognised for their true worth. Leigh Shambo of Human Equine Alliances for Learning (HEAL) is leading the way.
 The HEAL approach, combining psychotherapy practice and educational workshops, incorporates horses to guide clients in search of self-awareness and better relationship skills providing the perfect context for effective therapy and personal/spiritual growth. HEAL teaches a philosophy of reverence and authenticity. Individuals notice an immediate effect in their sense of self, their relationships, and their life path. As one participant said, 'I felt I could be totally honest about my feelings and be completely accepted...the horses seem to know just what is needed.'
More...
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Welcome Home, Leigh
We were all very excited that Leigh would be traveling to the United Kingdom and New York to share the gifts of EFP/L with the HEAL communities there. She has been telling her stories and expressing such excitement about her very full September away. As much as we shared her joy in the opportunity, we can now share our joy in her return home. You'll certainly be reading more about new ideas, new events, and new enhancements to her offerings in the months to come. We're glad to have you home, Leigh.  The HEAL herd, Buddy, and the rest of the HEAL Home TeamBack to top of page |
Body Sensing (cont)
Luckily, relationship with another living being is considerably more dynamic than operating a piece of machinery. Constant adjustment and revision of our felt sense is integrated in the body, in response to the ever-changing felt sensing that occurs in our partner. It is a nuanced exchange, a precursor of language, consisting almost entirely of feelings and latent impressions. Once we are in this process of feeling and sensing, the horse becomes the teacher and the lessons are often profound.
In a recent HEAL session, one man felt in his chest a very slight but burning anxiety, which he related to the pain of lost relationships. In his subsequent reflective session the horse laid his face against the man's chest for several moments. In another session, a woman who could feel music in her body found her horse joyously joining in harmony during their ridden work together. I could relate hundreds of stories of horses responding in empathic and creative ways to just about every type of noticeable sensation in the body.
At HEAL workshops and sessions we work with a variety of techniques to
increase body-mind awareness; but ultimately each person will find their own way of slipping in to this enhanced awareness and following its wisdom.
Author Peter Levine, in his book Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma, offers these gentle and effective questions to guide you in accessing this felt sense:  "Wherever you are, make yourself as comfortable as possible. Feel the way your body makes contact with the surface that is supporting you. Sense into your skin and notice the way your clothes feel. Sense underneath your skin - what sensations are there? Now, gently remembering these sensations, how do you know that you feel comfortable? What physical sensations contribute to the overall feeling of comfort? Does becoming more aware of these sensations make you feel more or less comfortable? Does this change over time? Take a moment to enjoy the sensation of being comfortable." (page 68) Now, if you can, go spend some time with a horse! More about Peter Levine and Waking the Tiger |
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Earth Medicine (cont)
The founder and president Leigh Shambo, who holds a science and social work degree, grew this practice out of her personal experience with 'horse-assisted' therapy. In 1988 after years of working as a professional horse trainer, Leigh struggled to physically and emotionally recover from a serious riding accident. That same year her mother committed suicide. It wasn't necessarily intentional, but Leigh turned to the only friends she felt could help, her horses. During her rehabilitation process, she became attuned to the extraordinary sensitivity shown by horses during her emotional and spiritual healing. 'The horses are responsive to each person's flow of consciousness. A horse can function as bio-feedback for the soul,' says Leigh.
The Invisible Way - Spiritual Mirror
Invisible Horsemanship(TM) is a workshop offered by Leigh which teaches a body based self-awareness method. Participants are taught to read and respond to equine body language so that a person can easily discern many of the horse's reactions to their thoughts and feelings. Horses can teach us how to stay in a consciousness that optimizes harmonious co-creation, and to bring even our most subtle non-verbal behaviour into congruence with intention.
A single, mature adult, Terry had been adopted as an infant. He had struggled with a deep sense of loneliness. He had an admiration for horses but no experience, and felt some fear of their power and size. Assured that there was no riding in the workshop, Terry felt the horses might just have something to teach him about 'walking the talk' of the inner work he had done. Early in the workshop, Terry felt that a horse named Dasha seemed to be reaching out to him. He felt comfortable being close to Dasha, feeling her silky coat, and the whisper of her breath on his arm as she nuzzled him. Suddenly, something distracted Dasha and she looked away for a long moment. Not knowing what to do, Terry turned and walked away several steps, and the dainty mare followed him. This is the 'join up' response, the attraction that horses have for a person who has earned their trust and respect. Her neck was stretched long and low, with her ears pricked, indicating trust and interest. When Terry turned and saw that Dasha was still at his elbow, he looked shocked. Doubt was written on his face and slowly he walked backward several steps. This time, Dasha did not follow. Terry could begin to identify the ways in which he sent signals that invited a disconnect - the same signals he unconsciously sent in human relationships. Over the workshop period, Terry learned how to cultivate equine join-up, to work with it and make it more durable, more palpable, safer. And he learned a lot about the specific ways that his fears could actually drive away that which he most desired.
Step out and Leap in
STEPPS is a residential dependency recovery centre run by Dominic Quinlan, just outside Gloucester. The clinic accepts people from all over the world, and has developed a number of techniques - most recently adding EAP (Equine Assisted Psychotherapy), with Dominic's wife Sam who is closely aligned to Leigh Shambo. The EAP side of the business has now been launched as LEAP, an autonomous but complementary organisation offering this therapy to a wider group of clients, including people suffering from trauma or stress, people with learning difficulties or eating disorders, and children and young people with a number of behavioural problems. Sam says, 'We are now looking to expand our client group from those with addictive disorders, eating disorders and depression to challenging behaviours, Asperger's syndrome and other co-morbidity disorders. Working closely with horses boosts a person's confidence, puts them in a position of responsibility and fosters a natural work ethic. The name LEAP suggested itself. 'This was a great leap of faith; a leap forward and, of course, horses like to leap as well. It all seemed to fit so well', said Sam.
copyright 2008 Kindred Spirit
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