Eco Therapy & Walk and Talk Sessions in Edmonton
Therapy doesn't have to happen in a room. Step outside, breathe, and let nature become part of your healing — through walk and talk sessions, equine-assisted therapy, and the grounding power of the outdoors.
Therapy that takes place outside the office
Eco therapy — also called nature therapy or green therapy — is simply therapy that incorporates the natural world. At Summit, this most often looks like walk and talk sessions: you and your therapist meet outdoors and walk together while exploring what's on your mind. The movement, fresh air, and change of scenery often make it easier to open up than sitting across from someone in a room.
It's still real therapy. Your therapist brings the same training, the same evidence-based approaches, and the same clinical skill as they would to any session — CBT, ACT, EMDR, somatic work, and others can all be woven into an outdoor format. The only thing that changes is the setting.
We also offer equine-assisted sessions for those drawn to working with horses as part of their healing. And for those who want to deepen their relationship with the natural world as part of managing eco-anxiety or climate grief, we can support that too.
Why Nature Helps
- Walking side-by-side reduces the intensity of eye contact — many clients find it easier to talk
- Movement naturally regulates the nervous system and reduces anxiety
- Natural environments lower cortisol and activate the parasympathetic nervous system
- Being outdoors can reduce rumination and quiet the inner critic
- Equine work builds emotional regulation, trust, and nonverbal awareness
- Nature connection reduces eco-anxiety by rebuilding a sense of belonging to the natural world
- Sessions feel less clinical — which often helps people who've avoided therapy before
Three ways to do eco therapy
Eco therapy at Summit isn't one fixed format — it adapts to what works for you. Here are the three main ways we bring therapy outside.
Walk & Talk
The most common format. You and your therapist meet at a park, trail, or outdoor space and walk while you talk. Sessions cover the same ground as any therapy session — relationships, anxiety, trauma, mood — just with fresh air and movement.
Your therapist sets the pace so you're never pushed harder than feels right. Routes are chosen for privacy and accessibility, and if the weather doesn't cooperate, the session simply moves indoors.
Equine-Assisted Therapy
Horses are extraordinarily sensitive to human emotional states — they mirror what we bring into the space without judgment or agenda. Equine-assisted sessions involve ground-based activities with horses (no riding required), facilitated by your therapist throughout.
Particularly powerful for trauma, attachment wounds, emotional regulation, and teens or adults who struggle to engage in traditional talk therapy.
Nature-Integrated Sessions
Some clients want to use nature as a therapeutic tool without necessarily walking the whole session. This might include mindfulness outdoors, somatic grounding in a natural setting, or simply moving the conversation outside when the weather allows. A flexible add-on available with most of our therapists.
Your therapist brings every tool outdoors
Walk and talk isn't a lighter version of therapy — it's a different container for the same depth of work. Your therapist integrates evidence-based approaches including CBT, ACT, EMDR, somatic techniques, and more into the outdoor format, guided entirely by what you need.
Sessions are the same length and cost as in-office appointments. Confidentiality is maintained through therapist training and thoughtful location selection. If weather doesn't cooperate, your session simply moves indoors — no pressure, no judgment.
What can eco therapy help with?
Eco therapy suits a wide range of concerns — but it's especially effective when anxiety, mood, or trauma has made it hard to feel comfortable in a traditional office setting.
Anxiety
Movement and nature both directly reduce physiological anxiety. Many clients find outdoor sessions feel less clinical and less intimidating.
Depression
Natural light, movement, and fresh air support mood regulation. Eco therapy gets you out of the house and into a space that restores rather than depletes.
Eco-Anxiety & Eco-Grief
If climate change weighs on you, eco therapy offers a space to process those feelings and rebuild a sense of agency and connection with the natural world.
Trauma
For some trauma survivors, a room with a closed door can feel activating. The open-air setting of walk and talk therapy can reduce that baseline threat response.
ADHD
Research consistently shows that time in nature reduces ADHD symptoms. Movement during sessions also helps with focus and attention regulation.
Stress & Burnout
When you're depleted, spending time in nature is restorative in a way that sitting in yet another room often isn't. Eco therapy meets you where your energy is.
Emotional Regulation
Nature provides a co-regulating environment. Equine-assisted sessions are particularly powerful for building emotional awareness and self-regulation capacity.
Mood Disorders
Outdoor light, rhythm, and movement support the biological underpinnings of mood — making eco therapy a meaningful complement to other treatments.
What makes horses different
Horses are highly attuned to emotional states — they respond to what you bring into the space without judgment, agenda, or interpretation. This makes them powerful therapeutic partners, especially for clients who struggle to connect in traditional talk formats.
Sessions are ground-based — no riding required, no experience necessary. Your therapist guides you through activities with the horse that surface emotional patterns, attachment styles, and nervous system responses in real time.
Equine-assisted therapy is particularly well-suited to trauma, attachment difficulties, teens and young adults, and anyone who has found traditional therapy hard to engage with.
Therapists who offer eco therapy
Our eco therapy clinicians are trained in a range of evidence-based approaches and bring them seamlessly into outdoor and equine-assisted formats.
Frequently asked questions
Reading on eco therapy
Explore our therapists' writing on nature-based approaches, eco-anxiety, walk and talk therapy, and the science of spending time outdoors.
Therapy that takes you
somewhere new.
Our eco therapy and walk and talk clinicians are accepting new clients in Edmonton, St. Albert, and Windermere. Online sessions available throughout Alberta.
Summit Counselling Services acknowledges that we operate on Treaty 6 territory, the traditional lands of the Cree, Nakota Sioux, Saulteaux, and Blackfoot peoples, and the homeland of the Métis Nation. We are grateful to work and walk on this land, and are committed to culturally safe and inclusive care for all.
Summit Counselling Services is a counselling clinic located in Leduc, St. Albert & Central Edmonton, St. Albert and Leduc. We provide clinical services to children, adolescents, adults, seniors, couples, and families. We have a talented team of Edmonton psychologists, therapists and counsellors with a wide range of specializations and trainings at Summit Counselling Services who would be honoured to walk beside you on your journey. At Summit, we believe in therapy your way. Our goal is to customize your psychotherapy and counselling sessions to best suit your needs. We believe in the differences and unique perspectives each person brings to therapy and incorporate these into our work with you.