Equine Program

Our Equine Program at New Beginning Ranch is a weekly experiential learning session led by Kathi, our Equine Specialist, where men work alongside horses as a unique and powerful part of their recovery.

Horses have been companions to humans for thousands of years. As prey animals, they are acutely sensitive to potential threats and as a result pick up on emotional states, making it difficult to hide behind a mask.

Our equine program takes place weekly at a nearby ranch in the Bitterroot Valley. Each session is facilitated by Kathi, who brings 35 years of experience with training horses and riders, offering a unique and powerful component to men’s recovery at New Beginning Ranch.

THE FOUNDATION

Why Horses

Sexual addiction and compulsivity are, at their core, disorders of connection. As Patrick Carnes coined it — an “intimacy disorder.” Men who struggle with sexual addiction or compulsivity often find that intimacy — with others, themselves, and with a Higher Power — is elusive and foreign. Many men have developed facades to manage impressions and keep people at a safe distance.

Horses don’t buy into this. They pick up on what’s really going on and provide an honest mirror. In effect, this allows Kathi and the New Beginning Ranch team the opportunity to shed light on the patterns that lead to disconnection. The feedback that horses give — immediate, non-judgmental, and honest — is hard to argue with, and is what makes the equine program unlike anything else at New Beginning Ranch.

OUR EQUINE SPECIALIST

KATHI

Kathi has been working with horses for over 35 years. She brings an intuitive understanding of horses and humans to her work — one that meets men right where they’re at without judgment. As a registered nurse, Kathi’s compassion for people and her extensive experience with horses brings invaluable insight for our men at New Beginning Ranch.

Kathi’s observations over the years have led hundreds of men into deeper understanding and growth in their recoveries. By quickly interpreting a horse’s reaction to a man’s presence, Kathi is able to pinpoint the patterns and barriers that may be holding a man back from fully connecting with his recovery, and others in his life.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

PART OF OUR PROGRAM

Our equine program doesn’t stand alone. It’s woven into the broader fabric of life at New Beginning Ranch — alongside men’s groups, 12-step work, morning meditations, and daily accountability, men are given a complete picture of what needs to be addressed for them to thrive in their recovery.