Programs with PBJ Connections
Individual, group, and family sessions are offered throughout the year. Please contact us for more information on any of our programs.
Equine Assisted Therapy
We offer equine assisted therapy to at-risk youth and families. Sessions focus on emotional awareness and behavioral management which helps clients deal with mental health issues or environmental stressors. Clients learn how they are connected to themselves, other people, and the world at large through tasks with the horses, which promotes mental and emotional health.
Initial intake will determine if the client is best suited for individual or group therapy.
- Individual and Family sessions are scheduled directly with out therapist based on the schedule needs of all participants.
- Groups are limited to no more than eight participants and an eight to ten week session is typical. Groups will be divided by therapeutic need and age. Group sessions will use non-riding horse activities to assist participants in meeting individual and group treatment goals.
All Equine Assisted Therapy activities will have a minimum of one licensed mental health professional and one equine specialist participating at all times.
We offer services at the Otterbein College Equine Science Facility in Westerville and at PBJ Dressage in Pataskala. Sessions are typically 1 to 1 ½ hours in length.
PBJ Connections sessions help youth: build emotional awareness, relate feelings to behaviors, and improve their inner selves. Clients are guided through connecting how they are relating to their world with how they are relating to the horses.
- The CONNECT Program utilizes grant funding to provide equine assisted family therapy sessions to Central Ohio families free of charge or at a greatly reduced rate. PBJ Connections was recently awarded funding for 100 CONNECT Program sessions by the John Charles Sharon Fund of the Columbus Foundation.
- The DREAMS Program provides family therapy sessions to deaf and hard-of-hearing clients as referred to us by St. Vincent Family Centers. PBJ Connections was recently awarded funding for 100 DREAMS Program sessions by the Harry C. Moores Foundation.
- The UNITE Program brings together GLBTQ youths and their allies to explore their individual identities, experiences, hopes, and fears while learning how they are connected to each other and the communities in which they live. In a safe environment with culturally competent facilitators, the youths will examine and improve their emotional and behavioral responses through supervised interactions with horses and other youths.
Therapeutic Horse Management
PBJ Connections offers three programs designed for training youth in the skills necessary to manage and care for horses. Non-riding sessions focus on horse-related skills while working on self-discipline, job skills, and communication skills. Adolescent clients learn skills that will assist them with any job upon graduation. Sessions take place one to two times per week for two hours and clients work through three levels of equine assisted learning. An equine specialist and/or a mental health professional facilitate every session.
- Connect and Climb Ahead – Our introductory horse skills program begins with familiarizing the youth with horses and horse management. With an emphasis on safety, non-riding activities will be used to assess the individual’s interests and required training while improving communication skills. Groups will be limited to two participants and will be facilitated by a Mental Health Professional and/or an Equine Specialist. Groups meet once per week for four weeks.
- Connect with Confidence – After mastering the Connect and Climb Ahead program, youth will further develop horse management skills in Connect with Confidence. Through this program, the youth will develop skills in a variety of horse related tasks such as grooming, tacking and un-tacking, feeding and watering, and stable cleaning. Groups will be limited to two participants and will be facilitated by a Mental Health Professional and/or an Equine Specialist. Groups meet once per week for six to eight weeks.
- Connect with Capability – Youth will focus on one area of horse management and hone their skills. A simulated work environment where the youth get to practice being managed as if they were “on the job” will be provided. In Connect with Capability, the youth will work independently and under the supervision of a Mental Health Professional and/or an Equine Specialist. This session will last eight to ten weeks.
PBJ@Work - Corporate Education Outside the Cubicle
PBJ@Work is a corporate learning seminar focused on personal growth and team building. Individuals and groups learn to improve leadership, communication, and problem solving skills. Using the innovative and fun model of Equine Assisted Learning, PBJ@Work is a different approach to corporate education. Two hour, half-day and full day sessions are available. Pricing proportional to services provided.
- PBJ@Work Brochure (Adobe PDF)
Equine Assisted Therapy Program Consultation
Thinking of starting your own equine assisted therapy program? PBJ Connections offers one-on-one phone consultations on both the business and the program challenges. Two hour and half-day workshops designed to assist you in starting your business are also available. Please call for pricing and availability.
Diagnosis and Client History
PBJ Connections assists youth with a variety of diagnoses. Having a youth’s referring history is helpful in establishing therapeutic goals for equine assisted therapy interventions. Often the problems associated with certain diagnoses coupled with environmental issues bring youth to our program where the horses are extremely valuable in providing a therapeutic atmosphere in which youth can explore their individual needs. One of the diagnoses we see quite often is that of Asperger’s syndrome.
Youth with diagnoses on the Autism spectrum are often highly drawn to animals, making equine assisted therapy a viable means of intervention and behavior modification. In addition to our general services, PBJ Connections offers programming specifically for youth with diagnoses of Asperger’s syndrome. Horses communicate with their body language, which is something that youth with Asperger’s syndrome often have difficulty reading. Equine assisted therapy gives youth the opportunity to practice reading social cues while developing “out-of-the-box” thinking that is so important to individuality.
Payment and Funding Options
PBJ Connections accepts private and public pay clients. For those clients residing in Franklin County, PBJ Connections is an Individual Options Waiver Provider for Franklin County. Please contact your service coordinator and submit a request for service prior to beginning your sessions at PBJ Connections.
For those clients residing in Delaware County, PBJ Connections is also an approved provider with the Delaware County Board of MRDD.
If you are from a surrounding county and your child receives funding from your County Board of MRDD, we are willing to investigate funding options through those counties as well.