What happens when a lifetime of inherited trauma, deep pain, and a search for belonging leads not only to personal transformation but to a profound connection with faith, horses, and the land? It leads to discovering one’s true passion, and the creation of a powerful memoir. Meet author and Gestalt Coach, Hertha Louise Lund, writer of the book titled, Alchemy of Resilience: My Rugged Path to Wholeness. It is so powerful to have had the opportunity to interview her for Social The Lifestyle Magazine.
Meghan Forte: What is specifically, equine gestalt coaching? How would you explain this to our readers?
Hertha Louise Lund: Equine Gestalt Coaching Method (“EGCM”) is more than horseback riding, it is a type of coaching that helps clients bring to their awareness emotional blockages and unfinished inner business that may be holding them back in their lives. The personal work the Equine Gestalt Coaches guide their clients through is ‘in the moment’, deeply tied to somatic (body responses) and experiential in nature. EGCM is not psychotherapy and is effective whether or not a client is in therapy. Individuals from all walks of life and all ages can benefit from EGCM coaching.
As a EGC master coach, I have gone through four-years of training and
I now partner with my horses to serve others on their paths to wholeness. Horses
are true empaths and they often choose to be fully present, fully anchored in their
bodies and meet people heart to heart when they are authentic and open to
transformational healing. Over and over again, I witness how the love of a horse
serves humans to find their true selves and allows them to shed those defenses
or ways of beings that keep their hearts closed down.
Meghan Forte: What does it mean to you to run your business on a family ranch that has been a part of the Grande Family for generations?
Hertha Louise Lund: The ranch has been in the Grande family since 1877, which was prior to Montana becoming a state, when two brothers, Martin T. and Anton Grande, responded to the “American Fever” and traveled from Norway to the United States. Anton decided to go to South Dakota to take part in the gold rush. M.T. traveled straight
to the Montana Territory where Anton joined him after his time in the Black Hills.
Today, John A. Grande is the fourth generation to ranch on the property that the
Grande brothers homesteaded and bought for ranching more than one hundred
years ago. My husband John and I have different types of cows such as: Angus,Simmental, South Devon cross cows. The ranch is still very much a working cattle ranch. During their time at Grande Ranch, guests may see ongoing ranch activities, such as livestock handling, haying, and other activities going on around them.
Meghan Forte: Do you work with adults of a specific population?
Hertha Louise Lund: I work with anyone who is seeking to live more wholeheartedly and knows that they could be living better without the burdens of their past. Oftentimes, women who have suffered deep trauma and/or loss are attracted to work with me.
Since, I experienced deep trauma from early childhood sexual abuse from a teenage neighbor boy and damage from my mom and her addiction to alcohol, I am experienced and comfortable to hold space and work with others who are moving through their trauma. In addition to being trained by Melisa Pearce, a forerunner of equine coaching, I have also done some training with Kelly McDaniel, who wrote Mother Hunger, a book about those who suffered trauma because their moms were not capable of providing nurturance, guidance and protection that children need. I had complex PTSD due to my childhood trauma and no longer have psychological and physical issues caused by that trauma.
Meghan Forte: You experienced a near-death experience that profoundly impacted your journey to providing therapeutic services. In what ways did that experience shape your approach to therapy or counseling?
Hertha Louise Lund: My near-death experience changed my life in multiple complex, profound and also somewhat simple ways. I asked for the opportunity to return so I could finish my reason for this life, and promised to do whatever it took to heal at all levels of being. I hoped to embody the sense of love, peace and total oneness that I felt while I was engulfed in the warmth of God’s divine light high in the upper atmosphere. While out of my body, I felt more alive than ever. Upon returning, I understood my purpose: to share that transformational healing is available to everyone and that finding wholeness is a central purpose of our lives.
Meghan Forte: How would you describe your coaching philosophy?
Hertha Louise Lund: My coaching philosophy is rooted in seeing everyone as whole and that each of us has the answers to our own inner dilemmas inside of us, even if oftentimes outside of our awareness. As a coach my job is to partner with my horses and together serve our clients through creating an experience in which my client can find greater awareness of that which may have been hiding in their subconscious mind. Also, the horses and I serve to hold a safe, sacred space as our client moves through and then releases those ways of being that no longer serve them.
I love coaching more than anything else I do in life because during that time I feel closest to when I was out of my body and one with something greater than my human consciousness. During the time when clients, my horses and I are in the sacred round corral in our healing retreat center, I feel like I am fulfilling my reason for being. My first retreat was five women who had lost a loved one to suicide – three of them had lost their child. At the end of that retreat, they said it was “life changing.” Now, after doing 10 retreats over the past four years, “life-changing” is still my common feedback.
