Eagala, a global organization of mental health professionals dedicated to incorporating horses into psychotherapy treatment, celebrated their 20th anniversary with a four-day event hosted at the Lexington Convention Center in Lexington, Kentucky this past weekend. The group is dedicated to furthering equine-assisted psychotherapy and personal development techniques, focusing specifically on veterans and servicemen suffering from PTSD, as well as suicide prevention, substance abuse recovery and rural mental health issues.
On Saturday, Feb. 29, Eagala hosted a live demonstration and panel discussion in partnership with the American Horse Council and the Congressional Horse Caucus with Kentucky's sixth congressional district representative Andy Barr.
Congressman Barr represented the Congressional Horse Caucus, a bipartisan group of Congress dedicated to promoting equine recreation, sport, and mental health, and educating members of Congress on the impact of the equine industry while examining policies that impact different facets of the modern equine industry. The group is co-chaired by Barr and Paul Tonko of New York.
Mental health practitioner Patti Mandrell organized a hands-on demonstration, where Congressman Barr and three veterans participated in an activity with five horses in an on-site arena. The group was asked to discuss the major challenges that many veterans experience and represent these challenges in a tangible way using equipment in the arena. The activity required participants to physically move the horses and draw parallels between the movements the horses made with the feelings that many veterans may have.
Following the demonstration, Congressman Barr said, “Horses can see into you and your feelings. As animals of flight, they are very sensitive to emotions. They are constantly observing the person they are interacting with. This demonstration has shown me how these types of programs can help people look inwardly in a way that they couldn't outside of this ring with these animals.”
Following the demonstration, Congressman Barr led a panel where Eagala members shared the history of Eagala and future goals that the organization is working towards. Eagala co-founder and CEO Lynn Thomas spoke of her introduction to equine-assisted therapy. “My background is not with horses, but I got involved with this work when I saw how horses could impact people in a way that no one else could,” she said.
Thomas detailed the span of impact that Eagala has had on a global scale. In 2019, the organization had over 2,500 certified members. Every member of Eagala is required to be a licensed health professional or equine specialist, and must go through extensive online training before they can become licensed with the organization. Through the work of these members, 60,000 clients were served in 2019.
Thomas also said that 5,600 horses were used for these services. “Our industry is creating a new niche for horses that may need a new home,” she said.
Halina Kowalski, the Military Services Director for Eagala, discussed some of the organization's future aspirations, including the long-term goal of having Eagala services offered through the US Department of Veterans Affairs.
“Currently, there are two types of services offered through the VA. However, these services only reach 20% of veterans and have a 40-50% dropout rate,” Kowalski stated.
She also emphasized the importance of increased funding that would allow Eagala to conduct randomized controlled clinical trials, which would provide the credibility to allow their services to be used through the VA.
Lynn Moore, the co-founder and CEO of Acres for Life, also sat in on the panel and shared some of her “boots on the ground” experiences. Founded in 2001, Acres for Life is a therapy and wellness center located in Forest Lake, Minnesota. The organization provides traditional in-home therapy and military services, as well as equine-assisted therapy.
Moore spoke about the diversity of her clientele, whose ages range from three to 96. The 96-year-old client is a female veteran of World War II. Moore said, “Horses are helping her deal with her past as well as current end-of-life issues.”
She continued, “While we are seeing amazing results, the need continues to be great. We know that there is a person taking his or her own life every 15 minutes in the world today. Our veterans and first-responders are discovering us in larger numbers than we've ever experienced, yet the risk of suicide within these groups is two to three times that of the general population. Many people don't want to go into an office to talk to someone, and some don't even have the words to say what's going on in their lives. Many of my clients will tell me 'I don't trust people because people hurt me. But I can trust animals.' I think this speaks to the power of the Eagala model.”
Moore said that she uses two Thoroughbreds at Acres for Life. “Both of these Thoroughbreds have been amazing additions,” she noted. “Thoroughbreds have that sleek, graceful look that transports people through their movement. They touch people in the place where emotions sit and can help get people out of their own heads.”
Moore also said that Thoroughbreds are excellent for her program because of their extreme sensitivity and because they are very in-tune with their surroundings.
Sally Mixon is the Chief Development Officer at Acres for Life, and also the founder of Abijah's Hope Stable, a turnout and lay-up facility for Thoroughbred an+d Standardbreds. The two organizations work together, allowing retired racehorses to go through rehabilitation at Abijah's Hope Stable before going on to do work at facilities like Acres for Life.
Mixon said, “Our goal is to bring hope and healing to the horse, which allows them to bring hope and healing to people. These racehorses spark a fire in people to allow them to be a part of something bigger than themselves.”
Congressmen Barr concluded the event by saying, “It's very clear that Eagala's work is extremely promising. I look forward to sharing their story with my colleagues on the Veterans Affair Committee and with other members of Congress.”
For more information on the global impact of Eagala, visit https://www.eagala.org.
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