“Some people leave footprints wherever they go—Laura Hutler leaves a trail of transformation. From summer camps to Natural Lifemanship, her...

“100% the best training I have ever attended in over a decade of practicing equine assisted psychotherapy!” – Jacquelyn Kaschel, Eagala Adv. MH/ES

By Bettina Shultz-Jobe and Kate Naylor Building Strong Roots We have had some chaotic weather in Texas these last few...

“Oh Mary,  where to even start?  When Mary is in her element, everything about her is pure magic.  Truly -...

During the Christmas season I usually become staunchly aware of how little time there really is.  I become nostalgic and....

Each month, we celebrate a remarkable member of our community. This time, our spotlight shines on Donna Wilson, a dedicated...

By Bettina Shultz-Jobe and Kate Naylor As a therapist or other healing practitioner interested in expanding their repertoire to include...

Our Co-Founder, Tim Jobe, recently spoke with the Horses & Humans Research Foundation about healing, consent, attunement, and so much more.

Each month, we take a moment to recognize one of our members who’s made an impact in our beloved community....

Co-authored by Rebecca J. Hubbard & Reccia Jobe with Pecan Creek Ranch Creating a safe place for clients to feel comfortable being...

Each month, we take a moment to recognize one of our members who’s made an impact in our beloved community....

What is a do-over? A do-over is a chance to correct a behavior, thought, or belief that interferes with the...

“The artful balance that Kate brings to everything she does is truly something to behold.  Whether she is teaching, facilitating,...

There's this popular saying that goes like this: Find what you love to do, and you'll never work a day...

By Kate Naylor and Bettina Shultz-Jobe “Equine therapy” is probably the most commonly used term to describe, well, just about...

“Tanner’s skillset is vast.  He is detail oriented, an amazing videographer and photographer, and impressive “out of the box” thinker....

When I was a pre-teen I was horse crazy. I had Breyer horses in my room and horse shoes with...

Each month, we take a moment to recognize one of our members who’s made an impact in our beloved community....

“I still have no idea how we convinced Laura to come work for NL over 8 years ago!  She is...

These boots are made for workin’ and that’s just what they’ll do. . . 🎶 You can learn so much...

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.  My sentimental heart loves this sweet little rhyme. I’m generally not superstitious,...

In 2020 the NL team got together on Zoom for a Christmas party.  One of our trainers, Courtney White, guided...

By Laura McFarland and Bettina Shultz-Jobe Natural Lifemanship Certification is a journey that involves taking the Fundamentals of NL and the...

I have a close, yet at times conflicted relationship with the creative process, as I suppose many of us do....

If you’re not familiar with the term Waiting on the Drive it’s probably because you have never helped gather cattle in...

Every month, we take a moment to recognize one of our members who’s made an impact in our beloved community....

Each month we take a moment to recognize one of our members who’s made an impact in our beloved community....

I have been perusing this year’s Sacred Landscapes conference schedule that is under construction, and all I can say is...

We have an exciting new monthly feature, our Member Spotlight, where we take a moment to recognize one of our...

While it can cause plenty of frustration (for both professionals, researchers, and clients alike), we find time and again that...

One of our dedicated Natural Lifemanship practitioners, Sarah Willeman Doran, recently authored a chapter in the new book, Integrating Horses...

We are beyond thrilled to share an amazing new resource for the field edited by Cheryl Meola. We had the...

This week, we opened registration for the NL Intensive. One of the big questions we always get from our community...

“Every act of creation is first an act of destruction.” -Pablo Picasso       We often speak about the...

By Kate Naylor and Bettina Shultz-Jobe   A heartbeat. Waves rolling in and out on a sandy beach. The rising...

This past August I attended the 2022 HHRF research conference – a conference about horses and human research. I joined...

So, I’m in Walmart, slowly picking up my pace among thousands of frenetic shoppers. I am already walking with a...

You may have heard of the Natural Lifemanship Connection Kits and you may be wondering what, exactly, they are, what...

What is Contemplation? I think therefore I am……  Or is it, I am therefore I think?  If I don’t think,...

“We believe in the important work of Natural Lifemanship and have been coming together in prayer about how we can...

Our membership circle is growing—so we found a guide to help lead the way.  Meet Clair Gose, a lifelong horse...

How can something like this happen?   If you are anything like me, you have been wrestling with this question...

We are so pleased to announce that our Natural Lifemanship team has been published again!  A lovely new resource is...

By Kate Naylor and Bettina Shultz-Jobe   Natural Lifemanship is a training and mentoring institute focused on the science and...

Natural Lifemanship® has evolved—and our new branding reflects these changes.  It is my deepest hope that these changes stir a...

You’ve likely heard the exciting news! The Natural Lifemanship Institute has evolved its brand and is subsequently transforming to better...

