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Therapy at a Ranch, Instead of on a Couch

Pinnacle Ranch (Added: May 25, 2009)

The Pinnacle Ranch offers equine assisted therapy to veterans who may not be interested or willing to get to a standard clinical counseling session. (more)

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Therapy at a Ranch, Instead of on a Couch

People are given a task without directions. The way they work through it can tell them a lot about themselves.

By Dana Wachter
Published: May 25, 2009

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Kingsport, Tenn. -- The wounds of war aren't always physical; they can be emotional as well. The care given to returning veterans is sometimes not enough, or not what they're seeking.
A new type of counseling is helping vets through activity driven therapy.
Pinnacle Ranch is an equine assisted psychotherapy center, where individuals and groups can participate alone or together to work through a situation with a horse.
"When you're in the office, on the couch," says Equine specialist Ellen Stroud, "all you're doing is talking about it and you might be able to change what you're doing, but you don't actually get to try it out."
The horse reacts to a person's behavior, in a similar response to a human's. Once the task is complete, people work with a mental health professional and the equine specialists to analyze how and why they did what they did.
They don't ride the horses, but rather undertake activities to discover their own inhibitions.
National Guard Commander Tom von Weisenstein thinks this type of counseling could be very beneficial to a serviceman returning to civilian life. He says that veterans are often hesitant to go to standard a clinical counseling session, but getting active with the horses may be a positive way for them to work through mental and emotional problems.
Scholarships are available to those who may benefit from this type of equine assisted psychotherapy. Pinnacle Ranch raises money through a non-profit called "The Horse affect" to offer scholarships to those who may benefit from this equine assisted psychotherapy. Donations can be made to "The Horse Affect" at 801 Yadkin Street, Kingsport, TN 37660 and connect@thehorseaffect.org. These donations may be given directly for Veterans, if designated. For more information about Pinnacle Ranch and its services, click here.