Ive always had a passion for horses and working with people. I have grown up on this property since I was born and have been lucky enough to be immersed by the love of horses on our farm from a very young age. 

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Horses have always had a huge role in our family - learning to ride at the age of two and using our horses to play a horse sport called Polocrosse for over 11 years.

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In the midst of this I studied a Bachelor of Teaching in both Early Childhood (0-5yrs) and Primary School Teaching . My love for teaching sent me globally to teach around the world as well as in Australia for around 5 years. Along the way I showed an interest in assisting people with additional needs and I continued to explore this passion by study a Masters in Behaviourism. I have now found myself taking a step back from the education system and spending my time working as a Behaviour Specialist, assisting children and adults of all ages in improving their quality of life.

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I recently decided to merge my passions and qualifications together. I went on to complete an equine course and now combining my expertise and credentials to deliver Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) and Equine Psychotherapy here at Influential Equine Therapy. 

In 2015, I graduated with a Bachelor of Occupational Therapy (Honours) from the University of Newcastle. Prior to becoming an Occupational Therapist I worked with children aged 0-5 and completed my Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care.

Subsequent to the completion of my studies I specialised in Rehabilitation in both the Mainstream and Geriatric setting. From stroke rehab, acquired brain injury, spinal, knee and hip fracture rehabilitation after a fall, injury or accident or cognitive rehab for people living with dementia, a head injury or Parkinson's disease.

Through my experience working with children and adolescence I have supported children and their families with ASD, ADHD, Sensory Processing challenges, Global developmental delays, Cerebral Palsy, Muscular dystrophy and Mental Health disorders. I enjoy assisting children to work on meeting their goals in an enjoyable and meaningful way, keeping them engaged and having fun. I love nothing more than children or adolescence leaving my sessions with a smile on their face and feeling proud of themselves. I am passionate about being a positive advocate for the children I support, their families and offering my support in the home, school and community environment. 

I am a Certified Practicing Speech Pathologist (C.P.S.P.) and a member of Speech Pathology Australia. I graduated in 2015 with a Bachelor of Speech Pathology (Honours) from the University of Newcastle. 

 

I am passionate about working with children and adults in the context of their families and in the community. I have experience working with children and adults of different ages, diagnoses and cultural backgrounds. 

 

I have a particular interest in the area of early language development, speech sound development, and autism spectrum disorder and am committed to creating a fun and personalised therapy environment. I understand how busy life is with young children and am passionate about empowering families to ensure therapy and goals are functional and applicable to life outside the therapy session. 

 

Certificates/PD

⁃ DIR 101: An Introduction to DIR and DIRFloortime

⁃ HLTSS00008 Audiometry Screening and Assessment Program

- Understanding Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Different Way of Thinking, Learning and Managing Emotions with Dr Tony Attwood 

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Growing up with horses, I am looking forward to merging my two passions together to support my client’s communication goals.

Equine Assisted Learning has provided me with the opportunity to merge my passion for horses, my enthusiasm for supporting others and my love of family together as a career. In 2020 I joined the Influential Equine team after completing my studies in counselling, alongside supporting NDIS participants as a Behaviour Practitioner. At the time, Influential Equine was a passion project of one, built by my sister and the Director of Influential Equine Therapy, Laura. Being able to work alongside my sister and continue to weave our passions and family values into our careers has been a rewarding journey I am grateful of each day.

 

I grew up on our beautiful Ourimbah property riding horses from the age of two and playing a sport called Polocrosse from childhood into early adulthood. I have now shifted my horse knowledge and experience into spending my time supporting and empowering others to work towards their goals through the power of our partners and teachers (our horses).