Growing up in New Zealand on 500 acres, my love of horses started at a young age of 3 when my family found me on the back of an untrained horse in a nearby field. I was drawn to the majestic beauty and nurturing nature of the horse early and got my first pony when I was 7. “Goldie”, an older Palomino gelding, was the first of many strong bonds I forged with my horses. I completed my Pony Club C+ and collected many ribbons at local pony club shows and gymkhanas.
My professional career in graphic design in television (I worked for TV3 and TV4 between 1992 – 1999 in New Zealand) led me to travel and work in Vancouver, Canada in 1999. I worked for KVOS TV television up until 2015 after the station was sold to METV, which catapulted me into a dramatic career shift. During that time, I was also raising a neurodivergent daughter as a single parent which had its challenges with the public school system. With not many options for supporting my daughter, I learned of a program that provided a year of incredible support for both child and parent through “The Childrens Foundation” in Vancouver. One of the activities they did was how to learn to care for horses, while developing empathy and leadership skills. It was through this program that my love for horses rekindled and I saw how they can be a huge part in healing and growth. I started to study horse people like Jonathan Field, Chris Irwin, the Parelli’s, Warwick Schiller, where I learnt more about natural horsemanship skills, and I read all of Linda Kohanov’s books (the equine facilitated learning pioneer). These people inspired me to make my second career all about partnering with horses in some way. Since then, I have taken a little from all these horse-people that I think works well and created my own style. I have found I appreciate Elsa Sinclair (Freedom Based training) and GaWaNi PonyBoy, as their style is of relational horsemanship, and it is the most attuned, intuitive and instinctual.
In 2016 I obtained a diploma in Life Coaching which fed my need to provide support as a helper to others. From there I combined my coaching work with therapeutic riding from CanTRA (Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association) as well as movement therapy and pilates on horseback (in 2005 I completed a 750 hour pilates teacher training and taught part-time while I worked in TV). But I didn’t stop there. My thirst for knowledge led me to becoming a Registered Professional Counsellor in 2022, to deepen my work as a helper. During my internship, I gained experience volunteering for KidsHelpLine as a crisis responder and Moving Forward Family Services; a low income counselling service in Surrey, BC.
Since re-joining the world of horses and humans, I have been involved with EAL equine assisted learning and EFW equine facilitated wellness programs in Metro Vancouver. As well as working for STaRS; Southlands Therapeutic Riding Society, where I have worked for the last 7 years, I also worked part-time as a facilitator with The Urban Horse Project; UHP is the first in Metro Vancouver offering a well-researched, leading-edge, objectives-driven program for youth providing hands-on activities with horses to promote self-discovery, and build their skills and resiliency.
In 2020 when COVID crippled the world, trauma became a buzz word. I discovered Somatic Experiencing® and EQUUSOMA® (Horse-Human Trauma Recovery) which has shaped how I live my life and work with humans and horses . Working from a trauma-informed perspective, I prioritize establishing safety and trust, by providing a non-judgemental, nurturing environment. This combination with Counselling and Life Coaching has become my purpose.
In May 2023, after 23 years living in Vancouver, Canada, I am excited to have moved back to Aotearoa, New Zealand with my daughter, to continue my work in counselling and partnering with horses. I am the proud guardian/owner of 3 beautiful pinto/gypsy cob horses, Mātai, Skye and her filly Aroha. My wild horse family.
My trainings and accreditations are listed below:
NZAC Registered Counsellor – Provisional Membership;
Registered Professional Counsellor with Canadian Professional Counsellors Association (CPCA);
Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor through CanTRA (Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association);
Accredited ACC Professional Life Coach with the International Coaching Federation (ICF);
Certified Equine Interaction Professional in Education (CEIP-ED) with The Certification Board for Equine Interaction Professionals (CBEIP – provides independent, profession-wide certification to those who work with horses in mental health or in learning service);
Certified in Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) through Cartier Farms Equine Assisted Learning Centre;
Completed the EQUUSOMA® Fundamentals training I & II (Human-Horse Trauma Recovery) with Sarah Schlote;
PRO-EFW Level 2 Foundations training with Deborah Marshall (Vancouver Island);
Level 1 training with Natural Lifemanship Institute (Core fundamentals training) with Bettina Shultz-Jobe and Tim Jobe; Trauma-Focused Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy and Trauma-Informed Equine-Assisted Learning.
I am currently enrolled in the Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP) training (Year 3 in a 3 year training completing October 2024); A Body-Mind Approach to Healing Trauma & Chronic Stress and Increasing Resilience (Peter Levine). Also I have recently joined Sarah Schlote and her team with EQUUSOMA® (Horse-Human Trauma Recovery) as a ‘shadow’ assistant to become an assistant for the trainings by end of 2024 (once I am an SEP). Sarah is the founder of EQUUSOMA® Horse-Human Trauma Recovery, a training model with licensing approval from Somatic Experiencing® International that focuses on understanding horses and humans from an ethological, attachment and neuroscience-informed perspective.