Profile

As an occupational therapist, I work with children who have special needs including autism, cerebral palsy, and genetic disorders.

My job involves a non-traditional type of occupational therapy with horses called hippotherapy. The horses are a treatment tool to help children develop strength and endurance and other skills. I also test and evaluate children, develop treatment plans, write reports, and provide parent education. It’s a fast paced, dynamic environment.

Typically in a day, I do one-hour sessions with eight different kids. A child may groom the horse, talk to the horse, and ride the horse as part of their treatment.

I work in a facility that has a large barn with a sand arena where I provide treatment to the children with the horses.

1. Organization. I see a lot of clients and it’s important to keep good documentation.
2. Flexibility. I may need to change my game plan in a second if the child is having a meltdown or a terrible day.
3. Endurance and Strength. I walk the arena eight hours a day and need to hold the positions for the child as they develop strength and endurance. Consequently, I need to have good strength and endurance.
4. Awareness of human and horse anatomy. Knowing about muscles and joints and how to build endurance and strength is important.

I work four, ten-hour days a week. I’m also writing a book about hippotherapy.

I love the reward of helping families and making a difference in their lives. I love family contact and connection.

I don’t like insurance companies that don’t pay for services when kids are in desperate need.

My clients and my internal drive to learn more and help my clients in a better way.

Never stop learning.

Set your goals high because you never know your potential until you have to work for it. The more you push yourself the greater the reward.

More volunteering. The more volunteering you can do before you make your decision about your career the better. Volunteering allows you to see what a job is like for other people before you head down a path in college.

I run marathons.

I grew up doing sports. In college I was on the track and cross-country teams. I enjoy physical activity.

I don’t like to feel comfort or get in a rut. I like to be challenged. Constantly learning new things and pushing myself, keeps me motivated.

I knew the path I wanted to go down when I went to college.

I wanted to work with special needs kids but I knew that I didn’t want to be a teacher.

I like a fast paced environment and physical movement. I could never sit behind a desk all day. I’d go nuts. Occupational therapy lends itself to a lot of movement.

When I was in high school, I volunteered as a counselor for a summer day camp for special needs kids. The mother of one of my students was an occupational therapist. She said, “ Come with me for a day and see what I do.” I realized this was my outlet. It allowed me to work one-on-one with kids, touch families and be a part of their lives.

I went to OT school in college. I was able to enter a bachelor’s degree program at that time. Most OT programs lead to a master’s degree.

I have been lucky, I have not had to overcome an major obstacles in my life.

I researched hippotherapy. I liked the fast paced environment and the nontraditional nature of hippotherapy—it uses the novelty of a horse to motivate children.

I was really lucky. I found my most perfect job in the world right out of college.