We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Erin Henry a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Erin, appreciate you joining us today. How did you get your first job in the field that you practice in today?

I never wanted to be a therapist. In fact, when I first graduated from social work school I didn’t even plan on getting my clinical license; but what I have learned over the years is if something is meant for us, it will always find a way, and it turns out I was meant to be a therapist, particularly one who gets to be creative and work with people in non-traditional settings.

I was living in Austin, TX, and had just landed a job working in fundraising and development for a wonderful children’s program. I had been interested in non-profit administration and leadership, and for my internship had created a successful fundraiser for a children’s shelter that inspired me to pursue this career, however, once I got into the job I absolutely hated it.
I was not designed to sit inside at a desk, entering data about funders, stuffing envelopes, and planning events. I was miserable. I needed to move my body, spend time outdoors, and engage with humans instead of a screen. So I quit the job and went on a quest to figure out what to do next.

I had a very good friend, John Griffis (aka “Griff”), a man who was larger than life with a booming voice and smile, and passionate about helping kids who were struggling. He was working as a drill instructor at a boot camp style youth detention center a little south of Austin, and when he heard I was looking for a career change, he immediately recruited me to be a counselor in the facility. He had a dream that if he recruited enough people with the same values the place would eventually be incredible, so he poured his heart into the place and I couldn’t help but be inspired, as well.

Griff always had good instincts and was creative. Over the years he designed various programs at the center, including gardening, trail building, and river clean ups. The program already had a physical component to it, being that it was a boot camp, and he was always open to new ideas to reach the kids in different ways so he encouraged me to apply and said I would be able to bring some of my own ideas into fruition, as well. This inspired me so I applied and got hired immediately. Fortunately, social work is an incredibly diverse career so I went for the clinical license and started working in the very field I swore I would never work in in a setting I never thought I would work in.

It turned out to be the exact challenge I needed. At first I was terrified. Me, a young woman raised Mennonite from small town Ohio working in a juvenile detention center with teens who were in gangs? It didn’t make sense. I didn’t think I could relate. I didn’t think I could help. And I didn’t feel brave enough to work in a locked down facility. I was definitely out of my comfort zone, which now I know is a a very good thing because that is where growth happens.

Eventually I fell in love with the kids I worked with, and Griff encouraged me to bring some creativity into the program by designing a yoga program while I was finishing up my yoga teacher training. I fell in love with helping them learn about yoga, how to move their bodies to relieve stress, about the nervous system, meditation, and finding peace within through alternate therapeutic modalities.

It helped me to see that everything is possible if you open up the creative process. This led me to other detention centers, and eventually community mental health, and now my own private practice where I still incorporate yoga and meditation into sessions, but now my work is outside with animals and nature.

Erin, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I provide nature based, equine and/or animal assisted therapy as well as equine coaching.
I provide groups, individual therapy, and now offer workshops such as cold plunges for nervous system regulation and nature hikes for cancer survivors.
I am a proud breast cancer survivor, so I also work with other survivors by helping them navigate the trauma from treatment. I am currently writing a book on healing breast cancer trauma, and speak in various settings on the topic.
I love getting people outside with animals, and moving their bodies as a part of therapy since nature offers so many natural medicines to feel better.
I grew up the granddaughter of a naturalist so I spent hours of time with him as a child learning about nature, in his slow pace. I love that I get to do that with people as part of therapy now. It feels full circle.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I went through breast cancer treatment during the pandemic. This month marks four years since my diagnosis and I am incredibly proud to say that I am stronger now than I have ever been in my entire life.

I worked incredibly hard to heal after treatment, and learned so many lessons. I feel that I am now a better human, and therapist because of what I went through, and am proud that I chose to work really hard to reconstruct my life after such a traumatic experience. It was not easy.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

My mentor, Duey Freeman, always says that we can only go as deep with our clients as we have gone ourselves.
While training is necessary for learning new skills and how to help people and certain types of mental health issues, I think that what makes a person a good therapist is their ability to be authentic, congruent, and be able to hold someone’s nervous system. This takes incredible work because it means we have to do the work ourselves, and that is hard. Sitting with someone in their pain and suffering and not taking that on is a skill. Sitting with ourselves and our own pain and suffering is also a skill. We must be able to do both.

As I said earlier, I have become a better therapist because I went through the trauma of breast cancer, and then I worked really hard to heal from that trauma. In that process I became a much more humble person, and really got to know and accept myself for who I am, including my flaws.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.rewildtherapy.com
• Instagram: rewildtherapywellness