When are sessions available?
We offer in-person sessions at Heartwood Meadows in Appomattox, Virginia and telehealth sessions for clients throughout Virginia and Maryland seven days a week. Please reach out to us so we may schedule based on your needs and our services.
What services are available?
Elevation Ecotherapy offers clinical services at Heartwood Meadows with animal-supported and nature-based interventions to clinically serve appropriate clients with their well-being goals. Our programs empower individualized strengths and the benefits of seeking harmony within nature.
Individual Psychotherapy
Specializing in Treating Anxiety, Depression, PTSD, Grief, ADHD and Veterinary-Related Counseling
Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Sessions (Nature and Animal Integrated Approach)
Family Counseling
Promoting Positive Communication and Empathy throughout the Family
Life-Coaching
Supporting Healthy Adapting and Growth through Life Transitions and Stressors (school, loss, career goals, divorce, compassion fatigue, relationships)
Support Groups
Social Skills Groups for Children
Trauma-Resilience Groups
Pet-Loss Support Groups
Services are optimized in-person on the land. We also offer the accessibility of virtual telehealth sessions applying similar frameworks to better serve clients throughout Virginia and Maryland.
Why work with nature during therapy?
Psychotherapy and counseling are effective treatments for many mental health challenges, so adding nature and animals to create an experiential approach may further optimize growth. Since animal-assisted therapy occurs outside in the natural environment, clients may also benefit from the calming and attention-boosting effects of spending time outdoors. When immersed in the environment and working together with animals, clients often find themselves more motivated to participate in treatment and connecting faster with the therapist in a supportive environment for growth. Animal-assisted therapies provide great opportunities for sensory connection and mind-body integration. Clients may find improved personal insight through metaphors drawn from herd interactions and gain collaborators to practice emotional-regulations strategies with their equine teammates. Not to mention, partnering with a 1,000-pound horse is rather empowering for confidence and independence!
What’s your philosophy in working with animals?
At Elevation Ecotherapy, we view animals as valuable collaborators in the sustainability of our farm system and stewards for growth—not simply tools to be used. Animals are sentient beings themselves, allowing for us to explore our own feelings and thoughts through the lens they provide in our interactions with them. All equines we work with are managed according to welfare-enhancing principles and equitation science to promote their own well-being and safety as they support you in achieving your own goals. Other animals within Heartwood Meadows are also managed according to their own, species-specific welfare-enhancing principles, encouraged to engage in enrichment activities and empowered for their autonomy.
What are your ethics for working with the land?
We humbly recognize the land as a significant partner in our work. Heartwood Meadows applies a systems approach to sustainably steward the holistic system of nature that includes the collaboration of diverse beings, plants and energies for greater resilience of all. The farm is located on the ancestral lands of the Monacan people.
What theoretical frameworks will you apply to therapy?
Our theoretical framework is rooted in a biophilia approach that offers that human beings intrinsically seek connections with nature and other living beings. Treatment planning reflects a holistic process of therapist and client working together to identify and shape goals and promote intrinsic strengths. Our approach is trauma-informed and evidence-based with continual evaluation for progress. We draw upon cognitive-behavioral therapy approaches to link thoughts-to-feelings-to-actions so we may target elements within client’s control. Mindfulness-based strategies compliment these cognitive-restructuring frameworks to build resiliency for life’s stressors through neuroplasticity. We incorporate logotherapy and acceptance and commitment theories to build a treatment plan with clients based on their individually-defined meanings and values.
What makes your team different?
It’s essential to find the therapist that fits with your individual needs and personality. At EE, your therapist is dually-fluent in both clinical therapy and animal-assisted interventions to maximize effectiveness and manage risk. When working with 1,000-pound animals, it’s imperative your therapist may evaluate safety and accurately interpret their behavior for your goals. Our therapist is trained in leading behavioral interventions at both Johns Hopkins Medicine and the National Institutes of Health, and she has achieved premier, board certifications in equine-assisted work from Certification Board for Equine Interaction Professionals and Professional Association for Therapeutic Horsemanship, Intl. Erin also holds certifications as a yoga teacher, Wilderness First Responder, Certified Therapeutic Riding Instructor and in permaculture design. Erin enjoys spending time in nature riding horses, trail running with her dog, and paddle-boarding. We are trained to serve diverse clients across the lifespan starting at the age of 4.
How do I get started with sessions?
You may give us a call at 804.586.4278 or send us a secure message here to begin the conversation.
What are sessions like?
Sessions highly depend on individual goals. For many clients, sessions will include meandering through our pastures and along our riparian areas, walking, talking and drawing enriching metaphors to their own lives as we interact with the animals, plants and land. To share just a few of the possibilities with our equines, our sessions may involve herd observation, mindful leading, or sensory grooming. If we’re working together through telehealth for greater access, you may anticipate potential integration of the animals and nature in your own life and the same strong clinical expertise. No matter how we connect, you may expect a safe, supportive environment to explore and process you experiences and grow towards greater well-being.
