Therapeutic and Sensory Interventions
Our therapies and programs engage you in active ways that help you to live life fully, befriend your body, befriend nature, and help you become aware of your creative and expressive skills.
We offer nature based programs (including forest bathing), art therapy, animal assisted programs (including horse assisted), and psychological (talk) therapy. We are currently in the process of training our Labrador girl Bear to become an effective co-therapist.
We work with individuals, couples, and families of all ages. We also work in groups, because we know first hand the power of listening and sharing your stories with people who recognise and understand your experience, no matter what you have been through.
Psychological Therapy
If you experience low mood, stress and anxiety, feel like you cant get out of your head, struggle to connect with the people around you, or feel that you would like your life and relationships to be different, please contact us for support.
You might believe, or you might even have been told by others, that there is something wrong with you. You may have tried to make yourself feel better (or feel less) in ways that are doing you more harm than good in the long run, for example by drinking or using drugs, or by avoiding people or situations because they make you feel anxious.
We will help you recognise that whilst those ways of coping were adaptive at the time, there are even more helpful ways of responding and you can start exploring and developing what works for you right away.
Art Therapy
Sometimes it is difficult to express what we are feeling with words. Art therapy provides a way to access and process thoughts, feelings and sensations through the sensory experience of creating.
Art therapy harnesses the power of the creative process for self expression, curiosity, discovery, playfulness, learning and an opportunity to explore aspects of self, personal relationships and the web of life. The art therapy space and therapeutic relationship facilitates a supportive and gentle exploration of new ways of sensing, communicating and understanding. It provides an opportunity to explore different coping strategies, both those which are no longer helpful, and those which may contribute to an improved sense of wellbeing.
Art therapy is for everyone, from the experienced artist to the novice. It incorporates a wide variety of materials and mediums, from natural objects, to collage, painting and sculpting, whatever feels comfortable for you. Art materials are used as a tool for sensory exploration and expression. It is not about creating ‘beautiful art’ or masterpieces.
The focus is not on the end point, but what you discover along the way, looking to see what’s there and what makes sense for you. The qualities of the art materials themselves, and your interaction with them, become the guide.
Horse Assisted Programs
In our Horse Assisted Therapeutic program a clinical psychologist or social worker works together with a horse specialist in facilitating therapeutic interactions between horses and people. Our staff are EAGALA (Equine Assisted Growth And Learning Association) certified.
The program relies on the relationship and interactions between horses and people to facilitate learning, growth, and establishment of new skills, insights and behaviour change.
As clients interact with the horses they learn about themselves and their strengths and weaknesses with respect to their relationship and communication styles, their boundaries, and their ways of coping.
Rather than only relying on talking about their experiences, clients will have the opportunity to put new skills and insights into practice immediately, directly embedding new ways of behaving into daily life.
The program assists individuals, couples, and families to overcome difficulties such as: the impact of family violence, anxiety, depression, low confidence and low self esteem, social isolation, relationship difficulties, grief and loss.
For information on our horse assisted BRAVE group program, please contact us.
Shinrin-Yoku or Forest Therapy
Now more than ever we need to return to nature for sustenance as we try to navigate a fast paced, highly automated and increasingly complex world. It was not so long ago that we knew how to be ‘at one’ with nature. But rapid changes in lifestyle, and increasing dependence on computers and the virtual world has resulted in a loss of deep connection with nature and its healing properties.
Forest bathing is a research based therapeutic approach that promotes mental and physical health in safe, supported and beautiful surroundings. Shinrin-yoku or ‘forest bathing,’ was developed in Japan in the 1980’s for preventative health care and healing. Since that time forest bathing has grown, and continued research across the globe validates the immense value of nature based therapy to our health and wellbeing.
Guided Shinrin-Yoku walks combine a specific blend of complementary physical and mental exercises in suitable forest surroundings. The gentle exercises surrounded by trees assist in lowering heart rate, blood pressure and stress levels, whilst at the same time the immune system and the overall physical and mental fitness are strengthened.