Mentorship and Clinical Consultation: Supporting the Stewards of This Work

Integrating horses into a therapeutic or coaching practice is a profound calling. But it requires more than the love of animals. It requires a deep understanding of nervous system regulation, ethical partnership, and the capacity to hold what I call a shimmering conversation — the living, three-way dialogue between practitioner, client, and horse.


If you are a therapist looking to weave equine-assisted EMDR into your clinical work, or a coach wanting to deepen your somatic presence with horses, you do not have to figure this out alone. I offer mentorship and clinical consultation designed to help you find your own congruence as a practitioner and build a practice that genuinely honors the intelligence of the herd.

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Who This Is For

The mentorship is designed for people who: 

Licensed therapists or counselors exploring how to integrate EMDR into equine-assisted settings   

Coaches, practitioners, or facilitators working with horses who want to deepen their somatic and relational presence 

Anyone building a nature-based practice and seeking guidance on the ethics, safety, and lived reality of this work 

Mentorship and consultation sessions are available in two formats, depending on where you are in your practice development: 


Single Consultation Sessions: A deep dive into a specific clinical case, an ethical question, or a logistical challenge. These are particularly useful for practitioners who are generally comfortable in the field but encounter a situation that calls for experienced outside perspective. 


Ongoing Mentorship: A series of sessions across a season, designed to support sustained growth. We track your development over time as a clinician, as a somatic practitioner, and as a partner to the horses. Ideal for practitioners who are newly integrating equine work or actively building a nature-based clinical program. 


We can work together in person at the farm or virtually whichever serves your practice best.


How We Work Together 

A person with reddish hair wearing a hat and patterned clothes sits on a wooden bench outdoors in a sunlit area.

What I Offer 

My mentorship and consultation approach is grounded in the EquiLateral® protocol, EMDR, Gestalt principles, ecotherapy, and somatic wisdom. The work is individual — built around your specific practice, your cases, and your nervous system. 

Clinical Case Consultation

If you are currently working with clients and horses and find yourself stuck — uncertain how to navigate a client's response, unsure what the horse is telling you, or simply needing a second perspective, we can dive directly into the specifics of your cases. We look at three things together: the nervous system of the client, the feedback from the horse, and your own internal state as practitioner. Often, the path forward becomes clear when all three are visible. 

Program Design and Integration

For practitioners ready to transition from the traditional office to the field, I offer guidance on both the logistics and the essence of a nature-based practice. This includes: 

  • Transitioning your clinical identity from the chair to the field including how your role, your boundaries, and your presence all shift 
  • Partnering with horses as sentient co-facilitators rather than therapeutic props or tools 
  • Navigating the ethics and safety of equine-assisted work including animal welfare, informed consent, and scope of practice 


Somatic Mentorship

The most important instrument in any equine-assisted practice is your own nervous system. In the field, your regulation or dysregulation is felt by everyone, including the horses. I work with practitioners to develop the capacity to stay present, grounded, and attuned while navigating the unpredictable and beautiful energy of the herd. This is not a luxury skill. It is the foundation of safe, effective work.

Integration

For profound losses — the death of a child, a life partner, a dearest friend "getting over it" may never fully happen and probably should not. The goal is integration: weaving the loss into the fabric of who you are, so that it deepens rather than diminishes you. Grief, fully tended, can be one of the most powerful forces for growth and aliveness available to us. 

The Horses as Witnesses to Loss

Horses are extraordinarily sensitive to grief. They seem to recognize the frequency of a person in mourning, and they often respond with a quiet, steady presence that many clients describe as the most comforting companionship they have experienced since the loss. There is something about being witnessed by a creature that wants nothing from you except your honest presence that creates a unique permission for grief to move. 

Who Can Benefit?

Grief therapy at Lexie Glisson Therapy and Wellness LCSW may be right for you if you:

Are mourning the death of a person or animal who was central to your life 

Lost someone months or years ago but find the grief still interferes with your daily life, relationships, or sense of self 

Have never had a genuine space to grieve, and carry losses that were never fully witnessed or acknowledged 

Are experiencing what feels like complicated grief where mourning has become stuck, overwhelming, or consuming 

Are grieving a traumatic loss and find that the trauma and the grief are intertwined in ways that ordinary bereavement support hasn't fully addressed 

Are drawn to the idea of working with horses as a particularly safe and non-demanding space to let grief move 

Let's Build the Field Together

The world needs more practitioners brave enough to step outside the four walls of the office. If you are ready to deepen your equine-assisted practice, navigate the nuances of this work with experienced guidance, and honor the wisdom of the horse, I would love to support you.

Frequently Asked Questions 

  • Do I need to be trained in EquiLateral® before seeking mentorship?

    No. Grief is non-linear and entirely personal. At Lexie Glisson Therapy and Wellness LCSW, I do not impose timelines or benchmarks. Some grief takes months; some is lifelong. The measure of healthy grieving is not speed; it is integration. 

  • What is the difference between a single consultation and ongoing mentorship?

    Absolutely. Pet loss is often minimized by our culture, yet the grief is profound and real. Animals offer a quality of unconditional presence that many human relationships do not, and their loss can be devastating. Your grief for an animal is fully welcomed here. 

  • Can we work together virtually or does mentorship have to happen in person?

    Both options are available. Case consultation and program design sessions work well virtually. If you want somatic mentorship that includes direct observation and feedback while working with the herd, in-person sessions at the farm in Colorado offer a richer, more embodied experience for that work. 

  • What does somatic mentorship actually involve?

    Somatic mentorship focuses on your own nervous system as the primary instrument of your practice. We work on your capacity to stay regulated, attuned, and present in the field because horses respond to you as much as to your clients. Your inner state shapes everything that happens in the arena. 

  • I am a coach, not a licensed therapist. Can I still work with you?

    Yes. Coaches, wellness practitioners, and facilitators are welcome. We work within the appropriate scope of practice for your credentials and focus mentorship on the somatic, relational, and equine-partnership dimensions of your work, areas where professional boundaries and horse welfare intersect meaningfully.