Natural Lifemanship® Intensive Practicum
Learning, Doing, and Being Are Different.
When It Comes to Equine Assisted Therapy and Learning, You Must Practice All Three.
You’ve spent time, money, energy, and heart building the foundation for your healing practice.
The techniques and principles you’ve learned have already begun to transform your clients—and yourself.
Now it’s time to practice what you’ve learned with the skilled and compassionate direction of seasoned NL professionals. Make requests, build connection, and refine communication with a horse. Pause. Breathe. Move. Sink into the nuance and gain valuable insight from professionals who will guide you as you work (and play!)
The Intensive Practicum is our heart and soul.
At the Natural Lifemanship Institute, we have spent over a decade teaching our exclusive *TI-EAT, *TF-EAP and *TI-EAL based Fundamentals training to mental health professionals, life coaches, equine professionals, and others in the healing professions. Learn more about our terminology here.
Now, you can learn the powerful process we’ve developed for creating deep, connected relationships based on our unique principles—and implement it into your own life and practice.
*Want to learn more about the terminology we use? You can find it all here.
Designed by Natural Lifemanship, this in-person experience places you in the pasture or the pen and accompanies you as you apply your skills of connected horsemanship, relationship building and deepening—using NL’s powerful techniques and ethically-based principles.
Following 15 weeks of intense online learning, you’ll have hands-on opportunities to dive deep into your practice, and receive in-the-moment feedback from experienced NL professionals, so you can practice with confidence and competence.
“The Intensive Practicum really brought the online learning information together in the most meaningful way. This was a very powerful training––one of the best I have ever attended.”
Dr. Sarah Cairns
Psychologist, Cairns Therapy and Nutrition
It takes intention and practice to become a therapeutic presence and skilled guide. Here’s how we prepare you.
Hands-on Experience: Growth through applied practice is the foundation for ethical therapy.
- Build on your foundational knowledge and develop the feel of a healthy relationship. We can only take clients where we, ourselves, have been. When we can profoundly sense what connection truly is, we can then more effectively guide our clients on their journey.
- Practice healthy connection with consent, through observation, closeness (attachment), and distance (detachment). Focus on things like subtle communication, touch, haltering, saddling, mounting and rhythmic riding (if appropriate) – with a TON of support and in vivo guidance from seasoned NL professionals!
Skill Building: Refine your skills through the support, guidance, and expertise of NL trainers.
- Enhance your understanding of relationships and the neurobiology of trauma. The better you understand the science behind your practice, the more effective you will be as a practitioner.
- Focus on body awareness, body energy, and presence. Though taught in your online courses, this is best experienced and felt with our best teachers—the horses.
- Become more attuned to your own regulation and intention, while remaining mindful of the consent, engagement, and connection with your horse. After all, who we are in session is more important than what we do!
Community: Interact with others who share your passion for horses and healing.
- Meet other mental health professionals, equine professionals, and people with a passion for supporting healing through trauma-informed care.
- Experience both client and facilitator roles in partnership with other participants.
- Build a network of EAP practitioners and like-minded professionals.
Intensive Practicum
(3 Days) – $899
To attend this practicum, you need to have completed the online Natural Lifemanship Intensive (Foundations or Core)
- Experience Three Days of invaluable training with Natural Lifemanship trainers.
- Receive 21 Hours of guidance and experiential education with valuable feedback.
- You MUST complete the online NL Intensive before attending this in-person training.
- Training groups are limited to 12 people (numbers could be reduced further due to COVID restrictions or recommendations).
“Thank you Natural Lifemanship for the chance to feel what connection is in its simplest form; to learn how to ask for it, how to receive it, how to build and maintain it, how to repair it, and how to slowly hold more of it when my nervous system is showing I can’t yet. What a wonderful gift to become aware of how we are embodied, and to receive help when we want to embody something different.”
Kristina Jareno
This is where you learn by doing and by being.
Our beautiful locations throughout the U.S. were carefully chosen to provide you with the sight, smell, and feel of this powerful and transformative work.
Listed below are the locations and dates to help you choose the best practicum for you.
