equine assisted therapy Archives

Treating The Person, Not Just The Addiction

Treating The Person, Not Just The Addiction The whole person treatment approach to substance abuse recovery focuses on the balance of the spirit, mind, and body in order to achieve a healthy state of being. Oceanside Malibu Addiction Treatment Center offers various treatment approaches to help guide individuals or couples towards tailoring a unique treatment plan designed for healthier, more balanced outcomes in their lives. Throughout the course of recovery, an addict or alcoholic may encounter challenges beyond just dependency on a particular substance. A whole person treatment approach may guide a person towards better coping skills, accelerated healing, and a healthier outlook. A whole person treatment approach may also help to more »

Equine Assisted Therapy

At Oceanside Malibu, clients are afforded the opportunity to attend weekly sessions of equine assisted therapy with lead therapist Mark Frankle, M.A., LMFT. Equine assisted therapy is said to be both metaphorical and experiential. According to Mark, “the horses become metaphors for whatever the client is working on.” All of the client interactions with the horses take place on the ground and in a series of games with no actual riding taking place. Relationships, boundaries, anxiety and approach avoidance can all be observed during simple interactions with the horses such as touching or brushing them and simultaneously being aware of the feelings that come up during these interactions. It’s of more »

How Anxiety & Depression Are Similar

How Anxiety & Depression Are Similar If you’ve ever experienced anxiety and depression in the clinical sense, you’ll know that they can feel really different. With anxiety, you’re all ramped up…and with depression, you’re very, very down. Yet they tend to go together. And a lot of medications, especially certain types of antidepressants, can be used to treat both. We still don’t know a ton about how exactly anxiety and depression work in the brain or how antidepressants work to treat them. But over time, psychologists have come to realize that the two types of conditions are surprisingly similar. They may feel very different in the moment but they actually more »

Anhedonia: Not Feeling Pleasure In Sobriety

Anhedonia: Not Feeling Pleasure In Sobriety One of the major reasons why people relapse, especially in early recovery, is due to anhedonia and therefore a subsequent lack of knowledge of this issue . The best way to describe anhedonia is a state of ‘blah’. A current dissatisfaction with sobriety or somebody’s current reality. Anhedonia consists of two primary factors: The first is biochemical and the second is psychological. First let’s focus on the biochemical. When somebody ingest drugs or alcohol they release dopamine into the brain and this continues over a period of time, for years sometimes, and every time they put a drug in their body dopamine is released more »

Exercise and the Brain

Exercise and the Brain Apart from fitness, physical exercise also has beneficial effects on the brain. A regular routine of aerobic exercise can improve memory, thinking, skills, moods and have protective effects against aging, injuries and neurodegenerative disorders. It is noteworthy that these effects are specific to aerobic exercise, the kind of exercise that accelerates heart and respiratory rate such as running, cycling, swimming, etc. Non aerobic activities such as stretching or muscle building do not have the same effect. The positive effects of aerobic exercise appear to result from increased blood flow to the brain and subsequent increase in energy metabolism. It is worth noting that a certain degree more »

Signs You May Be An Empath Or Highly Sensitive Person

Signs You May Be An Empath Or Highly Sensitive Person An Empath or Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) are people who deeply feel the emotions of those around them. Just as introverts, empaths are likely to feel overwhelmed by crowds and loud noises. They are also prone to feeling drained and completely exhausted to the point of fatigue. Although introverts and empaths share many traits, there are several characteristics that distinguish empaths. An HSP is sensitive to many types of energies, and reacts emotionally to being over-stimulated. It’s not like you cry over spilt milk or anything, you just feel emotions – very deeply. If someone is telling you about an more »