Healing Through Presence - Interview with Belle Shook: A Somatic & Trauma-Informed Look at Connection With Horses
In this powerful episode of Equine Connection: The Art of Heart-Centered Horsemanship, I’m joined by visionary trauma therapist and equine healing pioneer Belle Shook of Equine Guidance®.
Together, we explore what it really means to connect through presence, not performance, and how horses respond to the unspoken messages our nervous systems carry.
We talk about:
- How an intuitive approach to equine-guided work opens the doors to incredibly insightful and life-changing experiences
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How horses mirror trauma responses like freeze, hypervigilance, and shutdown
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The difference between emotional presence and somatic presence, and why that distinction changes everything
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What safety, consent, and regulation feels like in the body (for both horse and human)
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Simple ways you can begin noticing your own nervous system patterns with your horse, even if you’re not in therapy
Whether you're a liberty trainer, a sensitive rider, or a curious horse lover wanting to deepen your relationship, this episode will open a new layer of understanding.
🧡 Because healing doesn’t always come through doing more. Sometimes, it begins in stillness.
🎙️ Guest: Belle Shook, MC, NCC, LPC, SEP, NARM, BCC
📍 Equine Guidance® – Sedona, Arizona
🔗 Website: www.equineguidance.com
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📌 ABOUT Belle Shook, MC, NCC, LPC, SEP, NARM, BCC
Belle has been a visionary in Equine Therapy since 1998. As a master healer, she delivers a somatic trauma-informed approach. The Equine Guidance® Method engages the participant's innate healing intelligence to dissolve trauma energy from the participant's neurobiology. She integrates over ten years of trauma training as a Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner, PIT, EMDR, and NARM® Master Therapist. Belle has been a licensed counselor since 2008, a board-certified coach, EAGALA accredited, and an EponaQuest Worldwide Advanced Instructor. Belle established Equine Guidance® in Sedona, Arizona, in 2004.
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