Lisa Schwarz, M.Ed. is a licensed psychologist, consultant, and international educator working in private practice in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She has had a deep relationship with horses since early childhood, coming full circle back to them through the creation of CRM®
EQUUS. She is the developer of The Comprehensive Resource Model (CRM)®, a trauma therapy model that employs brain and body-based physiological safety as the foundation for healing and is the primary author of The Comprehensive Resource Model®: Effective therapeutic techniques for the healing of complex trauma. She has presented at numerous international professional conferences since 2009.
Lisa has, for the past 33 years, been dedicated to creating innovative treatment methods for working with severe dissociative disorders, attachment disorders, in-utero and ancestral trauma. She has also developed a novel practice for working with sports performance (The Sports Dissociation Model, 2008) and Military PTSD. Her work bridges neuroscience and consciousness in trauma healing through a combination of traditional psychotherapy, somatic therapy, and indigenous healing methods. The CRM® organization has spread worldwide since 2014.
Lisa offers individual, group, and corporate residential healing intensives and retreats in Pittsburgh, PA; Beulah, Colorado and Cape May Point, New Jersey.
The Magic and Beauty: Horses rescued and rehabilitated from mistreatment as racehorses becoming the source of rehabilitation and healing for humans
1,428 Race Horses Sent to Slaughter in Ireland in 2023 Rasha, Archo and Lisa after rescuing each other in 2023
Meet the New Equine Team Members
RASHA
A registered 9 year old Thoroughbred, and a direct descendant of legendary Triple Crown winner Secretariat, this is Paranoia (her racing name).
Paranoia was raced consistently in Florida, New York and Pennsylvania from 2017 through 2022, winning high stakes races often. Her value, primarily as a commodity to generate income and prestige for her human owners, catalyzed a life of wounding and instability; in effect compromising a joyful connection to others, human or equine. She was sold 13 times in those 5 years.
Her gentle sweetness is palpable despite the inherently traumatic nature of a racing life. Undoubtedly, she is on her path to healing; being set free through this year of rehabilitation and TLC while growing into her chosen “barn name” of Rasha. She is already willing to connect authentically with her new humans and the exchange of healing energy between us.
A registered Thoroughbred, this is Archo.
Archo, also 9 years old, raced under the name Shower the People. He worked on the track for 5 years, also winning for his owners and sold to us directly from the track stable in October of 2023 immediately after indicating that he no longer had the heart for racing.
Being with him, you can feel the depth of his whole-hearted presence, as he locks his eyes on yours, holding his gaze until you can feel him seeing you, knowing you, without judgement.
Archo is still learning his way in the “real world” but already loves to run free in the pastures each morning to spend the day with the herd despite never having lived anywhere but a racetrack stall until this point in his life.
Meeting Paranoia, a retired and unhealthy racehorse, for the first time at her home on a small farm in Grantville, PA
Re-named Rasha and thriving after 8 months of healing in her new home.
Meeting Shower the People, still living in his stall at Hollywood Casino Penn National Racecourse in Grantville, PA
Re-named Archo and learning to be a horse again after 8 months of healing in his new home.
Rasha and Archo together at their new home
What is Comprehensive Resource Model
CRM® is a system of embodiment, exploration and healing that catalyzes and consolidates positive change in the mind-body-spirit complex of individuals; creating a foundation for subsequent transformation in families, communities, organizations/institutions and the collective.
The resourcing paradigm of CRM® conceptualization and practice allows for an embodied, conscious experience of the wholeness of who we are by bridging the most primitive aspects of a person and their brain structures to their purest, healthiest parts of the self.
CRM® opens awareness to a treasure chest in different realms of our mind-body-spirit complex, creating a scaffold of safety neurobiologically, neurochemically, and emotionally.
This bridge catalyzes the mind and body to safely access the deepest origins of emotional pain, trauma and stress, and most importantly, all internal resources and strengths that may or may not be buried, hidden or disconnected from our awareness.
The juxtaposition of simultaneously experiencing the most powerful states of internal brain and bodybased safety with the memories of the most unbearably painful aspects of our life history and our selves, provides the framework for thorough clearing of neurobiological “debris”, obstacles, symptoms and blocks to our most authentic selves, paving the way for true clarity, personal expansion, and recognition of our freedom to choose to be the true authors of our lives.
There have been several preliminary pilot studies which indicate the worthwhile potential for more robust scientific validation of this model including LENS neurofeedback outcome, QEEG brainwave assessments and outcome studies using CRM® in group therapy within the Irish Prison System. We are hopeful to implement further formal studies in the near future. The fMRI slide (next) illustrates the power of the change in brain functioning relative to reactivity to stressors which are possible from just a single CRM® session.
