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Restore trust & find your truth

Homeward guides you to recover your innate wisdom through nature-honoring experiences with horses.
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Offerings

Participants have found the experience with Homeward to be therapeutic, revelatory, grounding, meditative, healing, and even life-changing. The offerings can either be experienced one time, opening the door to your own healing work or pursued multiple times in order to go deeper into the Somatic Reprogramming® that is at the core of Equine-Guided Empowerment®.
Pathway 1

EQUINE-GUIDED EMPOWERMENT®

Somatic practices are central in these sessions, so our job is to hold space as you deepen awareness and embody the self-honoring, intuitive energy of the herd. We keep orienting inward to experience presence, reawaken the body’s wisdom, and embrace authentic connection through embodiment exercises facilitated in the presence of free-roaming horses.
Pathway 2

The Homeward Collective

In these small group cohorts, you will learn to work with horses through the lens of trust and connection, not control, training, or dominance. Different from horsemanship methods that focus primarily on the horse, we recognize that the work starts with our self-awareness so that we can enter an authentic partnership with the horse based on congruency, trust, and communication.
Homeward horses
Pathway 3

Private Coaching

If you are looking for ongoing embodiment coaching and practice, or would like to have weekly connection and learning time with the herd, we can tailor a specific program to support your goals. All coaching work is rooted in somatic practices and is carried out to varying levels, depending on your interest and experience, with the herd.
Our vision

Why choose horses ?

Horses are highly sensitive, sensate beings, providing non-judgmental feedback in each given moment. They remind us how to feel and trust our instinctual, intuitive powers. They act as both teachers and guides in our unfolding process, as they hold space and point out where we need to release and heal.

Find your moment with horses

Our sessions offer a safe and nurturing space to explore emotions, embody your truth, and free yourself from limiting habits. Take a look at our events and rates to find what feels aligned for you.
Homeward Events
Our Rates

The Farm - a Place To Remember

Nestled in a green valley, our farm is more than a space—it’s a sanctuary. With a small forest, orchards, and a large track-style pasture, this is a place where people come to reconnect with themselves and the rhythm of nature. We welcome individuals, families, and small groups in an atmosphere of beauty and care.

WE'VE WALKED BESIDE
32 BEAUTIFUL PATHS SO FAR.

About us

With our great location near Sintra, we are one of the few private farms offering equine-assisted coaching in the area. The local climate and covered installations permit outdoor sessions all year round, and the horses have a large property on which they roam freely, which is the optimal setup for this experience.

Homeward was established on September 22, 2022

horses have joined the farmed, and graze happily in the meadow

guests have taken part in our equine-assisted therapy sessions

Just for you

Quinta Nova, where all of Homeward’s offerings are carried out, is a private farm, not a horse boarding facility or riding school. All sessions are done with full privacy and confidentiality. I, Amanda, am the sole facilitator of Homeward’s offerings, so there is never an overlap with other clients or sessions, and the herd is always available for all sessions.

A Life Led By Horses

My journey with horses began at age five in rural Wisconsin, where I first experienced their quiet wisdom and steady presence. Over the years, horses have been my greatest teachers, offering freedom, grounded presence, and a deep sense of connection.

After a global career in education, a move to Portugal in 2016 left me feeling untethered. I turned to horses once again, and this time they showed me a new path: one that wove together my lifelong bond with them and my experience guiding others.
Through The Reflective Horse® Mastery program, I deepened my embodied awareness and embraced a way of living and working in alignment with my truth and passion.

Today, I continue to grow alongside my two children and the remarkable horses I care for, each one a dynamic and unique partner in healing, insight, and transformation.

We also do group sessions

Group sessions are custom designed to create a safe and interactive experience for groups or families who would like to work on a specific topic and be in connection with horses. No previous horse experience is needed to participate and benefit, and all sessions are done on the ground (no riding).

Frequently asked questions

Equine-Guided Empowerment® (EGE®) is beneficial if you feel any of the following:
- Frequently lost in thoughts; struggle to be or stay present with yourself or loved ones
- Uncertainty of how to trust yourself or your intuition.
- Frequently feel anxious, depressed, numb, and sometimes avoid feeling.
- Difficulty setting healthy boundaries; discomfort taking up space; and/or have struggled to assert your voice.
- Desire a deeper, more authentic connection with kids or partner.
- Want to spend time with fully embodied horses who are free, and experience how they can set you free.
- Judgmental, competitive, or even angry towards others and wish you could feel more secure.

Horses have a special power to teach, help us release, and hold what needs holding.

In short, we hold a deep trust in the wisdom and sentience of the horse. We cannot free ourselves from limiting patterns and tendencies if the horse is an object “used” in our process; therefore, the Homeward herd is free-roaming because they have full agency to choose with whom, how much, and in what capacity they want to connect, give feedback, and interact with participants. The horses feel what a client needs in a given moment with precise clarity and timing and will frequently make that clear. The horse’s freedom allows us to embody our own sovereignty.

EGE® sessions are grounded in insight-based coaching, so my job in those sessions is to hold space for whatever may need to be released, keep pointing you towards your innate wellbeing and wisdom, and provide somatic experiences to bring you deeper into your body’s awareness. We will always be in the horses’ space, sometimes indirectly (on the other side of the fence, or in a pasture space the horses cannot enter), or we will be directly sharing space with the herd. Specific somatic exercises are better done away from the horses; others are best near or in interaction with the herd.

