Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) for Addiction | Proposal

equid Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) for Addiction ProposalEquine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) Can EAP help in the treatment of screwballion?If one looks at the statistics for addiction, it is staggering. The annual cost to the NHS for alcohol abuse alone is 3 billion, with an estimated population of recreational or addicted users of illegitimate drugs at 50 million (Breaking the cycle, 2006). The annual cost to Wales and England from drug abuse is greater than 18.8 billion (Breaking the cycle, 2006).Goodman (1990) defines addiction to include the addicts inability or failure to determine their own behaviour and the continuation of said behaviour despite the presence of negative behavioural consequences. Addictions address umteen forms of deviant behaviour ranging from recreational or pharmaceutical drug use to gambling to sex to overeating. While the mechanism of addiction may vary, the profile of the addict is similar. Therefore, treatments to effectively treat addictions atom ic number 18 critical.Although cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and/or the use of pharmaceutical agents are ofttimes prescribed to treat the addict, two of these rules are costly, potbelly prove invasive and are time consuming than EAP, one of the newer alternative treatments for addicts (Horse index, 2005).The origins of EAP began over 200 years ago when German physicians employed horseback riding for the treatment of hysteria related mental illness (Riede, 1988 as cited by Frewin Gardiner, 2005). While the employment of horseback riding has been shown to help the physical, psychomotor and psychological realms of the patient, EAP does not include horseback riding. Instead it incorporates exercises using the horse as a barometer.Researchers (Christensen, 2006 Schultz, Remick-Barlow Robbins, 2007 Frewin and Gardiner, 2005 Vidrine, Owen-Smith Faulkner, 2002) tell us that horses provide an immediate sense of feedback through their actions to the addict, often called mirrorin g that allows the addict to immediately realize what it is in their own behaviour that cause the reaction it did in the horse. The client is encouraged to use interpretation and insight so that they locoweed start developing new ways of being around the horse, with themselves and in society. This allows the therapist to both see the horse as a cure aid, but also a more important diagnostic tool (Thompson, 2005). Research (Thompson, 2005 Equine assisted activities, 2006) tells us that when the patient learns how to connect with and automatically control the horse, they have the opportunity to learn how to control and better understand themselves. Mann and Williams (2002 as cited by Frewin Gardiner, 2005) cite an 82 percent improvement rate in conduct, sense of humor and psychotic manifestations in patients who have tried conventional therapies for many years.The EAP basis for treatment of addictions believes that if you act on an addiction, you are most likely not machine-access ible to your own sense of emotions and self. Connecting with the horse requires that you do (Lavender, 2005 as cited by Thompson, 2005). EAP has been successfully used in the treatment of addiction by many famous salient personalities, such as Sophie Anderton, Be Affleck, Christian Slater and Robert Downey Jr. (Thompson, 2005) helping to increase their sense of self-esteem, personal confidence, interpersonal effectiveness, trust, boundaries and limit setting all of which are lacking in the addict, creating the weakness and dependency on detrimental substances or behaviour.Many addicted individuals do not seek treatment however, for those that do, often the carry is 18 months or longer due to the limited funding for mental health treatment in the UK (Addition Today, 2007) whereas EAP is available at The Priory, a northernmost London clinic. As alternatives to standard NHS sponsored CBT and pharmaceutical treatment are sorely needed, this dissertation proposes interrogation into t he effectivity of EAP in the treatment of addiction.AimsThis dissertation asks the following research questionsIs it possible to prove the therapeutic efficacy of EAP?Is EAP an effective and quicker therapeutic substitute for the treatment of addictions than cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT)?Is EAP helpful in the treatment of addictions? found on answering these research questions this dissertation seeks to prove the following two hypothesesThose suffering from addictions find EAP is a powerful and effective therapeutic technique for the treatment of their addictions.Those providing treatment find EAP an ethical approach to the treatment of addictions.MethodResearch for this dissertation will consist of a formal publications review and a dual-leg qualitative study.The literature review will be conducted using a series of academic searches for information through library systems, online academic systems and other subscription found professional research