The reach and impact of CRM®
CRM® has been taught internationally to professional mental health and medical providers since 2014.
Practitioners and their clients are benefitting from CRM® in more than 13 countries including Japan, Greece, France, Italy, Thailand, Canada, Australia, Germany, England, Ireland, Scotland, Austria, and the Netherlands.
Currently, CRM® is being used as an effective, holistic system of permanent healing and change in the areas of:
Emotional, Physical and Sexual Trauma and Dissociation
Military PTSD (including the families of military service members)
Life and Corporate Coaching, Leadership and Team Building
Personal Growth and Expansion (Internally, Relationally, Spiritually)
CRM® EQUUS
Horses ARE CRM®
Provide the living embodiment of CRM® Conceptualization and re-sources
Attunement – theirs is more exquisitely nuanced than humans
Breath – they respond immediately to our breathing patterns
Sacred Place is directly experienced in the Now when working with the herd, on the land.
Grids – their energy templates and nervous systems give immediate feedback to reflect our own states and respond to changes we make in the moment
Attachment – the ultimate secure attachment figure that is fully present, non-judgemental and responsive
Distress – reveal the wounds we carry that we may not even be aware of
Core Self – they ARE the non-intentional Being state of unconditional love without Doing
Why combine CRM® with Horses?
HORSES:
Offer immediate, non-judgmental feedback about who we are, how we affect the spaces we inhabit, and how we relate with ourselves and with others;
Are highly sensitive and responsive to individual and group dynamics, behavior and emotion (they are able to “feel” what is really going on);
Are adept at picking up and responding to human intention. They provide instant, honest, accurate feedback in the moment – creating experiences which get to the core of issues quickly, powerfully and effectively.
Are naturally attracted to personal and team coherence;
Respond to clear communication & self-awareness;
Activate cognitive development in the human brain, fast-tracking learning and supporting integration;
Naturally attune to and speak the language of sensations and emotions in the body, enhancing personal development of somatic awareness;
Provide a foundational space and grounded experience to cultivate courageous team players beyond ego-imposed limitations;
Primarily rely on non-verbal communication to relate. Among humans, up to 93% of meaning is communicated non-verbally. With their prey instincts and hypersensitive awareness, horses size people up instantly and accurately. They read the truth in our energy and body language and react to what they see and feel – holding up an authentic mirror to our intention and behavior.
Horses Present an Integrated Approach to Healing
Science + Spirit
Horses Influence
Neuro Network
Nervous & Emotional Systems
Heart Field
Horses + Science + Spirit
People often express an unexplainable attraction to be near horses, even if they've never actually ridden or interacted with them before. There is something magical about their presence and capacity for healing and empowering humans. Beyond this magic, there is also mounting scientific evidence that horses and humans collaborate in exceptional ways. As countless science-based reports continue to emerge about the horse-human connection and the healing capacity of our interactions with them, there is an ever-growing need to integrate multifaceted healing approaches.
In terms of handling horses, CRM® Equus shall integrate many of the approaches and the philosophy of Dr. Allan Hamilton, a Harvard-graduate brain surgeon and horse trainer who has written the beautiful and essential book Zen Mind Zen Horse: The Science and Spirituality of Working with Horses. Additionally, the work of Janet Jones, which is grounded in 23+ years of integrating the neuroscience of perception, language, memory and thought into her work with horses, builds a vital bridge between a broader understanding of the neurological contact and influence that occurs between horse and human. Our approach to developing learning modalities in partnership with horses may also be influenced by the Horseboy Method, which is grounded in neuro-science and the effect horses have on the human brain and our capacity to learn. Furthermore, the HeartMath Institute and their studies of how the human and horse relationship affects Heart Rate Variability, are providing clear and consistent evidence related to the grounding effects that simply being in the presence of a horse can have on humans.
Horse + Heart Connection
As previously mentioned, thanks to the many studies conducted by The Heartmath Institute over the last few decades, we know that the human heart emits a magnetic field that extends well beyond our bodies. This magnetic field overlaps and interacts with the energetic fields of everything around us, including horses and other humans. Considering the horse's heart is nearly five times the size of the human heart, they have an incredibly expansive magnetic heart field. It's no wonder humans naturally feel better in their presence- they emit a lot of heart energy.
In addition, The Heartmath Institute’s research has demonstrated that horses have a unique capacity to affect the Heart-brain or Very Low Frequency (VLF) rhythms when humans interact with horses. This demonstrates the powerful effect that horses can have in supporting the co-regulation of the heart’s intrinsic nervous system.
The integration of heart-focused awareness and connection between the human heart and the horse heart plays a vital role in the process used to bring more coherence and intention to our interactions with the horses and with life beyond the client sessions.
