A method for those who want to meet themselves, with the horse as a mirror. When you stand near a horse, something shifts. Your body calms down, emotions catch up, and what you’ve been carrying inside can begin to take shape. ESMH is for you who seek real, lasting change – whether you carry trauma, anxiety, stress, or simply feel that something needs to shift.
ESMH is a Swedish therapeutic method developed by Kia Hildén. In this method, the horse is more than support — it is an active, co-creative part of the encounter. Unlike many equine-assisted approaches, Kia’s horses are always unrestrained and free to choose whether they want to participate. Through their presence, sensitivity, and honesty, the horse helps you connect with what is truly going on inside, beyond what you may show on the outside.
The method, formally named Emotionell Spegling Med Häst in Swedish, meaning Emotional Mirroring with Horse, is grounded in experiential learning. It is used to process difficult emotions, rebuild self-esteem, and strengthen one’s ability to form healthy relationships. It is especially supportive for those who have lost trust in others, their bodies, emotions, or themselves.
Horses are herd and prey animals. Over millions of years, they have developed extraordinary sensitivity to the signals in their surroundings – a skill crucial for survival. They read body language, energy, and emotional states with remarkable precision.
This means the horse doesn’t react to what you say, but to what you project. It reflects not your appearance, but your emotional truth. Horses meet you where you are, without judgment, and reflect your most authentic self.
Research from the HeartMath Institute shows that being in a horse’s energy field can slow and deepen your breathing, and lower your heart rate, making it easier to access your emotions. This may help you understand your reactions, how you relate to situations, and what you need to shift.
What thoughts arise? Are they truly yours – or are they the voices of others from your past: parents, siblings, teachers, neighbours? Thoughts that have shaped what you believe to be true?
This is why the horse becomes such a powerful mirror in therapeutic work.
Before you arrive at the farm, Kia will talk with you to understand why you want to come and what you need support with. Based on that, she will choose a horse that suits your needs.
In ESMH, you connect with the horse, not in the saddle, but from the ground. You might stand beside it, walk with it, breathe alongside it. Your body and emotions are allowed to speak at their own pace. Meanwhile, the therapist remains present, gently guiding the process.
When you start noticing how the horse responds to you – your body language, emotional state, and energy – it often opens up moments of insight. It can lead to questions about what you’re feeling and what your body is signalling.
Through dialogue with the horse and with the therapist, you may discover patterns you were unaware of before.
ESMH is particularly supportive of those who:
The goal of ESMH is to help you reconnect with yourself and strengthen your inner foundation. In therapy, we work with:
If mental health challenges have been present for a long time, several sessions are usually needed to create change. A combination with ICT is recommended.
All exercises aim to increase awareness of the connection between your emotions (which shape your conscious feelings), thoughts, and behaviours, and how these influence one another in a cycle. The work helps you break free from that loop and move toward change.