In any professional field, there are always going to be a slew of terms and acronyms that are routinely used...

Recently, I was watching the inspiring Netflix series Queer Eye, a heartwarming reality show that focuses on supporting people in...

                    “Walk the walk, don’t just talk the talk” “Practice what...

“What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” And be...

By Bettina Shultz-Jobe and Tim Jobe   On August 7th, 2010, Tim and I were married.  We had a sunrise...

By Sarah Willeman Doran   “Being human is about being in the right kinds of relationships,” said John A. Powell,...

By Laura McFarland The following is an excerpt from the Natural Lifemanship Manual.  Our manual is intended to serve as...

By Bettina Shultz-Jobe, Tim Jobe, Kate Naylor, and Laura McFarland   The following is an excerpt from the Natural Lifemanship...

“NL continues to be the gold standard for training in EAP and continues to show that their principles and the...

For Annie  Outside my window, I hear Abilene take three deep horse breaths. She is sunning her mud-caked body at...

Rarely do we experience collective grief that moves beyond ourselves, our families, our communities, and across oceans.   This past...

By Bettina Shultz-Jobe and Kathleen Choe    “Love, where it ever existed before, doesn't cease to exist. To speak of...

The recent global pandemic forced us to. . .   Pause.   Reflect.  Connect.  Cry a little (or a lot...

In December 2020, The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine published an article entitled, "Optimal Terminology for Services in the...

By Kate Naylor and Bettina Shultz-Jobe   Jumping into the field of Equine Assisted Therapy (EAT), Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP),...

Holy Schmoly, y’all!  The conference was even better than I had imagined. And my imagination is pretty darn good!  ...

This year Natural Lifemanship had its first-ever virtual conference.  It was our intention to connect virtually in the same way...

By Bettina Shultz-Jobe and Kate Naylor   We know that Interconnected 2020 will take place online.  We also know that...

This year, our Interconnected 2020 conference will be virtual. This means that the speakers you watch and the workshops you...

The picture you see at the top of this blog is of my husband, Tim Jobe, Frieda on the left,...

Dear NL Community, Is it just me, or is this whole pandemic lasting FOREVER???  Did anyone ever dream we would...

Our current world is confusing, conflicted, and chaotic, to say the least.  Images of peaceful protests marred by violence, looting,...

WOW!  That is all I can say as we wrap our second cohort of the fully online Virtual Fundamentals of...

By Bettina Shultz-Jobe and Kate Naylor   We at The Natural Lifemanship Institute believe deeply in the power of relationships...

One of my now-favorite yoga instructors leads her students through a series of poses several times at the beginning of...

Across the country, across the globe, we are starting to make decisions about “opening up” and getting back to “normal”. ...

Kate Naylor is an LMFT, wife, mother, daughter, sister, and the NL Director of Trainer Development and Community Engagement.  This...

This is a letter Michael Remole, NL trainer, recently sent to his clients.  We were touched.  We related, and we...

After weeks of seeming stasis, were sheltering in place, physical distancing, online learning, working remotely, wearing masks in public, and...

I recently watched the movie “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,” based on the true story of friendship between Fred...

This past week I am struck by how many of you have told me you are feeling lonely.  Some of...

Many of us are finding that we are reaching our limits with the mental, emotional, physical, spiritual, and financial impact...

By Kate Naylor and Bettina Shultz-Jobe   In times of great grief, anxiety, stress, or fear why does it seem...

By Bettina Shultz-Jobe and Kate Naylor   We, at Natural Lifemanship, are seeing so many memes and posts encouraging people...

I think most of us are familiar with the sensation of panic: Whether it’s a brief moment of panic like...

Sara Sherman is the founder of and a coach at Discovery Horse Our business, Discovery Horse, has been doing a...

The horse doesn’t know who the client is!  This is precisely why those of us offering healing services in this...

One of our greatest joys at The Natural Lifemanship Institute is hearing how our trainings have opened people’s eyes and...

When I was 23 years old and life was truly grand, on a beautiful fall day in Denver, Colorado, my...

  By Kathleen Choe and Tanner Jobe Recently, Tanner and I had an experience in an Equine Assisted Psychotherapy session...

In this field, it is not uncommon to hear people answer the question “Why Horses?” with some variation of how...

Lately, I have been pondering what I am calling the principle of development.  Development of an embryo.  Of an infant....

By Kate Naylor & Bettina Shultz-Jobe A couple weeks ago, we shared this meme created by Our Mama Village about...

In December 2017, I attended my first NL Intensive training in Brenham, TX. I’m pretty sure it was day two,...

NL Trainer, Michael Remole, describes a time in his life when technology made him really stop and think about the intricacies of connection.

The Ride, a poem about the special horse-human relationship from Kelli Adams of the Barnabas Horse Foundation.