The tools crafted in collaboration with the horses build this connection which can be taken out into the world and embedded in daily practice to support a more wholehearted approach to life.
Horse + Brain Connection
Horses, just like nature, are good for our brains. They ignite our cognitive development in exciting and intriguing ways. Horse brain science is fairly new, with the first precise magnetic resonance image of a horse’s brain appearing only as of 2019. This has opened up a huge pathway for study related to the interaction between the horse and human brain and mysterious way in which this prey brain collaborates authentically with a predator brain.
Janet Jones’ work highlights three key components of the horse brain that are ”especially important when it comes to the mind-melding with humans”:
1. The horse brain provides exceptional touch detection sensitivity, far beyond the capacity of the human brain
2. The horse brain is constantly interpreting the language of body language and processing the messages of the body in order to guide movement and behavior
3. The horse brain learns in a rapid, pure form, they are excellent at learning, remembering and communicating – but they do not assess, decide, evaluate or judge as humans do (this is due to the lack of a prefrontal cortex)
“The horse is a prey animal, the human a predator. Our shared trust and athleticism is a neurobiological miracle.
- Janet Jones, auther of Horse Brain, Human Brain
Horse + Emotional Awareness & Regulation
Emotional agility and coherence is an essential aspect to wellbeing. When we can understand where our emotions arise from, what the underlying story is behind them, and learn how to work with them rather than pushing against them, we become empowered to move through our lives with more ease and clarity.
Horses are incredible partners in this kind of work with emotions. They are highly sensitive and experts at reading body language – one of the key channels through which emotions express themselves. They live within the language of feeling, and often will feel a human's emotion before the human themselves is even cognitively aware of it.
While we might be able to hide our emotions from other people, and even from ourselves, the horse is able to feel what is really going on.
Emotional awareness keeps everyone in the herd safe, and it is a foundational part of this work. The beauty of working with emotions and horses is that there is no judgment, no "right" or "wrong" emotion, no "good" or "bad" emotion. As the horses mirror for us, every emotion is information and we work with the information and messages offered through emotions, to live from a more authentic and empowered sense of being.
www.thereflectivehorse.com
Equine Guided Empowerment® is a unique modality developed through the life-long practice of somatic presence, spiritual curiosity and union with horses of Cassandra Ogier.
Equine Guided Empowerment® provides opportunities for participants to ground and center, quieting the mind, through reflection and interaction with horses. Through Somatic Reprogramming® techniques, participants are guided to align themselves in their body in reclamation of self-acceptance, authenticity and expression in the present. Participants experience the ability to regain their voice, advocacy and sense of true-nature, so they may recommit to their values and unique purpose in the world.
Horses are naturally and intrinsically grounded in the present, their sense of self and their individuality as a unique expressive being, as well as awareness of their oneness with the herd. This metaphor for our lives and our available connection to source underpins Equine Guided Empowerment®.
Somatic Reprogramming® is an embodied authentication experience developed by Cassandra Ogier. Through somatic exercises aligned with horse herd dynamics and nonverbal communication beyond the intellect, participants become aware of their centered presence. This centered presence evokes curiosity and fresh perspective based on the truth of what is happening in the moment, rather than trauma-based responses associated with past experience.
Our bodies appear to hold stored memory of trauma, shame and oppression. When we challenge ourselves through certain movements associated with claiming our individual right to space, boundary setting and honoring our inner wisdom, we can experience a release of needing to protect, defend, prove or dissociate. This validating action of our bodies changes our thinking and old beliefs, revealing to us our true, genuine nature and valid potential, uncovering trust in ourselves, understanding our own needs and the separate experience of others with compassion, without compromising or losing oneself.
Talking and thinking our way through life challenges does not work. Somatic Reprogramming® verifies our true nature and innate wisdom through experiential interaction with horses, offering an embodied approach to changing our actions and reactions, supporting fresh thinking and connection in the world. Equine Guided Empowerment®, created and developed by Cassandra Ogier in California, USA was chosen as the system of equine partnership woven into CRM ®
Why Equine Guided Empowerment®?
CRM® and Equine Guided Empowerment are “woven from the same cloth”, one that bridges science, energy, and spirituality. The foundational elements of each resonate in harmonic frequency with the other as a creative process that unfolds to heal and facilitate a healthy relationship with the authentic self, revealing one’s free will to choose where our heart leads, and to re-member that we have always been whole, not broken or defective.
Free-roaming horses allow us to experience and access our true nature, underneath the masks and social armor that we build up innocently to protect ourselves. Horses speak the language of truth beyond words, bringing us back to our heart, our intuitive nature and what is important in the direction of our lives.
