Cirque Lodge’s highly effective equine experience (US)
Cirque Lodge’s press release tells us the following:
SUNDANCE, UTAH — When most people think drug rehab, a horse is the last thing that would be on their minds. What does a horse have to do with treatment for alcohol and drug addiction? At Cirque Lodge in Sundance Utah, it has a lot to do with it. As a part of the drug rehab program, Cirque Lodge has implemented a premier equine experience as a piece of the overall therapy provided.
The Cirque program is an effective balance of treatment and experiential activities. These activities provide a replacement for many of the actions taken up by addiction and abuse of drugs and alcohol. The premier equine experience is just a small part of these daily implemented activities. No matter the time of year, residents in drug rehab can greatly benefit from the equine experience. The facilities provide both indoor and outdoor venues for this unique activity.
Residents have the opportunity to work with horses through a number of tasks. This can be a new and interesting thing for those who have never been around horses before. Many people think that the equine experience involves riding the horses. This is not the case. Rather the program involves learning a number of skills in working with horses and gaining their trust. It gives the resident a natural intervention, by working with another living creature.
Horses themselves are quite intelligent and magnificent creatures. They are submissive, but at the same time resilient to things they do not trust. A part of the equine experience is to learn to gain the horse’s trust. This is done through feedback, actions, and communication. When the horse trusts the individual, they are more likely to be submissive to the commands of that person. In this way, the drug rehab resident and horse can develop a connection that is highly therapeutic to a struggling mind.
A key component of the equine experience is in developing communication skills. Working with a horse is not easy for some. The Cirque Lodge experiential staff is there to help, but it involves learning proper communication. Alcohol and drug addiction is very isolating. It can be the hardest thing in the world to ask for help. The equine experience teaches a valuable lesson in the importance of trusting and relying on others when it comes to the addiction problem. So, now when drug rehab comes to mind, is the thought of horses such a difficult concept? To the graduates of the Cirque Lodge drug rehab program, it is integral aspect to their recovery.
You may remember, the Cirque is where Lindsay Lohan went for a spell of rehab last year.
People magazine reported last October:
Lindsay Lohan has checked out of the exclusive Cirque Lodge Treatment Center in Utah, where she has been since August, multiple sources, including both of her parents, confirm to PEOPLE.
“She’s finished the program,” one source says. “Lindsay is done, but she may come back for outpatient treatment. She over-extended her stay because she wanted to. She could have been out awhile ago, but she chose to stay.”
Source: On the web, TransWorldNews; Contact/Website: Email matt at cirquelodge dot com/www.cirquelodge.com;
People magazine.
