Uinta’s Clinical Director Celebrates 18 Years
Bridget Rhoten, LCSW celebrated 18 years with Uinta Academy this year! Bridget started as a family teacher, moved on to be the program director, a primary therapist and now the clinical director.
“I love working with our Uinta families! This is very complex work we do, and I believe the most powerful agent of change at Uinta is the horse.
I would say the equine approach is why I love what I do at Uinta and why I have chosen to stay here for over 18 years. The horse is the best therapist, the most non-judgmental mirror, and the understanding avenue to help clients and families enter the road to healing. I struggle seeing effective trauma-informed attachment therapy without horses. Equilateral, equine-assisted EMDR is my favorite therapeutic approach for complex trauma and attachment disorders. I find this is the key to a lot of messy talk therapy, which has not been successful. Also, understanding animals through their primal lens helps me understand clients and families at a deeper level where we connect and explore ways to move forward.
“I believe in the power of equine with my own children. As a mother of five, time out with horses is magical.”
New Addition
“In April my husband and I added a little girl; Vivi to our four boys. We have already started her training through the way of the horse. You will note through the pictures we took the baby and our four boys to the Wind rivers over Labor Day. The second day we all rode 20 miles to the back of the Circuit of Towers! It was incredible! I love being a mother and find it so fulfilling. Being a mother helps me reframe the lens I view the client through. I totally understand the parents longing to get the best help possible for them and their child and I am honored to be part of this process.”
Bridget has extensive training in:
- Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP)
- Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR)
- Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT)
- Emotion-Focused Therapy (EMT)
- Equine Assisted EMDR
- Motivational Interviewing
She does excellent work with complex family systems, trauma, attachment, depression, anxiety, identity exploration, Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, and other comorbid issues.
Lanae is the Admissions and Outreach Director at Uinta Academy. She has worked in Residential Treatment Center’s for over 10 years in a variety of roles including primary therapist, program director, program development and implementation, admissions, transition coach and aftercare specialist.