Horses are the Best Listeners

An Interview with Mingus Mountain Youth Treatment Center Equine Therapist, Michelle “Mickey” Kissell

Q: What got you into Equine therapy?
“Oh my story began so long ago and quite unexpectedly,” says Michelle “Mickey” Kissell. “In 1993 my boys were in grade school and my youngest was in in Kinder. We had a sweet little pony named Callie, she was a POA pony (Pony of the Americas) and I was invited to bring Callie to my son’s school for show and tell.”

“There was a boy in my son’s class with cerebral palsy. The day we brought Callie for show and tell, I brought her over to him and she dropped her head right into his lap. It was the best moment, and wouldn’t you know, that little boy just sat up and was smiling from ear to ear,” Kissell remembers. “Gosh, it was the best smile ever.”

Q: What happened after that first day? Did that little boy ever get to see the Callie again?
“More than that! After that first day, his parents brought him to our house and he started riding a few times a week. Oh boy, did we get to see a little miracle happen,” Mickey laughs gently. “That wonderful boy gained strength and mobility and to see him progress was just so moving. His confidence grew and his parent’s confidence grew; he was doing things beyond what anyone ever thought possible. I had never seen anything like that and knew I had to learn more about this.”

Taking the most lovely trip down memory lane, Mickey as she is so fondly known, recalls, “In those early years, I spent a lot of time with friends who had children with special needs or kiddos with autism and the horses were just this incredible uplift for both them and the parents. I saw it time and time again: the horses gave them this boost and pulled out this inner strength that they could do more than they thought was possible.”

While Mickey was witnessing what she calls “little miracles” when she and her horses connected with children, she didn’t have time to pursue the passion that was now a growing desire to do more. “Through the years, I was busy raising my kids and working,” says Mickey. “I was a single mom, raising my beautiful boys and very much in the thick of it, but we always had horses and would help those in our circle.”

In 2014, Mickey began working (as a volunteer) with Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship which was about a two-hour drive away.

“Yes, it was a long drive,” laughs Mickey. “But I just had to go because this passion inside me was so strong to see these little miracles throughout the sessions with these kiddos.”

“Then I decided I had to become certified and become a therapist and then I moved to Arizona and connected to Horses with Heart and I got my PATH certification for riders with disabilities and also my certification from the Certified Horsemanship Association. Their standards are so high,” laughs Mickey. “I studied my heart out and got my certification: Equine Specialist in Mental Health and Learning. From there, I was honored to run a veteran program for Veterans struggling with PTSD and it was amazing to see these men connect with these horses that had  never had anything like that and to see them overcome their traumas was amazing.”

Q: It sounds like your passion found you and you absolutely bloomed into the role?!
“Yes,” says Mickey. “And now I get to do this wonderful work with our girls here, at Mingus Mountain Youth Treatment Center, and is just so amazing! A lot of these girls are inner-city girls who have never even seen or touched a horse in person. I let them just spend time with the horses, groom them, walk them around the arena, and just talk to the horses.

“Horses really are the best listeners,” Mickey laughs wistfully. “The girls open up to the horses because these insightful animals reveal to the girls underlying emotions that the girls are struggling with, and our horses naturally respond in a comforting and therapeutic way.”

Q: So this is truly a partnership with the horse and yourself as you approach Equine Therapy?
“Oh absolutely,” says Mickey. “I remember one little girl who had been trafficked and in a very bad situation. So hard to reach for any of us. So we just started walking and talking with the horse and we did one on ones with the girl, her therapist, and me and the horse. We just
walked and talked. No pressure,” recalls Mickey. “And the next session she had with her therapist, she opened up to the therapist and was able to unlock some deep emotions she had walled up inside. By the next week, she was feeling more and more confident and strong!

“Would you believe,” continues Mickey, “by the end of her treatment she was riding the horse by herself and running obstacle courses and trails!” Equine Therapy at Mingus Mountain Youth Treatment Center opened up for her the inner strength and a different kind of love and
emotion than any of these girls have ever known. It’s easy to hear the joy in her voice as Mickey laughs, “Oh! These horses just love you back and will give the girls the biggest Horse Hug with their neck – they are truly little miracles!”

Q: I’m sure no case is “easy,” but how do you approach those really tough cases and connect so that the girls are even open to Equine Therapy at MMYTC?
“Yes, sighs Mickey, “Some come to us so hardened and so hurt and so lacking in trust that they do not even want to participate -and that’s okay. We do group sessions and also one-on-ones. We may place the girls in teams where they are encouraged to work together caring for the horse, rather than direct interaction or riding, and we see good things happen.”

Troubleshooting seems to come naturally to Mickey, who spends a good amount of time in rodeos and working with horses on her family farm. She has clearly learned the art of the pivot. “When I am working with someone who cannot connect with their inner emotions, I will have them come help me clean stalls or just be in the vicinity of the horse,” Mickey explains. “Inevitably, the horse is the one that will approach the girls and just be the non-anxious presence next to them.

