People helping horses ~ Horses helping people

Counseling Techniques workshop sponsored by Barry Shreve, Greenville Technical College.

Counseling Techniques Workshop

     “On a clear sunny Saturday at a horse farm in Landrum, psychology students are preparing for a lesson in counseling with the biggest client they’ll ever face - a chestnut gelding named Weda. The students’ task is to enter a round pen alone with the former racehorse, and sans bridle or lead, asks the horse to perform a task, such as moving to the right or left, or circling the ring. When the horse has completed the task, the students are told to turn their back to the horse.

     A daunting challenge for students with little or no experience with horses, but one that their teacher believes can help the counselors in training connect more effectively with their clients. Dr. Barry Shreve, Human Services Department Head at Greenville Technical College, asked horse whisperer Bruce Anderson to lead the all-day workshop Saturday April 24th at Three Gables Farm.”

Excerpt from The Greenville Journal

April 30, 2004

 

   

The Counseling Process and Working with Horses

 

   “ Counseling as a process involves many things.  Beginning counselors learn many technical aspects of the techniques of counseling, such as the use of attending skills, the importance of body language, and, of course, the central issue of empathy.  But courses in counseling can only approximate the actual experience of doing counseling for real, out in the “real world”.  We may discuss the foundation of certain techniques, or even role-play in class, but the essence of the process is never quite present.  Within the genuine counseling session, the counselor is called upon to not only use his/her intellect but also themselves, their emotions, and their empathy.  The use of empathy in counseling has been the subject of many books and articles.  The question is: how do we enter the world of another and, as Rogers said, see things from the inside?  This losing one’s own perspective and in some ways one’s ego attachments is very scary, especially for the beginning counselor.  We spend our entire lives living from one point of view, and we carry that into our session with every client we see.  Then, in order to act in the role of counselor, we strive to let go of our own point of reference and enter the world of the client: a daunting task to be sure.  Too often we find it difficult to let go of our own perspective and we remain stuck and unable to see the world through the eyes of the other, and counseling goes nowhere.  Is it the fear of losing our selves in the process that prevents us from reaching out mentally?  Is it some reluctance to accept our own limitations?  To open up to the perspective of another means that we cannot hold on to our own view, and we may have fought our whole lives to develop that view, part of which is likely our perspective of ourselves as “the expert”.  To admit that we are not “experts” about the “other” is one of the first things a counselor needs to develop in order to enter the world of the client and see the world through their eyes.  If we hold on to our view of ourselves as an expert, we carry that with us as we try to enter the world of the client, and invariably we drag our biases and judgments along with us.  These will prevent us from truly experiencing the world through the eyes of the client.  Even for experienced, effective counselors it is sometimes difficult to enter the world of the client, especially if the client is very different from us.  The difference may be gender, age, race, culture or any one of many other factors.  The more different we are from the other, the more difficult it usually is to enter their world, and in the end, that difficulty often times dooms the endeavor before it begins.

     Working with horses using Bruce Anderson’s system provides students with an opportunity to extend themselves into an area that most have never been.  Through connecting with the horse, the student invariably has to confront parts of him/her self as they strive to develop a connection with the horse (a process not all that dissimilar from connecting with a new client in a counseling session).  Anderson's philosophy is to change the attitude of "Do what I tell you to do" into "How can I help you?"  When Anderson works with a student and horse, he coaches them through a series of "mental pictures" which provides the opportunity to determine which areas of their training may need work. "Many times we teach horses to be dependent on us by telling them where to go and what to do.”  Working in Anderson’s system, students are encouraged to “ . . . ask for what you would like, allowing the horse to make choices for himself and learn about consequences if he makes the wrong choices.”  So it is with training to become a counselor; we teach students to allow clients to be responsible for their choices and the consequences that follow, for only in that way can the client truly grow through the process.”

Dr. Barry Shreve

Mother and daughter

work together to

create a picture.

Barry, Sami and Dave

Everybody needs a break every now and then!