The pandemic has put a lot of people's mental health to the test, and now there's a new place in Abilene that can help with that.
It's called Aspiring Champions, and the therapists walk on four legs.
Odie is one of the horses that helped save Vicki Kirkpatrick's life.
"My low point was when I got depressed, and it kept going downhill, and I gave up," Kirkpatrick said. "I didn't feel like fighting anymore, and I just gave up."
After serving 33 and a half years in prison for a crime she didn't want to talk about, Vicki found a fresh start at Aspiring Champions.
It's a 12-week program for all ages with retired rodeo horses that started up last September. They treat everything from depression to anger issues to PTSD.
"If I'm upset or something they can sense it, and they'll give me a kiss," Kirkpatrick said. "If my mind or my thoughts are running around they can sense it, and they help calm me down."
"They just don't put any judgement," said Shaley Griffin, the executive director and CEO at Aspiring Champions. "They just accept you as you are."
Griffin said a facilitator helps guide clients through a series of questions allowing them to process their story -- bringing mental clarity, awareness and healing.
"The horses actually are so unique that they help the person feel free to communicate and start opening up where they may not have opened up in counseling sessions within an office," Griffin said.
Griffin said the horses can sense what people are experiencing.
"Their spirits, they're so intuitive," Griffin said. "They can feel a heartbeat from four feet away. So, if they come up to you they trust you. If they didn't trust you they would run away from you."
Kirkpatrick said the horses have made a world of difference in her life. She has a home, a job and friends. And a renewed hope as she works on starting over.
"Actually I wouldn't be where I'm at now," Kirkpatrick said. "I mean I've improved a whole lot. I've changed a whole lot, and I think I owe it all to the horses. I see my future as a brighter, fuller life -- freedom."
Aspiring Champions doesn't file insurance so they're working on setting up scholarships for people who want to go through the program but can't afford it.
It's $75 a session or $900 for 12 weeks.
If you'd like to help you can email Shaley Griffin at aspiringchampionstx@gmail.com or call her at 325-669-3176.
You can find more information on their website here.
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