Our first session together is an evaluation session for an assessment of your needs, strengths and goals. It also provides time to get to know one another so we may each determine our fitness to work together. The therapeutic relationship between client and therapist is essential and we respect our approach won’t be a fit for everyone. If we all agree to engage in a therapeutic relationship following this evaluation session, we will schedule weekly sessions with together for a regular time on the farm to work together toward your goals.
What yields can I expect from sessions?
When working with Erin, clients can anticipate feeling empowered to realize their strengths, build resilience and find meaning through challenges with evidence-informed strategies tailored to their individualized goals and values. Erin integrates cognitive-behavioral and acceptance-commitment strategies to holistically promote the client’s well-being through a trauma-informed framework. Clients will practice using neuroscience-based tools for coping with life’s stressors including mindfulness techniques and developing the mind-body connection. You can expect Erin to have an inclusive, family-centered approach to care that also considers the role of the human-animal bond. Erin especially enjoys working with children and adolescents to build sustainable stress-management and emotional-regulation practices to adapt to trauma, divorce, transitions, conflict, and academic pressures with improved confidence and self-esteem.
Do you accept insurance?
Not at this time. However, Elevation Ecotherapy may provide receipts and superbills for services to clients to submit for potential reimbursements directly to their insurance as a claim. Many clients have success with reimbursement. Some clients may find it helpful to use the Better website for support in seeking healthcare reimbursement.
What am I investing?
We hope you’ll see that devoting resources for your well-being is investing in your future. For transparency, please consider our rates that value our expertise, environment and high-quality services.
Individual or Family Therapy & Coaching Sessions (1 hr) : $150
Group Sessions: $40
We believe healthcare is a fundamental-human right so we provide equitable access for all who want support. If your family’s current means limit you, we offer a sliding scale for our services to inclusively serve the community. A sliding scale is a tool for building economic justice that requires your active participation. A wide range of payment options across the scale promotes broader accessibility, while insuring fair compensation for expert services. Paying according to one’s available resources creates a more equitable system for pricing of services. The scale is intended to challenge barriers to health access on a local level.
For a general baseline of what to pay, please start with your household-annual income then continue reading below for additional considerations. If your household income is at the bottom of the sliding scale and the fees are too high for you please contact us for assistance. Please simply tell us at the scheduling of our first session, the amount you will be paying.
Fee for each session by Household-Annual Income:
Income under $20,000: $30
Income $20,000-30,000: $40
Income $30,000-40,000: $50
Income $40,000-50,000: $60
Income $50,000-60,000: $70
Income $60,000-70,000: $80
Income $70,000-80,000: $95
Income $80,000-90,000: $125
Income $90,000-100,000: $150
Income $100,000+: $165
Consider paying less on the scale if you:
are supporting children or have other dependents
have medical expenses not covered by insurance
are eligible for public assistance
are an elder with limited financial support
experience discrimination in hiring or pay level
Consider paying more on the scale if you:
own the home you live in
have investments, retirement accounts, or inherited money
travel for recreation
have access to family money and resources in times of need
work part time or are unemployed by choice, including unemployment due to full-time school in a
degree-earning program
have a relatively high degree of earning power due to level of education
What if I’m currently experiencing a mental-health emergency?
In the event of a mental-health emergency for you or a loved one, please call 911 and/or present to the nearest hospital for immediate care. Please also consider engaging with crisis resources available, depending on the nature and severity of your needs. Our contact information should not be used in an emergency since we cannot guarantee immediate availability and you deserve urgent care in a crisis. Due to the nature of our outdoor work with animals, we may not be a safe environment for someone in active psychiatric crisis so we may direct you to a higher level of care until stable.
What are your policies for diversity, equity and inclusion?
A diverse ecosystem is a healthy ecosystem. At Heartwood Meadows we advocate for diversity, integration and inclusivity in beings and plants. Elevation Ecotherapy honors diversity, and we do not discriminate based on race, sex, gender expression, religion, disability, sexual orientation, immigration status, military status, or anything else that divides us as people. We believe that everyone deserves equitable access to care and education, and we are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment to all. We actively encourage awareness of how others experience the world, to become conscious of their own privilege, and to empathize with all beings. We ask clients to treat all beings with respect and dignity.
What should I wear to sessions?
Please wear closed-toed shoes, preferably boots. All mounted activities require a ASTM-certified equestrian helmet, as well. Dress to feel comfortable walking around outside in whatever the day’s weather. Since the farm is in Virginia, this means wear layers and come prepared for a quick change in weather and to potentially get dirty.