2024 Intensive Practicums
Dates and Locations
Trainers may be subject to change
February 9-11, 2024
Natural Lifemanship Headquarters
Brenham, Texas
Trainers: Tim Jobe, Bettina Shultz-Jobe, & Tanner Jobe
May 24-26, 2024
Horse Sense of the Carolinas
Marshall, North Carolina
Trainers: Shannon Knapp, Gabby Remole & Jenn Pagone
August 23-25, 2024
Horse Sense of the Carolinas
Marshall, NC
Trainers: Shannon Knapp, Gabby Remole, and Tanner Jobe
September 19-21, 2024
Natural Lifemanship Headquarters
Brenham, TX
Trainers: Beverly Walsh, Courtney White, and Tanner Jobe
Approved Training Provider
Learn more about earning CE credits through NBCC.
Not ready to commit to a specific date and location?
We have you covered!
Purchase a voucher today – and use your voucher to reserve your spot at a specific practicum at a later date.
Meet the Professionals Who Will Guide and Support You
Tim Jobe
NL Co-Founder; Over 40 years training horses and effectively partnering horses with humans to promote healing and healthy relationships
Bettina Shultz-Jobe, LPC, NBCC
NL Co-Founder; LPC, Over 18 years experience effectively treating traumatized populations through EAP and complementary therapeutic modalities
Tanner Jobe
NL Director of Equine Professional (EP) Development & Director of Media; Lifetime of training experience with young and/or untrained horses
Kate Naylor
NL Director of Trainer Development and Community Engagement; LMFT and lifetime of horse experience in multiple disciplines including eventing, dressage, and polo; specializes in children and families
Courtney White
Seven years experience co-facilitating TF-EAP sessions in the drug and alcohol treatment industry
Kathleen Choe
LPC-S; Over 20 years experience providing mental health therapy in clinical settings, including through TF-EAP; specializes in eating disorders
Sara Sherman
Two decades of professional equine assisted coaching with a focus on youth and families in group and individual settings
Shannon Knapp
Over 30 years of experience teaching horses and people; Over 20 years rescuing horses and pairing rescued horses in EAP work
Cindy-Skelton Hodge
Seven years experience co-facilitating TF-EAP sessions with primarily veterans and first responders
Reccia Jobe
Over 12 years experience co-facilitating TF- EAP sessions with traumatized populations, especially children, adolescents, and families; lifetime of horse experience
Britt Palmer
Lifelong horse person/competitor; Licensed LMFT and LPC; Specializes in trauma/PTSD, attachment difficulties, and eating disorders
Beverly Walsh
Ph.D., LPC; Currently has full EAP/EAL private practice working with children, teens and families; Specializes in ADHD, Mood Disorders, ASD, and Parenting Issues
Rebecca Hubbard
LMFT; Since 1994, has provided therapy for hundreds of traumatized children and families; Specializes in TF-EAP
Gabby Remole
LCSW; Over 13 years experience as an adoption caseworker; specializes in children and families; lifetime of horse experience
Jennifer (Weiss) McPeak
Experienced equine professional with 20+ years in both recreational riding and training; 10 years experience doing TF-EAP with children, adolescents, and their caregivers
Kendra Twitty
LPC with over 19 years of specializing in working with developmental and complex trauma
FAQ
Q: Are there prerequisites for the in-person training add-on?
Yes. You must complete the Natural Lifemanship Intensive (Foundations or Core) training before attending the Intensive Practicum. This ensures you have received the education and training needed to work directly with horses and practice your newly acquired skills.
Q: Is the in-person training a requirement for completing certification?
No. You can complete your certification 100% online. This provides an additional way to complete the experiential portion of your training and is highly recommended for those who prefer an in-person training experience.
Q: Why should I reserve my spot NOW rather than wait?
We are taking every precaution to ensure your safety. Therefore, our training groups will be intimate and space will be limited. As long as you will complete half of your virtual training prior to attending the in-person training, we recommend you reserve your spot quickly.
Q: How many people will be at an in-person training?
To keep within our safety guidelines and to provide you more intimate and focused attention, we will keep our training groups to no more than 12 participants.
Q: If I completed an Intensive training (blended or not), but not the current virtual offering, can I attend the practicum?
The Natural Lifemanship Intensive training includes an enormous amount of material that you did not learn in the previous training, so attending the current virtual training prior to coming to the practicum is required and will ensure your time spent on-site is focused on practice and deepening your experiential learning.
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