004 | The Wolf Connection to Heal Trauma with Amanda Beer
Dr. Amanda Beer is the Program Director at Wolf Connection, a not-for-profit educational sanctuary and wilderness retreat center located just north of Los Angeles. They bring people together through direct relationships with rescued wolves. Amanda is a licensed psychologist and educator, and at Wolf Connection, she collaborates with the Wolf Pack and Human Program Team to facilitate powerful opportunities for awareness, connection, healing, and growth. Consistent with her commitment to social justice as a therapist, she has presented and published a number of empirical studies focused on social, cultural, and training issues like inmate experiences, white privilege, and multicultural learning environments.
Amanda joins me today to share why she believes we have all experienced trauma simply by the act of living. She explains how wolves deal with trauma and how it differs from the way humans move through it. We discuss why living beings have a set-point for achieving equilibrium and the ability to adapt and find inner equilibrium and peace. We discuss why the Wolf Connection organization uses wolves to help people overcome traumatic experiences and what their experiences are like when connecting with wolves. We also discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the viability of the work they do at The Wolf Connection and how they’ve stayed motivated to be successful, despite the challenges.
“The wolves mirror our resilience, our capacity, our ability to be present and in the moment.”
- Dr. Amanda Beer
This week on the Trauma Hiders Club Podcast:
How wolves deal with trauma differently than humans
How all living beings have a set-point for equilibrium
Our ability to adapt and find inner peace
Why the Wolf Connection organization uses wolves to help people overcome serious trauma
What “Mikey Medicine” and “The Medicine Wheel” are and how Wolf Therapy has helped one young girl work through trauma
My experience at The Wolf Connection and what led Amanda to start working at the organization
The importance of believing you’re worthy
How COVID has impacted the viability of the work they do at The Wolf Connection
Connect with Amanda Beer:
Podcast: The Wolf Connection