Meghan Forte: What makes Four Horses for Wholeness unique?
Hertha Louise Lund: Four Horses for Wholeness is unique because our ranch is nestled in a sacred, high mountainous meadow area where one can leave their everyday life behind and simply feel the presence of Mother Earth. My horse members are each unique, kind hearted, and extremely generous and love to meet clients and assist them in their paths to wholeness.
Additionally, my personal journey of overcoming deep trauma and learning to live wholeheartedly—alongside the profound insights from my near-death experience—uniquely equips me to guide others toward healing through the love and wisdom of horses. Together, we help clients reconnect with their authentic selves and embrace transformation.
Meghan Forte: Why is healing oneself important in your professional opinion?
Prior to my near-death experience, I worked as an attorney for almost 30 years. Before that, I covered Congress and the United States Supreme Court as a journalist. After working in Washington, D.C. and at multiple state capitals, I realized that policy and laws would never create the change that we need to heal Mother Earth and for us to live together in harmony with all life. Mahatma Gandhi said, “Our greatest ability as humans is not to change the world, but to change ourselves.” After returning and based on my forty years of studying the mystical traditions of many of the world’s religions, coupled with the wisdom I have learned from horses, I believe my best way to change the world is to embody as much wholeness each day of my life and to share that wholeness with all life through love.
Meghan Forte: I know you love all your horses, but do you have a favorite horse?
Hertha Louise Lund: Each horse is my favorite in different ways. Mystic, my large 1,700lb Gypsy and Shire cross mare is a diva and very good healer. She is wise beyond words, an extremely mischievous character and very loving, so long as I am in my body and not in my head. She has no use for me when I am stuck in my mental body.
Monk is shorter- a beautiful white and black pinto colored horse with an extremely
long, beautiful mane. He is very sweet and is my best partner to do ranch work
with. He talks to me and others who are willing to communicate with him through his mind.
Meghan Forte: What makes each horse unique in their personality?
Hertha Louise Lund: Each horse forms their own personality throughout their lives, which can reach more than 30 years old. Horses do not have as much of a forebrain as humans.Yet, they have very strong memories and remember people and their interactions with people better than we might. Horses live in the here and now, and do not have the ability to live in the past or the future. HeartMath has measured the emanations from a horse’s heart and found that is five times the
same measurement of a human’s heart. They can feel what we are feeling and also what is outside of our awareness. Partnering with horses to serve others on their paths to wholeness never ceases to amaze me in witnessing how each horse shows up, and how much they offer their hearts to help others heal.
horse shows up, and how much they offer their hearts to help others heal.
Meghan Forte: How do you describe in your observations the benefits your clients have gained from the therapeutic experience of horseback riding?
Hertha Louise Lund: My observations about those who have attended my retreats are that they leave feeling different inside and freer to be themselves after a retreat. After each retreat, each person looks like they have had a facelift.
Here is a powerful testimonial from one of Herta’s clients:
“Hertha,
Words cannot express how truly grateful I am for your friendship. You are not cut from the same cloth as anyone else. Your generosity is from such a divine space of kindness. Your coaching comes from that same place of true generosity of spirit and immense kindness and your clients are blessed to have found you. It is so obvious that you are profoundly “here” for the people you coach, and I see you changing lives. This has been such an amazing experience for me. … Thank you from the bottom of my heart for this serenity and peace and connection to me. I needed this. You have no idea how much this saved me. I love you.” -Julie Myer
Hertha Louise Lund’s journey exemplifies resilience, transformation, and a profound commitment to healing. Through her work as a Gestalt Coach, her partnership with horses, and her deep connection to the land, she offers a truly unique path to wholeness. Her memoir, Alchemy of Resilience: My Rugged Path to Wholeness, is a testament to her incredible story and her ability to turn personal trauma into a guiding light for others.
Interviewing Hertha for Social The Lifestyle Magazine was both inspiring and enlightening. Her philosophy—rooted in love, authenticity, and the transformative power of horses—offers a beacon of hope for anyone seeking to live more wholeheartedly. From her sacred ranch nestled in Montana’s historic Grande family homestead to the compassionate space she holds for clients, Hertha teachings show us all of the profound healing available when we reconnect with ourselves, the earth, and the wisdom of animals. Hertha’s coaching also reminds us that within every challenge lies the opportunity to heal, grow, and create a life of significance and inner peace.
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Book: Alchemy of Resilience: My Rugged Path to Wholeness, Available on Amazon
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