Natural Lifemanship training for those who wish the gift of being our truest-selves, deepen spiritual connection & help others.

The Fundamentals of Natural Lifemanship is based on healing trauma through connected relationships

After 20 years of searching, Natural Lifemanship has helped me to trust myself to confidently embrace & facilitate the horse/human connection.

NL Trainer, Cindy-Skelton Hodge life-changing experience with Pete, her equine partner, at a Natural Lifemanship Rhythmic Riding Immersion training.

Bettina ponders the nature of miracles and reflects upon the vulnerability and bravery required to take the risks a miracle demands.

Cross-brain connections literally saved my life - a personal account of how improved brain integration saved my life during a perilous personal assault

Deification is still objectification- deifying horses, while seemingly kinder to the horse, still serves to objectify and demean them. There's a better way.

My horse is NOT my therapist. An NL trainer reflects on the claims people make about horses being their therapists and what it means for the horse and human relationship.

Don't Shoot Me, I'm thinking -Tim Jobe explains what happens in our brains when we are confronted with beliefs contrary to ours.

Bettina explains how her child helped her understand that secure attachment extends beyond relationships.

Natural Lifemanship principles for building connected relationships apply in our spiritual intimacy. Our connected relationship with God grows through connection through detachment.

Dropping the saddle to find a connection. "Oliver realized that his agenda to ride was taking him further away from what he desired most, connection."

Connection over prejudice, "Our prejudices and fears had been challenged by her self-confidence and insistence that we treat her like a normal horse."

Amy share's her personal experience with Natural Lifemanship and genuine connection to herself, a horse, and a community at the 2017 NL Conference.

Rebecca J. Hubbard ponders what politics would be like if political parties applied Natural Lifemanship principles

Sarah Schlote explores the animal's ability to consent and discusses the function of a horse's consent in equine assisted practices.

The greatest lesson my dog is teaching me is that building a relationship... doesn’t just take time, it takes intentionality over time.

The Natural Lifemanship approach to building relationships between horses and humans is based on the horse's choice of connection.

What does Natural Lifemanship (NL), a model that trains people in trauma-focused equine assisted psychotherapy and equine-assisted trauma informed care...

The fundamental principles for all relationships, and the foundation of our Faith, Hope, and Love trauma-informed care learned and honed through the Make Way Partners relationship with Natural Lifemanship.

Claire Hunter recounts a story about recognizing the difference between cooperation and dissociation in the relationship with her horse Partner.

Riding a horse has benefits that cannot be obtained by other means and is contraindicated when it is not done in a connecting and mutually beneficial way.

Natural Lifemanship Trainer, Kathleen Choe links addiction to disorders of connection and explains the detriments of those addictions to our brains.

Bettina Shultz-Jobe, Co-Founder of Natural Lifemanship, reflects on the challenges of practicing the idealistic principles that Natural Lifemanship teaches.

Natural Lifemanship trainer Reccia Jobe describes some signs of dissociation and submission to look for in your horse.

Kathleen Choe describes how one client overcame traumatic abuse through Natural Lifemanship and Trauma Focused Equine Assisted Psychotherapy.

The beliefs and intentions of Natural Horsemanship and NL are not the same but both have important places in the world of horses

Study suggests that riding horses improved the child’s ability to exercise self-control, but it depended on whether or not a stress response was activated.

Change does not happen in a state of comfort. If it is more of a problem for the parents than it is for the child, why would the child be invested in changing? 

How is asking for a connection from a human or horse who seems unwilling and unhappy about giving it still good for the relationship?

Allowing the process to unfold organically means attachment and detachment happen in every move that we make within a healthy relationship.

Brave spaces help clients clients learn how to take the reins of their life and move forward in ways that are healthy and sustainable.

Kathleen Choe describes her first Natural LIfemanship Fundamentals Training that demonstrated connection with the horse through attachment.

Trauma Informed Care is a shift from behavior modification approaches revolving around consequences and rewards, to approaches that focus on building a healthy relationship

We engage in this dance of a relationship through moments of pressure – requests made by one to the other.  When it is done appropriately, the pressure is not harmful or frightentening

Rhonda Smith of Spirit Reins, a non-profit that provides treatment to children and families who have experienced traumatic events interviews Buck, the main character in the book, The Gift, at his home pasture

Do-overs are a chance to correct a behavior, thought, or belief that interferes with the types of relationships we want to have. They are chances to practice something different.

Buck meets Pip, an Excerpt from Rebecca Hubbard's book, The Gift

A poem by Tim Jobs describing how a connection gave both a man and a horse a Second Chance

People who do everything they can to meet the needs of their horse but never ask the horse to meet any of their needs.

If we assign the role of a mirror to horses we are robbing them of an active status in the relationship.