Group sessions allow you to engage in the relational aspects of somatic experiences through practicing together, observing others, giving and receiving honest feedback, and learning from each other’s debriefs. Private sessions allow for more flexibility to adapt to exactly what you need on a given day—or based on what the horses identify as the best way forward in a given moment. Private sessions also permit us to work on a specific goal or challenge that you’d like help with.

Equine-Guided Empowerment® is based in Somatic Reprogramming®. We re-awaken awareness of our bodies, then feel into the sensations (separate from knowing them from an intellectual perspective). Through the somatic exercises, we notice our embodied responses so we see, feel, and explore them in a safe way.  From there, we practice increasing the somatic and emotional range within. Meaning organically arises when one is in the body, as the body is the source of wisdom and intrinsic truth.  The meaning or insight that arises will be unique and exactly what needs to arise and shift for you.  Finally, we practice new actions that align with your values now, and release old patterns and stories which served to keep us safe but no longer serve us today.  A full integration of change takes time and continued tuning in, and life presents us with myriad opportunities to practice.  Somatic work puts your experience directly in the body, which is where traumas, patterns, and habits are stored. Therefore, only by getting into the body can we surface, unpack, release, and create new embodied practices!

If you are drawn to horses, either through previous experience or just a strong connection, the Collective is a way to learn about, work with, and deepen your understanding of horses through the lens of trust and connection. When people want to be with horses on a regular basis, riding schools are the most common pathway. However, most riding schools skip the relational aspects of the horse-human partnership. In the Collective, you work in small cohorts (limited to 4 participants) to connect your self-awareness and embodiment to the “doing” part of horses, like grooming, leading, following, space claiming, therapeutic nutrition, groundwork, and eventually supported and independent riding. These cohorts are offered in 3 modules, each one consisting of 6, 2-hour weekly sessions. All participants must begin with module 1 and then can move on to subsequent modules. The first module’s theme is Safety, Agency, and Choice. The second module’s theme is Trust and Communication. The third module focuses on Attunement and Partnership.

Potential Homeward clients can schedule a 15-30 minute call with me to ask questions and learn more about the offerings. Just submit your contact details in the contact form on the website or reach out directly by email: amanda@homeward.pt.

Quinta Nova is a private farm (not a horse boarding facility or riding school), so all sessions are done with full privacy and confidentiality. As I am the sole facilitator of Homeward’s offerings, there is never an overlap with other clients or sessions, and all four of my horses are available for all sessions. Quinta Nova is also my home, so clients are welcomed to a carefully organized, beautiful space set in nature and surrounded almost entirely by green. I have a client lounge, where people can settle, make a tea or coffee, fill up water bottles, use the bathroom, and peruse the small library of books aligned to Homeward’s philosophy and practice.

Client experience

Attending an Introduction to Equine Guided Empowerment® with Amanda was a very moving experience. As someone who is not used to being around horses, Amanda’s skillful and intuitive facilitation created an environment that allowed us to interact with each other and the horses in a natural, easy, and safe way. I was deeply touched by the horses’ gentle, perceptive presence and the way they connected with us. The exercises gave us an opportunity to explore how we approach situations on a deeper, somatic level, going beyond how we think we approach situations, which was eye-opening, fun, and challenging all at once and really brought us together as a group.

Lucy, South Africa/Portugal

Enlightening. The inner perspective guided by the instructors and energetic presence of the horses was eye opening. My takeaway was self knowledge on a level I wasn’t aware that needed to be examined. Great expectations equaled a great experience.

Christopher, USA/Portugal

I went into this experience with no expectations and left feeling renewed and awakened. The exercises dealt with setting boundaries and vulnerability. The environment was a safe space and you could feel the collective power of those who participated, including the horses. It was an enlightening experience and recommended to everyone wanting to witness empowerment in nature.

Diana, USA/Portugal

The preparatory work was very valuable to get a felt sense of grounding and boundary-setting, which I hope to be able to take into daily life! And being in with the horses was a truly magical experience. I have a new sense of awe at their sensitivity and on a personal level, I gained lots of self-awareness insights as well as feeling that something has shifted emotionally.

Katia, France/Portugal

When I went to Amanda’s place in Portugal, which is beautifully set in the green of Sintra, I felt myself really sink into my body. The energy of her experience and of the group was grounding and uplifting—I left feeling inspired and deeply connected. Some of the exercises encouraged my heart to open further, yet clarified what my boundaries are and instilled a confidence to uphold them in my daily life. The energy of the horses was palpable and simply being in their presence shifted perspective.

Coral, USA/Italy

Amanda has a very special and calming energy, and working with her and her horses I learnt new things about myself that I am not sure I would have learnt in other contexts. I highly recommend her Equine-Guided Empowerment® to anyone who is wanting to better understand and relate to themselves and would like to so in a beautiful, calm setting with an intuitive guide.

Anna, UK/Portugal

As an animal lover, yet someone who’s unfamiliar with horses, this course helped me to understand their innate emotional intelligence and how they reflect our emotions back to us. The exercises forced me to be vulnerable and showed me the value of setting intentional boundaries. Amanda held space for each participant, being open to all experiences and allowing the horses to lead us all on the journey. I left feeling emotionally renewed, rejuvenated, and longing to be with horses again.

Jené, South Africa/Portugal

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Location

Quinta Nova, Serradas
2635-452 Rio de Mouro
Sintra, Portugal
Google Maps/Waze: Quinta Nova Gentine

Location

Quinta Nova, Serradas
2635-452 Rio de Mouro
Sintra, Portugal
Google Maps/Waze: Quinta Nova Gentine
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Homeward. Website created by Mottology.

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