CONTINUUM OF CARE

Q: How does the Equine Therapy translate into the Continuum of Care the girls receive at Mingus Mountain Youth Treatment Center?
“Great question,” says Mickey. “For our one-on-ones, I will run the session and the therapist is there for the emotional support. We may work on boundaries or stress management or dealing with family and friends. Or even digging down to the trauma that started everything,”
Mickey continues. “Some days the girl might be struggling and hitting an emotional wall and one-on-ones may look like, ‘Okay go walk and talk this over just you and your horse and see what happens.”

“We stay flexible and really employ Trauma-Informed approaches to care,” says Mickey. “Life is still happening outside of treatment. Our girls may hear troubling news or have something from home that came up on a phone call that is triggering them and we need to process
it. We will work that in so that while they are in the moment with their horse, they can process through things.

Equine Therapy is great for those with trauma,” says Mickey, “Because when they work with the horse they are focused on their balance and riding and relaxing, and this allows the brain to process as both hemispheres begin working together. Very often, the girls are ready to
enter back into class, or their milieu or the next activity in their treatment plan.”

Often giving them a gentle nudge inviting them in and then the next thing you know, the kiddo is brushing or petting the horse and the connection has happened naturally. And then, we can work from there and boom! They are ready to learn to ride.”

Mickey is a force of nature in the same way a gentle, bubbling spring is so prolific that it carries water to a mighty river. She is determined to ensure the girls leave Mingus Mountain Youth Treatment Center with renewed confidence.

“Each October we have a Founders Day Rodeo at Mingus Mountain YTC,” states Mickey. “We had a New York inner city girl who had come from the gang life. Gosh, she was just a teeny little thing! She came out and just helped clean the stalls,” Mickey recalls. She was such a hard worker and was loving being outside and with the horses. So we got her up and riding and she just took to the horses so
well. She was fearless!

Mickey chuckles, “We taught her how to rope (boy, she was good!) and she tried out for the Founder’s Day Rodeo. She did really well and competed in the rodeo!! I could see in this moment she was in just in heaven and loving riding. She even got to carry in one of the flags during opening ceremonies,” recalls Mickey. “It was just one of the miracles we got to experience here at Mingus Mountain Youth Treatment Center. And she found a place she could ride when she left our care because this had become so important to her.

READING & RIDING

Q: You mentioned something about reading aloud on a horse? Tell us more about that!
“Yes! I love this,” Mickey exclaims. “Reading aloud is a  major fear for so many and it can keep them from progressing in the classroom. So to build their confidence and to show them they are even more amazing than they realize, I will have them ride bareback and we will do a lap while they read aloud. This is very different than being in a saddle and you have to really focus on your balance. I will give them a
book, or stories, or set of poems and I will have them read out loud. They are usually quite nervous to read out loud at first,” Mickey continues, “But I will remind them they are reading to the horse, not to me. Once they get in their mind they are just reading to the horse, magic happens.

“Halfway down the path the girls are sitting up tall, not even thinking about balance,” muses Mickey. “They become so involved in this story they are telling to their horse. The horse, who is always ready to listen, enables them to focus on balance and they end up totally relaxing. Reading and Riding is one of my favorite therapeutic interventions. Especially for those who are more nervous about riding or struggling in school. Reading out loud like this helps make connections in the brain and alleviates their nervousness when they are back in the classroom reading for their peers. Our kids now even get school credit for their work in Equine!”

Q: I know Mingus Mountain Youth Treatment Center has been excited to complete the requirements for becoming a Sanctuary Model Facility. How have you seen this shift the culture here?
“Oh my goodness,” Mickey begins. “It is amazing to see with the introduction of the Sanctuary Model how the staff has all connected with each other! I love to see this kind of interaction and connection with each other – and with me -I love it. We have this great new common language now,” says Mickey. “It has set everyone up for success! If I am taking a kiddo out and say to the therapist or their teacher, ‘Okay, I am taking so-and-so out, anything I need to be ware of that we should address in a gentle way?’ And the therapists or teacher opens up and we look for ways to give the kiddo a major win.”

“And,” Mickey continues, “if a kid has a really hard day and gets triggered we all jump in to help lift them up! This has kept us from working in little silos and we are all a part of this ONE team with the goal of Trauma-Informed Care.”

Q: It sounds like you’ve come a long way from that first pony visit at your son’s preschool?
“Oh gosh,” laughs Mickey. “I’m just an ole’ cowgirl. I bought my first horse when I was 28 years old. Bought my own little farm and raised my boys – I competed in barrel racing and team roping while raising my kids -they did gymkhanas. We would go for trail rides almost everyday after school. Even to this day when I think about that first moment with Callie our pony, I get chills. That moment changed my life and my sons lives. We got to see how transformational this connection can be. I will never forget that first little miracle that sparked all these other little miracles I have gotten to witness.”

Pictured left is Mickey and her son with “Spice.” In addition to being the Director of Equine Therapy at MMYTC, Mickey serves as an Arizona Ranger, Sargent of the Mounted Unit for Granite Mountain Company. She is also active in various Rodeos in AZ. For more information about Mingus Mountain Youth Treatment Center, visit our website www.mmytc.com