Animal Assisted Therapy is an orderly and planned therapeutic process carried out during sessions with a psychotherapist. Its origins date back to the 90s and since then, this therapy has been gaining popularity, especially in the USA and Great Britain. It uses the same assumptions, goals and structure as "traditional" therapy, but what makes it different is the presence of an animal that creates and facilitates an environment conducive to the process of psychotherapy.

 

The animal is therefore a helper, one could say the therapist's assistant - but the therapist is responsible for the process and he watches over it.

 

Benefits of Animal Assisted Therapy:

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• Easier to start therapy

For many people, contact with an animal is easier than with a human. It allows you to build trust and a sense of security in therapy without the need to tell or use words at all. ​

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• Reduced levels of stress and anxiety

Research clearly shows that stroking, warmth, and the touch of the fur have a calming effect on the person who interacts with the animal. It can also be the beginning of work on regulating your own emotions and level of arousal. The client has the opportunity to learn and recognize his own reactions. This type of contact with an animal is therapeutic in itself.

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• Social skills and relationships

Contact with an animal opens the way to building communication skills, empathy, and interacting in a safe, non-judgmental atmosphere. This communication is often easier for clients, it allows you to deal more easily with shyness and fear of rejection . 

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• Self-confidence and self-esteem

Contact with a therapeutic animal by carrying out the tasks proposed by the therapist strengthens the sense of competence, self-efficacy and pride in the successes achieved. The client actively builds a sense of self-confidence, learns to set goals and cope with failures.

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Contact with a horse creates a certain therapeutic context, different from that in the office. It creates conditions and opportunities to discover new perspectives, skills and ways of understanding yourself and your environment.

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We especially recommend it to people who struggle with:

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• depression

• mood disorders

• phobias

• social anxiety

• mutism

• ADHD

• eating disorders, anorexia, bulimia

• PTSD

• professional burnout

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We invite children, teenagers and adults . 

During the initial consultation, we will answer all your questions and choose the appropriate type of therapy. The initial consultation is free of charge.

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Organization:

• The therapy takes place in the stable near Rzgow

• Horse therapy is not hippotherapy and is not related to mounting a horse

• The meeting takes place in a covered hall or on the outside square

• We recommend a suitable, comfortable outfit

• Meetings are held at the weekend and last 1 hour

• Our animals are properly prepared and insured

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Olga Mac - Psychologist, Therapist of Therapy

Solution Focused,

sport instructor Horse Riding

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Links:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapy-types/animal-assisted-therapy

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1359104516672549