Description:
OPD Points: 10
What is Animal Assisted Psychotherapy (AAP)?
Animal Assisted Psychotherapy (AAP) integrates the presence and dynamics of animals with counselling skills and psychotherapy practice to support mental health and psychological treatment. This approach enhances client engagement, and promotes the client’s experience of psychological safety by including the unconditional acceptance that many animals provide. AAP can promote healing by addressing trauma in a natural, safe, and relational manner that include the human-animal connection, supporting emotional regulation and social and emotional skill development. It is an innovative methodology that has the potential to reach difficult-to-engage clients through the therapeutic process and human-animal interaction. Trained AAP practitioners can design professional, effective and meaningful ways to meet client therapeutic goals.
LIVE AND INTERACTIVE ONLINE TRAINING (200 Hours)
This training is designed for psychologists, psychiatrists, psychotherapists, social workers, counsellors, mental health occupational therapists, and other registered clinical professionals seeking to incorporate animals as therapeutic partners in mental health and therapeutic services.
Key Learning Objectives / Outcomes:
Participants will learn to:
- Master the AWAREâ„¢ approach, a trauma-informed, relational model for Animal Assisted Psychotherapy.
- Apply psychotherapy principles including humanistic psychotherapy frameworks, gestalt therapy, somatic interventions, mindfulness, and developmental psychology.
- Understand ethical practices, animal welfare, and client safety.
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Develop skills in:
- Assessing and addressing trauma.
- Creating tailored therapeutic experiments using animals.
- Managing unconscious processes and relational patterns.
- Incorporate animal studies, animal skills, animal welfare and species-specific knowledge to ensure the ethical treatment and enrichment of animals involved in therapy.
- Use reflective practice to enhance therapeutic outcomes.
Assessment:
Presenter / Provider:
The Animal Assisted Psychotherapy Foundation Training is conducted live weekly via Zoom by Meg Kirby, Institute founder.
Presenter Qualifications:
Mental Health Social Worker
Gestalt Therapist
Meg’s career began in community mental health, evolving through child and family psychiatry before transitioning to private practice as a psychotherapist. After over two decades of working with clients of all ages, she felt compelled to train the next generation of practitioners, dedicating thirteen years to this specialist mission.
Start / End Date
Course Duration:
Course Hours:
200 hours
Registration Instructions:
Email adming@equinepsychotherapy.net.au with any inquiries
OR
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Register via the website https://www.equinepsychotherapy.net.au/animal-assisted-psychotherapy/
