We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jacqui Lauko. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jacqui below.
Hi Jacqui , really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?
I found my purpose in learning to love myself with the help of my animals. As I grew up friends would come and go but my animals were stable. They showed me, unconditional love, whether I was pretty, popular, successful or not. They were happy every time I saw them and they showed the most powerful affection toward me. That type of love is something I have rarely found in a human. I have many loved ones now but they just don’t know how to love as animals do. My favorite quote is “You’ll never love your dog even 1/2 as much as they love you.” -unknown. After realizing the healing properties of animals I wanted to pair them with traditional counseling to improve that modality for people. I found I really enjoy working with children so pairing animals and children would be a perfect match. When I was first starting out partnering with horses wasn’t widely used as a therapy approach so I had to break some stigmas and barriers when I first started out. I knew this was my purpose in life so I had to make a living doing it! I did just that in 2014 and have been living my dream ever since! I also train and assess other therapists in the field who are looking to partner with horses. I say partner because we don’t “use” animals we need to put them right up there as equal.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I offer a unique form of psychotherapy called animal-assisted psychotherapy (dogs) and equine-assisted psychotherapy (horses). I have founded my practice on healing individuals with anxiety, Autism, ADHD, and some other sensory processing deficits people may have. Research has suggested 3 office-based therapy sessions are equivalent to 1 animal-assisted therapy session. In another analysis, it was found the benefits continue to develop 6 months after ending therapy. I incorporate many things into my healing process such as water therapy using the pool, hiking therapy, paddle boarding retreats, social outings, school support, and job hunting. I like to help clients in every aspect of their life so they can learn how to advocate for themselves and lead successful lives. We like to focus on holistic healing so the entire body is considered.
I have created The Icarus Mode ™ so I can teach other counselors and life coaches how to be successful when partnering with horses. I also like to teach ethical horse care when they are partnered with humans who have strong emotional trauma. I also like to be here as a support for them the first year as they start to work with clients so they have a mentor in the field. We strive for customer satisfaction so we are constantly growing and changing our practice to meet the needs of the ever-changing society.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
1. Dedication 2. Being a born people person
3. Looking outside of the box
I am of the belief that you have to be a born empath or people person in order to become a great counselor for children and young adults. There is so much your energy needs to offer these people to be effective healers. You also have to work so hard to become the best at your practice model so you know how to practice ethically. One model of therapy or one intervention doesn’t work for everyone. You must think in a different way to help these people because solutions aren’t always simple so we need to dig deeper. I spend much of my downtime thinking about how to help my clients or what I’m missing in their treatment.
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
There is a shortage of able-bodied clinicians with the time, money, personality type, and dedication to do this job. Not only do you have to have a master’s degree and state licensure but you also have to have a good knowledge of horses. You also have to have horses which are very expensive. In the last year horse feed has gone up 50% in our area which has made it a luxury to have a horse and feed them properly. This field is very demanding so putting the proper boundaries on clients is also hard because people really want you to be available 24/7 and that is just not feasible after the first few years. I was available 24/7 at first so I could build my name and practice but after doing this for 12 years I found I really need my downtime evenings and weekends. I also work with my interns to have a nice work-life balance to reduce counselor burnout which is so prevalent in this field. Luckily the schools are now starting to teach a bit more about burnout which I appreciate.
Contact Info:
- Website: skyetherapy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/icarusmodel1/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skyetherapy1
Image Credits
Eric Von Bargen & Julie Freeman & Erin Perre