Maxime Willems - Therapy & Training

Maxime Willems - Therapy & Training Trauma-Informed Counselling, Equine Assisted Therapy, and Professional Wellbeing Programs in a serene beachside setting.
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Specialising in depression, anxiety, trauma, relationship challenges, and personalised support for individuals, couples, families.

I’m just happy sitting here. 🤍I have a lot happening in life in general, and today I also have a busy program. We explor...
03/09/2026

I’m just happy sitting here. 🤍

I have a lot happening in life in general, and today I also have a busy program. We explored how well we rest and what supports rest, and our horses’ energy started to follow.

Initially, the participant kept leaning towards the most playful horses, and eventually said, “I guess I should check in with Rosco a bit more.” Rosco had joined us at the gate right at the beginning, then walked away to give us space to explore doing, playfulness, and wanting or needing to be (prioritizing) busy.

Eventually, we came full circle. Rosco joined us again as we explored rest and what supports rest, and soon even the two more playful, busy horses joined us in restful being.

We sat there noticing the whales jumping out of the ocean, hearing the birds, and noticing the colours of all the different birds.

The participant walked away feeling supported to continue his rest for a little bit longer this afternoon before tapping into more activities later today and tonight. 🪷🐴

29/08/2026

Earlier this week, we attended the Wellness Tourism Summit 🏝️🪷.

As part of the Wellness Tourism Summit offerings, we also facilitated two sessions with our Maxime Willems - Therapy & Training herd at Sugar Beach Ranch 🐴.

In both sessions, amongst many other things, the theme of authenticity came up.

Guests noticed how the horses showed up exactly as they were. They were not necessarily always calm and simply standing around. There were moments of calmness, co-regulation and curiosity, but also moments of playfulness, reaching for each other, and pushing each other away.

And this opened up some thoughts for me as a practitioner.

In some ways, I can find myself wanting my horses to show up differently from a safety point of view, while at the same time looking for an allowance of simply noticing what happens. Allowance for the horses to be as they are there and then, and for us humans to show up as we are there and then.

Often, themes can come up around wanting to feel more playful or expressive in life, wanting to be more authentic, or wanting to show up as ourselves and all the should’s and shouldn’t that tend to come with that.

Or noticing that, right here and right now, I actually don’t feel calm, but I feel like I need to prioritise calmness.

So we want to work with what is.

For myself as a facilitator, I try to create an environment that supports guests to show up as they are, while perhaps noticing where they block themselves from doing so. Where they try for something. Where they want to be different. Want the horses to be different. Want themselves to be different. Want the environment to be different.

And so there is this movement towards acceptance, or simply noticing the present moment as it is.

I speak a little more about this in the video above, but it was something I wanted to share here too.

Ultimately, it opened up conversations about how we are as human beings when all of our needs are met.

What does it actually mean to be a human being when we don’t try to be something?
When our social, political and ecological environments support us to simply be human?

There is a lot I could write about this session with this young boy and our three horses today.The meaning. The signific...
25/08/2026

There is a lot I could write about this session with this young boy and our three horses today.

The meaning. The significance. The impact.

Around inclusion. Belonging. Boundaries.

But I feel some of these images say a lot with needing to add more words. So I’ll let them speak for themselves 🩵.

One of the participants shared a beautiful realisation about a previous romantic relationship: they were very good at do...
21/08/2026

One of the participants shared a beautiful realisation about a previous romantic relationship: they were very good at doing things together, having fun, and achieving things, but they struggled with simply being together.

We explored how important it is to be with ourselves when it’s just us by ourselves, but also how we can be when we come together with another. Can we still be with and within ourselves. And be with the other. Be with the togetherness.

How are we leaning into the here and now, into ourselves, the environment and into the other?

What does being feel and look like?
What does doing feel and look like?
How do they relate?
And how does the being get interrupted?
What convinces the being to move into doing?

And this brought up the realisation that if she could be a little more in and amongst the doing, rather than always being in the doing, it might actually benefit her doing too.

This workshop came together after sitting down with an inspiring friend and colleague, an Accredited Mental Health Socia...
10/08/2026

This workshop came together after sitting down with an inspiring friend and colleague, an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker with more than 20 years of experience supporting people through complex relationship dynamics, domestic and family violence situations, trauma, men’s behaviour change, and men’s wellbeing.

We are also both studying our Master in Gestalt Psychotherapy, and we wanted to bring our different backgrounds, experience, knowledge and expertise together to create something meaningful.

A supportive, experiential workshop for people who are longing for something different in their relationships.

For those who have found themselves walking on eggshells, losing their voice, questioning themselves, struggling to set boundaries, or feeling disconnected from who they are.

For those who long to feel safe. Seen. Heard. Respected.

And for those who know, somewhere inside, that they want something to change.

Together, we’ll explore the patterns we bring into relationship, how we respond when connection feels threatened, and what it can look like to move towards relationships that are more kind, respectful, reciprocal and nourishing.

This is an invitation to slow down, become curious, reconnect with yourself and explore new possibilities for how you relate, to yourself and to others.

If something in you is hungry for change, this space is for you.

For bookings and enquiries:
[email protected]

It can deeply move me, reading about how our sessions impact some and the meaning they hold for them. 🩵🪷🐴
06/08/2026

It can deeply move me, reading about how our sessions impact some and the meaning they hold for them. 🩵🪷🐴

Younger participants come to equine-assisted therapy for a variety of reasons. Along the way, sessions can naturally bec...
01/08/2026

Younger participants come to equine-assisted therapy for a variety of reasons. Along the way, sessions can naturally become a space to explore social awareness, play, meaningful friendships, personal boundaries, emotional awareness, safety, literacy and expression.

In one of today’s session, there was a focus on noticing, “What is my mood like right now? My energy? What feelings am I bringing to the session?”
“What is the horse’s mood like right now?”
“How and where do I feel safe?” “What helps the horses feel safe right here?”
“What are my needs right now?”
“What might the horses need or want?”

The participant noticed excitement, wanting to play, wanting to move. She wanted others to follow her, show interest in her.

At the same time, we observed a gentle contrast in the horses … calmness, standing quietly, yawning, sighing, shaking, soft eyes, head lowered…

They were still choosing to come towards us, following, standing closely. And then would rest, soften their body, muscles, gaze, …

This opened up a beautiful conversation around how we can honour both our own needs and the needs of others. How can we still meet our need for play while also respecting that someone else may need something different?

In slowing down she noticed similarities between them, and how they organically moved into a similar energy …

How she uses a calming app at home and how the rain sound feels so soothing, also right here and now, for both her and the horses.
How sighing like the horses felt fun and made her laugh.
How when she started to play, the horses were interested in her game, and how their energy lifted.

We integrated all of this with becoming curious about her friends and her family relationships. What feels familiar, what feels new? What did we learn about ourselves and what about others?

A small glimpse into a session with a participant who has now been coming for three or four sessions, and a reminder of how much can unfold through slowing down, noticing, and simply being with the horses.

Address

259 Keith Hall Lane
South Ballina, NSW
2478

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 6pm
Tuesday 8am - 6pm
Wednesday 8am - 6pm
Thursday 2pm - 6pm

Telephone

+61490404490

Website

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