How Horses Help Children and Young Women Build Confidence, Trust, and Connection
Founder of Healing Steps Equine Therapy Dr. Kelsey Herman can explain the science behind almost everything that happens at her therapeutic barn.
From the nervous system to the therapeutic benefits of a horse’s movement, her work is grounded in evidence-based occupational therapy.
That’s about 90 percent of it. The other 10 percent? Kelsey calls it “the magic of horses.”
She saw that magic in a seven-year-old boy who had lived in 13 foster homes. When he arrived at Healing Steps, he was guarded and reluctant to trust another adult.
Then he met Nova.
The horse had her own history of trauma and neglect, moving through 12 or 13 homes before the age of two. As the boy petted Nova, Kelsey told him her story.
“Wait a second,” he said. “So, nobody wanted this horse? And now this horse is here, and you wanted this horse?”
Kelsey assured him they did. He pointed to the woman preparing to adopt him and said, “That lady picked me. She’s going to adopt me. We’re like the same.”
Something changed.
“For whatever reason, that connection with that horse was what he needed to relax and let his guard down and participate,” Kelsey said.
Within six months, he completed the program. Today, she says, he is thriving.
Where Science Meets Something More
Kelsey founded Healing Steps by bringing together two things she loved: occupational therapy and horses. Today, the therapeutic barn helps children and adults build skills, confidence, and independence in an environment that can offer something different from a traditional clinic.
“A horse doesn’t judge. A horse is so honest. A horse is so aware,” Kelsey said.
Horses also become mirrors, responding to a person’s emotions and creating opportunities to practice regulation, communication, and trust without judgment.
“When a horse chooses to be your partner, chooses to do what you ask, chooses to interact with you, I think that’s a little bit of that horse magic,” she said. “There’s nothing better than feeling chosen.”
This year, Royal Neighbors of America® is awarding Healing Steps Equine Therapy a $20,000 Nation of Neighbors℠ grant to expand therapeutic summer camps and launch new small-group programming for girls and young women. The grant will help bring Kelsey’s vision to more children and young women, creating additional opportunities to build confidence, develop social skills, and find a sense of belonging.
The new groups will create a safe place to practice social skills, build confidence, and find community—particularly for young people who have experienced trauma, are neurodivergent, or struggle socially.
“If your nervous system is in fight or flight, you can’t learn,” Kelsey said. “Our barn creates an opportunity for individuals to come and safely learn to do something that’s really scary.”
The funding will also allow Healing Steps to reach more families. Previously, the organization could afford only one week of summer camp, and it had never been able to offer the girls’ group. When the new program was announced, approximately 12 young people expressed interest almost immediately.
The Quiet Moments
Healing Steps has grown dramatically in just six years, adding a nonprofit arm, a larger barn, additional therapists, and more than 70 volunteers. Yet when Kelsey describes what makes the place special, she doesn’t talk about growth.
She talks about the moments no one is watching.
A child sneaking a kiss on a horse’s nose. A volunteer hugging a horse after a session. The flashes of gratitude and joy that happen quietly around the barn.
“You would see the raw, genuine emotions,” Kelsey said. “Those real raw moments that you just can’t understand until you see it.” Ask Kelsey what a horse can teach us and her answer captures Healing Steps beautifully:
“Anything you need to learn, whether you know you need to learn it or not.”
Patience. Confidence. Gentleness. Empathy. Boundaries. Strength.
“They teach you exactly what you need to learn.”
At Healing Steps, sometimes healing begins with science.
And sometimes, it begins when a horse makes someone feel chosen.