These are our licensed professionals. To schedule an appointment with a licensed professional counselor or psychologist, please review the information below, and contact the therapists directly. Our therapy teams consist of a licensed professional and a trained Equine Professional.
Dr. Eve Merrill received her BA in psychology from the University of Colorado in 1996 and went on to earn her doctorate in clinical-child/school psychology from Yeshiva University in 2003. She specializes in working with children, teens, and families and has worked with these populations in a variety of settings including inpatient hospitals, residential treatment centers, and private practice. Dr. Merrill is a nature lover and has always been happiest connecting to nature. When she was introduced to the Natural Lifemanship model of Trauma-Focused Equine Assisted Psychotherapy, she knew she had found what was missing from her therapy office. Dr. Merrill enjoys helping children, teens, and families find how to survive childhood, because we all know it can be a bumpy ride! http://www.evemerrill.com/
Kathleen Choe, Licensed Professional Counselor – Supervisor, has provided traditional talk therapy in various agency and private practice settings for the past 20 years. When Kathleen was introduced to the Natural Lifemanship model of Trauma-Focused Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (TF-EAP), she knew this was the experiential component of therapy that she had been seeking to better help her clients work through their relational wounds and other challenges. Certified in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), a therapy protocol shown to be very effective in treating trauma, Kathleen is able to combine TF-EAP with EMDR, enhancing the effectiveness of both treatment modalities. Combining the healing power of horses with proven therapy approaches provides a powerful opportunity for clients to work through the issues that interfere with living purposefully and joyfully. http://www.kathleenchoe.com/
Ryan Authier
Ryan Authier – I specialize in treating trauma, anxiety, depression, chronic stress and other issues through nature-based, equine-assisted and more traditional models of therapy. I pull from a toolbox of modalities including somatic experiencing, mindfulness practices, EMDR, CBT and TF-CBT, sand tray, play therapy, The NeuroAffective Relational Model and others in order to meet the needs of you, my client, no matter what those needs may be.
I recently completed training and certification to become a facilitator in Dr. Brené Brown’s The Daring Way model. Through this work, I’ve come to understand deeply the roles that shame, vulnerability, empathy and courage play on the journey to live a more deeply fulfilled and wholehearted life. I love integrating this model into my work with children, teens, families and adults. It has been an eye-opening shift in my therapeutic approach and helped me better understand issues that underlie each and every one of us. https://ryanauthier.com/