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April 2008 - Stepps Horse Power Given Thumbs Up!

Tonight's opening episode of BBC2’s Am I Normal? will see Dr Tanya Byron visit Stepps to see first-hand the success and worthiness of its Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) treatment for addiction recovery.

Teresa Chase, a former Stepps client, gives Dr Byron an emotional account of how her drug addiction has been transformed through EAP, demonstrating that, unlike other alternative addiction therapies sceptically examined in the programme, Stepps’ EAP treatment is far from just another modern therapy method ‘cashing in’ on addiction sufferers.

Mike Delaney, Clinical Director for Stepps, has played a leading role in pioneering the powerful benefits of EAP as an addiction therapy in the UK: “Dr Byron visited us at our equine centre to see EAP in practice and, after speaking to our ex-client Teresa, I think she was quite taken aback by the raw evidence that it is not only a credible addiction therapy, but at the incredible way in which it can transform lives.”

“Until a few years ago, EAP was predominantly used in the USA to help young adolescents overcome behavioural issues. Since then the benefits of using horses as a human therapy method have developed on many levels, and at Stepps we take huge pride in not only pioneering the therapy, but in continually developing it as new clinical research emerges. Over 300 people have successfully completed EAP treatment with us since Stepps opened four years ago.”

Stepps is a member of the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association (EAGALA). Its EAP therapists are amongst very few in the country to possess the ‘Level 2 Certified Practitioner in Equine Assisted Psychotherapy’ qualification needed to practice the treatment.

The focus of EAP is not, as is often misunderstood, horse riding. It is a collaborative effort between a licensed therapist, a horse professional, the client and a horse, with 90% of the therapy taking place on the ground. Activities are combined requiring the client to apply and develop skills such as assertiveness, non-verbal communication, problem solving and relationship building.

Watch this episode of BBC2's Am I Normal? which aired on Monday 14th April 2008 on YouTube