Take Flight specializes in ground-based activities involving horses, particularly equine-assisted psychotherapy (EAP), equine-assisted learning (EAL), and equine-assisted development (EAD). Each program is facilitated by a team of a licensed mental health professional, a certified equine specialist, and horses that have undergone intensive testing to ensure their ability to provide quality services.
A simple translation of the purpose of our work is to provide clients with access to a greater array of personal resources that they can use to cope with life’s challenges.
A more complicated explanation would be to say that our services are solution-focused, or based on the assumption that people have untapped unconscious or subconscious resources which can be released by shifting their perspective. The Take Flight team takes on the role of assisting clients in questioning their self-defeating constructs and assisting them to build new, more functional perspectives.
Take Flight is an equine-assisted therapy program under the direction of the Omaha Equestrian Foundation.
The purpose of our work is to provide clients with access to a greater array of personal resources that they can use to cope with life’s challenges. We believe people have untapped unconscious or subconscious resources that can be released by shifting their perspective. We work with clients to identify and question their self-defeating constructs and build new, more functional perspectives.
We achieve these outcomes by incorporating horses into therapeutic and learning programs. Why? Because horses are patient, perceptive, and attuned to displays of fear, anger, agitation, and despair, they can mirror human moods in a nonjudgmental way, without motive or expectations. As the person bonds with the horse, self-awareness grows, emotional healing often takes place and new skills are acquired.
Take Flight specializes in three types of ground-based activities involving horses:
1. Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy
Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy is based on the natural ability horses must pick up on human emotional expressions and needs. People of all ages can benefit from Equine-Assisted Therapy, and horses have been incorporated into treatment for a wide variety of issues, including but not limited to:
- Addictions and substance abuse issues
- Anxiety
- Aspergers
- Autism
- Depression
- Eating Disorders and food issues
- Mood-related issues
- Trauma and posttraumatic stress (PTSD)
2. Equine-Assisted Learning
Equine-Assisted Learning exposes participants to activities that can promote the discovery of critical life skills such as healthy decision-making and problem-solving, creative, and critical thinking, self-awareness and empathy, communication, and interpersonal skills, and coping with emotions and stress.
3. Equine-Assisted Development
Equine-Assisted Development engages participants in practical learning experiences with horses to foster organizational and personal success. Equine-Assisted Development is a hands-on experience for your business group or team designed to enhance emotional intelligence and “soft skills” as a path to organizational success.
In today’s world, leaders and organizations face multiple challenges and can no longer rely upon traditional formulas to be successful. Our interactive experiential leadership and team development programs are designed to strengthen the social and emotional intelligence needed for leaders and team members to be more effective, self-aware, and accountable.
Who Benefits from Equine Assisted Development:
- Corporations
- Non-Profits and Community Groups
- Teachers, Counselors, and Social Workers
- First Responders
- Sports Organizations and Teams
Each program is facilitated by a team of a licensed mental health professional, a certified equine specialist, and horses that have undergone intensive testing to ensure their ability to provide quality services.
Take Flight is a Distinguished Member of the Equine-Assisted Growth and Learning Association (EAGALA), which is an association dedicated to improving the mental health of individuals, families, and groups around the world by setting the standard of excellence in equine-assisted therapy.