Through embodiment practices, somatic experiences and breath-work that emulate horse herd dynamics, we attune to our own expanded energy field, stepping into a new, embodied, and grounded sense of self with clarity and sovereignty. At the root of The Reflective Horse® programs is the knowledge that horses are intensely spiritual beings, residing in the present, with the ability to seek and reflect the truth of who we are.
Cassandra Ogier
The Reflective Horse
www.thereflectivehorse.com
The Power of Combining CRM® with Horses
Transformational change and growth that is permanent requires that the healing and/or coaching work be done from a fully embodied state; meaning the client is fully aware and present in his or her body during the process in order for the positive gains to be maintained. Many of us live disconnected from our bodies and our conscious awareness resulting in the inability to get to the deepest source of the problem in the mindbody-spirit complex. Consequently, the work can not be done in the deep brain and soul as needed and positive healing effects are temporary.
CRM® or Horses, when used separately, provide the neurobiological, neurochemical and emotional safety that promotes full embodiment. This robust resourcing allows access to, and transformation of, the deepest origins and roots of blocks, obstacles and wounds that impede our highest potential as human beings and compromise the global systems that support abundance, stability and joy.
Combined, these two powerful sources of multi-faceted resources allow for a level of embodiment and transformation that is fast and permanent.
Outcomes of Equine Guided Experiences
Receive nonjudgmental feedback throughout trauma processing, particularly that which invites us to look at the most “undesirable” aspects of ourselves and humanity.
Experience embodied presence, congruence and authenticity.
Practice embodying the present moment, and experience entering the intuitive, embodied ways of knowing.
Develop effective communication, listening and leadership skills.
Experience improved trust, commitment and teamwork.
Improve relational and interpersonal skills.
Increase ability to positively influence others.
Enhance creativity and creative problem solving
Improve conflict resolution skills
Increase sense of accountability.
Enhance empathy, self-regulation and co-regulation.
Organization leaders and teams develop skills related to employee motivation, handling conflict, navigating differences of opinion, and aligning intention and forward momentum within an entire organization.
“Brain-to-brain communication between horses and riders is an intricate neural dance. These two species, one prey and one predator, are living temporarily in each other’s brains, sharing neural information back and forth in real time without linguistic or mechanical mediation. It is a partnership like no other.
Together, a horse-and-human team experiences a richer perceptual and attention understanding of the world than either member can achieve alone.
And, ironically, this extended interspecies mind operates well not because the two brains are similar to each other, but because they are so different.”
Janet Jones, author of Horse Brain, Human Brain
Who is CRM® EQUUS for?
Existing audiences:
Current mental health and medical providers who are learning these two modalities through trainings and workshops provided internationally online and inperson
Current patients/clients who are receiving the treatment and healing from trained providers
Non-profit work directed toward low income individuals and marginalized, diverse communities
New client outreach:
Corporate Team Development
Corporate Executive Development
New Non-profit programs designed and offered to support Women military veterans, civilian wives of veterans, and/or leadership teams of organizations serving veterans.
Pre-natal/Pre-adoptive maternal education and treatment of severed attachment and infant development in order to prevent perpetuation of attachment trauma in children
Who is seeking CRM® EQUUS?
Individuals seeking:
Safe space for exploring, processing and integrating trauma
Healing of attachment wounds
Long term healing of Complex PTSD
Shifting behaviors from ego-centric to authentic/intuitive
Embodied approaches to non-violent communication; “power with” rather than “power over”
Ability to assert healthy boundaries
Connection with authentic selfesteem, confidence and leadership abilities
Organizational teams/leaders seeking
Increased efficiency among teams
Reduction of employee turnover
Reduction of miscommunication
Attuned management of obstacles and challenges
Fluid leadership styles that work with the assets of the entire team
A Closing Message From Our Heart Herd & Collaborators in Patagonia
Click Play Below to Listen
Greta Matos, is the founder of Quila Quina Consulting and the CoFounder and Director of Vision and Impact of CuraKuda.
She has lived and worked in partnership with horses in varied capacities throughout her life. Having studied natural horsemanship early in her development, she nurtured non-dominance-based approaches to training and rehabilitating traumatized horses and teaching relational horsemanship to riders around the world.
As a management consultant, she has worked for nearly 20 years with companies among the Fortune 100 to embed more responsible and ethical practices into their global sourcing and sustainable supply chain programs. She has worked extensively on issues related to modern day slavery, forced labor, child labor, abuse, efforts to reduce the countless negative environmental impacts of production.
She holds her certification in Equine Facilitated Learning & Coaching (EFLC) through The Academy of Coaching with Horses. Greta integrates her intuitive, practical and technical expertise partnering with horses, with her deep experience in corporate management strategy, sustainability, training and capacity buildingto create wholehearted and impact-oriented experiences that support wholehearted personal and organizational transformation. She is based with her herd in Coyhaique, Patagonia.
