Unbridled Hearts
Equine Assisted Bereavement (EAB)
For Grieving Families
New Song
Center for Grieving Children
 Founded in 1989
 Joined Hospice of the Valley in 2009
 Provides year around, bi-weekly peer-to-peer grief
support for children, teens, young adults & their
caregivers
 Provides grief education for caregivers, community
groups, clergy, medical and mental health professionals
What are We Going to Do Today?
 Summarize Basics of New Song’s Equine Assisted
Bereavement Program
 Identify the Challenges & Rewards of Collaboration
 Examine the Development of Grief
Activities used with Horses
 Review 5 Equine Assisted Bereavement
Activities
Basics
How Did We Come Up With Our Program?
• Approached by an Equine Therapy program
• Researched Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP),
Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) and Equine Assisted
Growth And Learning Association (EAGALA) model
• We made stuff up!
What is Equine Assisted Psychotherapy?
 Incorporates horses experientially for emotional growth
and learning
 A collaboration between a therapist, a horse and a horse
professional, working with participants to address
treatment goals
 Participants learn about themselves and others by
engaging in activities with horses, then processing
feelings, behaviors and patterns
What is Equine Assisted Learning?
 Incorporates horses experientially for emotional growth
and learning
 A collaboration between a therapist and a horse
professional working with participants and horses to
address educational goals
 The focus is on learning specific skills such as
leadership, team building and resiliency training for our
military warriors.
What is EAGALA?
 Offers a standard framework of practice and ethics for
providing EAP and EAL
 Utilizes a team approach: Horse, Mental Health
Professional and Equine Specialist
 Focus is on ground work
 Solution oriented
What is New Song’s
Unbridled Hearts Program?
 Combination of EAP/EAL, Worden’s ‘Four Tasks of Mourning’ and
New Song’s Program Format
 Team Approach: Professionals and Volunteers
 Activities are Family and/or Team Based
 Serves Families (with children ages 5-17) and Young Adults
 3 Components: Family Day, Peer Night, Grief Camp
How Did We Combine EAB
with New Song’s Group Format?

We Designed the Program to Include Our Volunteer
Facilitators
1.
1 Facilitator per horse
2.
Provides support and encouragement during the tasks
3.
Helps participants of different ages understand the
metaphors/meanings of the activities
How Did We Combine EAB with New Song’s
Group Format? (cont.)
 We Created a ‘Look’ to the Equine Program that is
Similar to the ‘Look’ of a Support Group Night
1. Sharing Circles, Ice Breakers, Main Activities, Closing
2. Food!
3. Coordinator, Facilitators
Tell Me More About the
Team Members
 Mental Health Professional
 Horse Specialist
 New Song Facilitator
 Horse
Why Family and/or Team Based Activities?
 Help bereaved participants identify and understand
changes in roles and responsibilities
 Encourage families to re-establish and/or strengthen
bonds
 Re-introduce ‘Family Fun Time’ into the lives of grieving
families. (ASU- Family Bereavement Program)
Tell Me More About the 3
Components of Unbridled Hearts
Ice Breaker: Getting to Know You
Original Component

Family Day
1.
Open to families currently enrolled in New Song
2.
Small group size (8 families)
3.
Utilizes 5 ground activities
4.
Fee based
1st Activity: Once Upon a Horse
(Accept Reality of Loss, Find an Enduring Connection)
Next Component
 Peer Night
1. Open to families currently enrolled in New Song
2. Set-up in stations (ground activities)
3. Participants rotate through stations in age groups
4. Replaces a ‘regular’ group night
5. No Fee
2nd Activity: New Beginnings
(Accept Reality of Loss, Process Pain of Grief,
Adjust to a World without the Deceased)
In Development

Grief Camp
1.
Open to any grieving family with children ages 5-26
2.
Set up in stations (includes riding)
3.
Participants rotate through stations as a family, with
several families per group
4.
2 day, non-residential camp
5.
Fee based
3rd Activity: Grief Box
(Accept Reality of Loss, Process Pain of Grief,
Adjust to a World without the Deceased)
Collaboration
Collaboration: Challenges
Things to Consider:
What’s the Vision for Our Program?
Finding the Right Equine Therapy Program
Distribution of Responsibilities
Distribution of Costs
Collaboration: Rewards
Things to Consider:

Convenience

Expertise

Connections

Cost Effective
4th Activity: Painted Pony
(Accept Reality of Loss, Process Pain of Grief,
Find an Enduring Connection)
Development of Grief Activities
with horses
How Did We Develop Grief
Activities to Use with Horses?
1.
Used existing EAP/EAL activities specific to grief
2.
Adapted non-grief EAP/EAL activities to grief
3.
Drew on existing New Song activities
4.
Created new activities from scratch
5th Activity: Extended Appendages
(Accept Reality of Loss, Adjust to a World without the Deceased)
Let’s Go Have Some Fun!
Resources We Found Helpful
Websites:
 eagala.org (Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association)
 http://www.equine-psychotherapy.com
Books:
 ‘Introduction to Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy’ by Patti J. Mandrell,
M.Ed., LPC
Articles:
 Horses as healers: Equine facilitated therapy for grieving children.
Strom, L., & Wilson, J. (2009, March). Paper based on a program
presented at the American Counseling Association Annual
Conference and Exposition, Charlotte, NC.
 Assorted Articles: http://www.wayofthehorse.org/Articles/index.html
Thank You!
Contact Information
 New Song Center
New Song: 480-951-8985
 Elle Schlagenhaft, MA, EAGALA
Email: dschlagenhaft@thenewsongcenter.org
Elle’s Cell: 602-330-9205