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You don’t need to be fixed. you need to be seen.

What to Expect

An Intentional Pause program provides a transformative container for those seeking to harness life's challenges as catalysts for profound growth. Through structured reflection, purposeful experimentation, and compassionate community support, participants emerge with clarity, direction, and practical tools to create an integrated life that is full of meaning. This program offers not just information but a guided journey to becoming the architect of your most authentic and purposeful life.

* Led by PATH- and Somatic Experience Practitioner- certified facilitators in equine-assisted services.

A 6-session individual arc that starts in your body.

Ground-based equine-assisted learning for women, grounded in Polyvagal Theory and the RISE framework.

The situation

Most of us have spent years getting very good at fitting in.

We say the right things. We show up. We manage our presentation with precision.

And in the gap between who we perform and who we actually are, something calcifies.

Researchers call it self-silencing. Your body experiences it as cortisol, chronic tension, the particular exhaustion of never quite arriving anywhere as yourself.

The Intentional Pause is not a workshop.

It is a 6-session individual arc designed to meet you where the work actually is: in your nervous system, in your story, in the gap between the life you’re managing and the life you’re choosing.

“True belonging requires showing up as you actually are.” — Brené Brown

1 program.

6 Sessions.

12 weeks

Six individual sessions, two + hours each. Facilitation by Susan, PATH-certified equine-assisted learning facilitator, and Emma, Somatic Experience Practitioner.

Sessions are bi-weekly, allowing time for integration between each.

No riding. No prior horse experience required. No clinical diagnosis needed. This is personal development within a structured arc that you control. In the end, you’ll leave with a transformed perspective, a set of named strengths and connections, and a pathway forward designed by you with intention and care.

We meet at The Paddock in Atwater Village.

The RISE Arc

[Phase 1 — Resilience]  Sessions 1–2.

We start with your nervous system. You learn how your body registers safety and threat, what co-regulation actually feels like, and how to map the ecosystem that’s been holding (or depleting) you.

[Phase 2 — Identity]  Sessions 3–4.

We surface the gap between the self you perform and the self you actually inhabit. Values work, narrative reclamation, and the experience of being seen honestly and without agenda.

[Phase 3 — Strengths]  Session 5.

We turn from excavation to activation. You identify the strengths you’ve been using without knowing it and map where they’re actually going versus where you want them to go.

[Phase 4 — Empowerment]  Session 6.

You design your own session and share your story aloud. You name your Contribution — the direction you’re moving in that is grounded in your values, your strengths, and what you now know about yourself.

This program is for you if…

  • You are at a threshold. Something has shifted - in your work, your relationships, your body, your sense of direction - and you know you can’t think your way through it.

  • You’ve tried therapy, coaching, or wellness programs and found them useful but incomplete. You need something that meets the body, not just the mind.

  • You are ready to invest seriously — in time, attention, and resources — in work that matches the seriousness of what you're carrying.

  • You are exhausted by the gap between the life you’re managing and the life you actually want to be living.

  • You are ready to be seen — not by an algorithm, not by a group, but by yourself, clearly and without performance.

  • You are curious about equine-assisted learning and drawn to an approach that is grounded in evidence, not in mysticism.

This program is not for you if…

  • You are in active mental health crisis or require clinical treatment. This program is prevention and personal development, not therapy. If you are currently in crisis or need clinical support, we can help connect you with appropriate resources.

  • You are looking for a quick fix or a single workshop experience. The arc requires six sessions. The integration between sessions is part of the work.

  • You are not willing to be in physical proximity to a large animal. Sessions are ground-based and safe — but the horse is present, real, and responsive.

Investment

This is a significant commitment — of time, money, and attention. The Intentional Pause is built for six in-person sessions with remote guidance in between to support genuine, individual work with two credentialed practitioners, not a workshop or a quick fix.

6 Equine-Assisted Session Arc - $10,000. Two practitioners, every session. Twelve weeks with remote touch-ins between in-person sessions. Proprietary curriculum. Outcome data included. Payment plan available: 50% at booking, 25% at the midpoint, 25% before your final session. A modest discount is available when two women enroll together.

Not ready to commit? Trial Session — $750. One real, full-length session with both practitioners — not a sales conversation. If you enroll in the six-session arc within 60 days, your $750 is credited in full toward your tuition.

The Intentional Pause Access Fund. Financial barriers shouldn't be what keeps a woman from this work when she needs it. A limited number of sliding-scale and fully-funded spots are available each quarter, made possible by donor and grant support.

Sliding Scale - Self-identified. No documentation required. Sliding scale spots are available based on need. Please indicate when booking.

Scholarship - A limited number of scholarship spots are available each quarter for women who cannot access the program at any pay tier. Scholarship spots are grant- and donor-funded. Inquire directly at susan@unbridledrising.com

Location
Lincourt Stables at The Paddock

To Book

The first step is a 30-minute intake call — by phone or video. This is a conversation, not a sales call. We will talk about where you are, what you’re looking for, and whether this is the right fit right now.

Book Your Call Now

Frequently Asked Questions

  • No. Most participants have never worked with a horse before. The sessions are ground-based — no riding, ever. The equine specialist introduces you to the horse and ensures safety throughout. What you bring is yourself.

  • No. This is prevention and personal development, not clinical mental health treatment. If you are currently in therapy, this program can work well alongside it — many women find it deepens the work they’re doing with their therapist.

  • Good. Women who arrive with no prior framework tend to be the most open to what actually happens. This program doesn’t require a background in wellness or personal development. It requires willingness to show up honestly — which you already have or you wouldn’t be reading this.

  • Yes. The Trial Session is one full, real session with both practitioners — $750, and not a sales pitch. If you decide to enroll in the six-session arc within 60 days, that $750 comes off your tuition. It exists for women who want to feel the work in their body before deciding, not just read about it.

  • Three things: the horse, the body, and the structure. Most coaching and wellness programs work primarily through language and cognition. This program works through the nervous system first. The horse cannot be performed for, which means the insights that emerge are real, not constructed. And the RISE arc has a clear beginning, middle, and end, so you leave with something concrete rather than a general sense of having worked on yourself.

  • Yes. Every participant completes baseline assessments before Session 1 and follow-up assessments after Session 6. This program is being piloted in a clinical setting with real outcomes data and we hold ourselves to that standard.

  • This program is priced to reflect what it actually is: two credentialed practitioners, a proprietary curriculum, and real outcomes data, delivered one-on-one over twelve weeks. That's a real cost to deliver well, and we're not going to underprice it to pretend otherwise.

    At the same time, cost shouldn't be why the right woman doesn't get this work. Sliding scale spots are self-identified — no documentation required.

    The Access Fund provides fully-funded spots each quarter, made possible by donors who believe this work should reach beyond who can pay full price. Reach out directly to ask about either.

  • Comfortable clothes you don’t mind getting a little dusty. Closed-toe shoes. A journal if you have one — though materials are provided. Nothing else required.