Beyond the Behavior: Navigating Mental Health in EAS

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🚨  This is a 7 day rental only. 

Instructions for how to access will be sent to the email provided at checkout. Simply log on to our educational platform to come and go from the content for 7 days. 

Description: As an instructor, supporting your participants means pairing equine skills with a practical understanding of underlying mental health conditions. Beyond the Behavior bridges the gap between riding instruction and clinical insight, empowering instructors to look past surface level behaviors, understand the root causes of participant challenges, and respond with effective strategies.

When a participant struggles to engage, dysregulates, or exhibits challenging behavior, it is rarely just a matter of compliance, it is often a reflection of unmet regulation needs or emotional dysregulation. Designed specifically for instructors and equine specialists, this course provides practical tools to maintain safety, adapt lessons on the fly, and foster an environment where true connection and growth can happen.

What You Will Learn:

• The Healing Power of the Horse: Discover why horses are uniquely suited to support individuals facing mental health challenges and how their sensitivity aids in emotional co-regulation.

• The Instructor’s Role & Boundaries: Clarify your essential role as an instructor, recognize when mental health concerns exceed your scope of practice, and know what steps to take when a participant needs professional clinical support.

• Recognizing Mental Health Presentations: Learn how common mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, trauma, and mood disorders manifest during mounted and ground sessions.

• Practical Regulation Tools: Acquire concrete, actionable techniques and environmental adaptations to help participants self-regulate and stay grounded throughout the lesson.

• Prioritizing Safety First: Implement strategies to navigate unexpected emotional or behavioral shifts without compromising the physical and emotional safety of the participant, horse, or volunteer team.

Presenter(s): Rebecca Nichols, LMHP

Rebecca serves as both an instructor and a Licensed Mental Health Practitioner at HETRA. Drawing on 18 years of clinical experience as a therapist alongside her hands on work in the arena, she brings deep insight into equine-assisted services. Rebecca is passionate about helping instructors build confidence in mental health awareness, dedicating her work to supporting safety, authenticity, and meaningful growth in every participant.