databases, such as Questia o r Highbeam. Similarly, professional psychological and medical sites and associations will be reviewed for current literature as well as those professional sites developed for specialized research into alcohol addiction and related topics. Governmental, national and world health associations will also be reviewed for current literature as well as research and development efforts and governmental initiatives. All articles chosen must be written in English, be published in the last 15 years, be published in professional journals and be authored by credible and qualified professionals in their respective fields.Following the literature review, this investigator will conduct a dual leg qualitative study composed of both interpersonal interviews and a survey instrument. Addicts who have participated in both standard treatment and EAP will be utilized for interviews and will be recruited through notices posted at EAP treatment centres, 12 step recovery meeting. after signing appropriate w aivers for both taping the interviews and potentially using quotations as appropriate from interviews, interviewees will be asked a series of questions designed to elicit unrestricted responses. All care will be taken to prevent researcher parti pris by asking each participant the like questions in the same manner and order. Survey participants will be comprised of therapists specialising in addiction and will be recruited through direct mailings to therapists and therapy centres specialising in addiction with questions on the instrument focalization on treatment for addiction, efficacy of CBT, efficacy of pharmaceutical agents, efficacy of EAP and the ethical considerations of each treatment mode.Although a phenomenological approach has limitations due to potential researcher bias in theme identification and in participants self-reporting what they believe the research wants to hear, Gorgio (2002, p. 136) believes effective researchers can identify and obtain a clarification of the conditions from human subjects the descriptive phenomenological method implements this strategy. Indeed, it is an extension of the very spirit of science. Ashworth (2003, p. 145) tells us that phenomenological psychology in the UK focuses on the interrogation of real world experiences, such that both participant and researcher can focusing on the problems or situation and apply meaning based on context and content.AnalysisConsistent with a phenomenological approach, the analysis will be performed through the use of theme identification when reviewing group interview transcripts from which to prove or disprove the dissertation hypothesis. Questionnaires will be statistically analysed using frequency distributions based on the Likert-scale responses.Workplan*May vary slightly due to holiday schedulesReferencesThe Addiction Recovery tail. (2007). Addiction Today. Retrieved 14 August 2007, from The Addiction Recovery Foundation website http//www.addictiontoday.orgAshworth, P. (200 3). An approach to phenomenological psychology The contingencies of lifeworld. Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, 34(2), 145 156.Breaking the Cycle of Addiction. (2006). The Living Room. Retrieved 14 August 2007, from The Living Room website http//thelivingroom.me.uk/stats.htmChristensen, M. (2006, 25 April). The healing power of horses Equine therapy helps emotionally distressed. Times-News (Twin Falls, Idaho). Retrieved 14 August 2007, from the Highbeam professional database website httpEquine assisted activities. (2006). Palaestra, 22(3), 48.Frewin, K. Gardiner, B. (2005). New age or old sage? A review of equine assisted psychotherapy. Australian Journal of Counselling and Psychology, 6, 13 17.Goodman, A. (1990). Addiction Definition and implications. British Journal of Addiction, 85(11), 1403 1408.Gorgio, A. (2002). The question of validity in qualitative research. Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, 33(4), 135-147.Horse power Olivia Stewart-Liberty was at the end o f her tether until she tried a new therapy thats already a hit in Hollywood. Meet the four-legged therapist who got her back in the saddle. (2005, 18 November). The Evening Standard (London, England). Retrieved 14 August 2007, from the Highbeam professional database website http//www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-2581505.htmlSchultz, P. N., Remick-Barlow, G. A. Robbins, L. (2007). Equine assisted psychotherapy A mental health promotion/intervention modality for children who have experienced intra-family violence. Health and Social Care in the Community 15(3), 265 271.Thompson, J. (2005, 23 October). The Priory enlists horses to treat the anxious, the angry and the The Independent on Sunday. Retrieved 14 August 2007, from The Findarticles database website http//findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4159/is_20051023/ai_n15720133Vidrine, M. I., Owen-Smith, P. Faulkner, P. (2002). Equine-facilitated group psychotherapy Applications for therapeutic vaulting. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 23(6), 587 603.