COURSE IN CAREGIVINGTM
A CARE FARM APPROACH TO TOTAL WELLNESS
The Role of Caregiving
The proposed Course in Caregiving takes inspiration from an existing model
for enhancing mental and physical well-being, care
farms. The psychoeducational and experiential activities of the Course
in CaregivingTM are consistent with many
of the principles and methods of horticultural therapy (Simson & Straus,
2003), animal-assisted therapy (Fine, 
2000),
mindfulness-based psychotherapy (Germer, Siegel, & Fulton, 2005), ecotherapy
(Clinebell, 1996), and ecopsychology (Fisher, 2002). The overarching theory
and philosophy behind our methods, however, is G.A. Bradshaw’s work in trans-species
psychology as conducted at The Kerulos
Center (Bradshaw, in press; Bradshaw & Watkins, 2006).
In this developing field, it is argued that there is no scientific basis for maintaining separate fields and models for animal and human psychology. Until recently, animals were thought to lack many attributes, such as emotions, feelings, sophisticated cognitive capacities, culture, the ability to feel pain, and other qualities that presumably defined humans uniquely. This differentiation provided a rationale for objectifying animals, one that has enabled the widespread trauma and crisis now prevalent in animal cultures. Today, however, scientific theory and data are congruent with our sensibilities. Though individual differences may exist, the same psychobiological theories and models that hold for people also hold for other animals (Bradshaw, 2008).
Through the lens of trans-species psychology, caring for animals and caring for humans can be viewed as a single process of reciprocal healing. For this reason, the psychoeducational and experiential curriculum of the Course in Caregiving™ will emphasize animal trauma and recovery, but will include elements of mindfulness training, ecology, natural history, and land stewardship and restoration. Participating veterans will also be exposed to the basics of human brain functioning as it relates to their own experience with PTSD and other conditions. And by teaching the trans-species psychological model, participants may discover what they have in common with rescued animals who have also experienced traumatic stressors.
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For
many traumatized individuals, there is evidence that an association with
animals is beneficial. One hospital in the VA system provides therapeutic
encounters with animals using the ethical framework we propose here (Trans-species
Parrot-Veteran Recovery Project, 2008). At the West Los Angeles VA Medical
Center, the Serenity Park Sanctuary refuge brings together abandoned parrots
and military veterans (most with PTSD) in a remarkable occupational therapy
program that fosters healing for both (Fishbein, 2007; Tweti, 2007). The
program articulates an approach to human and parrot psychotherapy that draws
inspiration from trans-species psychology
(Bradshaw, in press; Bradshaw & Watkins, 2006).
The Course in Caregiving will also ground participants in the basic principles of ecopsychology (Fisher, 2002) and ecology, expanding their “dimensions of caring” to include more subtle relationships with the natural world. For example, a teaching model of the farm-as-ecosystem would include a broad understanding of the complex linkages between human activities and local aquatic and terrestrial components of the animal sanctuary. In our view, the project of healing traumatized people and animals in tandem includes a larger appreciation and understanding of the natural context in which this occurs, i.e., living ecosystems.
The Role of Mindfulness
Our approach is also inspired by several psychotherapeutic approaches that incorporate training in mindfulness, breathwork, and movement (Baer, 2003; Germer, Siegel, & Fulton, 2005). For example, Dialectical Behavior Therapy utilizes eastern mindfulness practices in its approach to treating borderline personality disorder (Dimeff & Linehan, 2001). In Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, mindfulness is a core practice that enables clients to apprehend the linkages among thinking, feeling, and behaving (Hayes & Smith, 2005).
Writ
large, we view the operation of a care farm and animal sanctuary as a practice
in mindfulness, particularly of the welfare and safety of animals, human
and non-human. As such, the Course in Caregiving™ will invest substantially
in facilitating the ability of participants to become mindful of the natural
world and of their relationship with it. We view this training in mindful
caregiving as furthering the development of participants’ emotional and
social intelligence (Goleman, 1995, 2006). One additional benefit of this
mindful caregiving is increased affect tolerance (Fulton, 2005), an important
contributor to self-control in emotional intelligence. As such, we anticipate
that by enhancing participants’ self-awareness and awareness of others in
a caregiving relationship with animals, there will be collateral benefits
in their relationships with family, friends, and co-workers.
Course Content
Our work with veterans will draw from a diverse array of psychoeducational and experiential activities related to animal care, restoration and stewardship of the land (forest, farm, and stream), and caregiving tasks at Double Oak Farm:
• Animal care - Physical and psychological well-being,
including animal trauma and recovery based in trans-species psychology and
neuroscience.
• Sanctuary operations – The philosophy, values, ethics,
goals, and methods for operating an animal sanctuary.
• Mindfulness – Yoga; Hakomi presence; Basic meditation
skills; Focusing™ (Gendlin, 1996); MindBodyOne™
• Ecology – A holistic perspective on sanctuary as a natural
and human-made ecosystem, including energy, nutrients, biodiversity, sustainability,
aquatic and terrestrial habitats.
• Ecosystem stewardship - Forest and stream restoration,
traditional ecological knowledge.
• Horticulture, permaculture and sustainable agriculture -
Soil health, hay production, gardening, horticulture.
References
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