Equine-Assisted Creative Arts Therapy (EACAT)
What is EACAT?
Equine-Assisted Creative Arts Therapy (EACAT) is a therapeutic approach developed by Rebekah Popescu that combines interactions with horses and creative arts modalities and mediums, such as painting, clay, sensorimotor AT, drawing, music, ephemeral art or drama, to support emotional, mental, and physical healing.
The underlying phenomenological philosophy and shared scientific and theoretical aspects of both models make this a highly effective blend of integrative modalities.
EACAT integrates the benefits of equine-assisted therapy, which leverages the relationship between humans and horses, with the expressive and therapeutic power of creative arts.
Philosophical approach
Phenomenology is a philosophical attitude that focuses on subjective lived experience and the meaning people derive from it. This plays a central role in both EAP and CAT.
The phenomenological approach provides a philosophical framework that values the subjective, embodied, and relational nature of human experience, making it a natural fit for these modalities.
Scientific and Theoretical Principles
Equine-assisted psychotherapy (EAP) and creative arts therapy (CAT) also share many of these which makes them great partners in an integrative model
These are grounded in psychology, neuroscience, and somatic theories such as polyvagal theory. The shared principles highlight how experiential, embodied, and creative processes can support emotional, cognitive, and relational healing
EACAT integrates the benefits of equine-assisted therapy
