The current Western therapeutic model is failing male clients.

Let’s start with the education system:

Most therapy education programs are female-dominant (about 85% of students in MA Counseling programs are women and similar numbers in the educator role).

This inadvertently leads to a natural bias toward working with women. I do not believe it is a purposeful process, it is more the water that education systems swim in.

Most students do not have the experience, balance or practice of working with men. In the system I taught in for over 30 years, I heard repeatedly that men don’t experience feelings, and men cannot communicate and many times there is hostility toward men. None of these are true or helpful.

Common themes most therapists miss when working with men:

Men are often deeply insecure, have attachment issues, and many men are afraid of their feelings and more importantly afraid to express the feelings they do have. Many men are utterly terrified of their own sexuality. Many are afraid they are not good enough, and are highly insecure about their bodies.

The myth is that none of these issues exist for men and that these feelings are only “female” issues.

The other fears include being able to earn a living, being “masculine” enough and having some level of POWER, therefore they go to CONTROL. We will discuss the difference between power and control.

In discussions about sexual intimacy, men often say, “Being sexual brings us closer and more intimate,” while women tend to express, “I feel sexual when we are close and intimate.” All this happens while men tend to be incredibly insecure about their own sexuality and ability to perform. Men do not know how to navigate this process.

This polarity extends to therapy as well.

Women typically seek safety and closeness before opening up therapeutically, while men, too, desire safety, which they find in intense activities. To sum it up: Women say, “I’ll open when I feel safe,” while men state, “Intense activities create safety, allowing me to open.”

This matters because so often the therapeutic environment is not conducive to men feeling safe enough to open up to their real issues. And it doesn’t have to be this way.

I teach all therapists how to meet men where they are so the space created allows them to share and work through the pieces that are keeping them stuck and often a danger to themselves and their loved ones.

This is the million-dollar question that we answer in depth in our weekend intensive.

Men have a desire to be guided with competency, even though there are many parts of this men do want a level of someone guiding and being concrete. Men have a very deep desire to be seen through being guided.

I am a sought-after teacher, trainer, licensed therapist, and equine professional worldwide.

I have taught around the globe and developed a practical attachment theory and human development theory taught to thousands of university students.

I have nearly 80,000 direct client hours and co-founded the Gestalt Equine Institute and the Gestalt Institute of the Rockies.

I supervise therapists and graduate students and do business and land consultations for new equine therapy sites.

I embody both tenderness and strength in all my relations and work. My quality of contact and relationship with others is authentic and unique. People come from around the world to study with me.

I am a true elder and mentor exploring new horizons in facilitating men’s growth work. Gestalt and Relational Horsemanship are not just approaches to me; they are how I walk through the world.

Traver Boehm has worked with thousands of men since publishing “Man UNcivilized” and launching The UNcivilized Movement and The UNcivilized Nation.

In addition to facilitating intense men’s workshops, and certifying UNcivilized Men’s Coaches in his own unique program, Traver is a go-to coach for high-powered men who find themselves looking for more than their external accolades can provide them.

Traver has worked alongside Duey Freeman for years and is a graduate of his Instinct & Intuition Mastermind program. In addition, Traver has co-facilitated extensive men’s workshops with licensed therapist and good friend Michael Gay.

Traver’s unique background of a decade spent in the hyper-masculine worlds of executive protection and professional Mixed Martial Arts as well as his extensive background in Traditional Chinese Medicine give him a unique insight into how men think, feel, and operate in the world.

He is able to meet them at their lowest points as well as celebrate them at the highest.

I am incredibly fortunate to have had Duey as a teacher and mentor! His unconditional acceptance, soulful honesty, strength, warmth, and unique teachings not only influence my work with clients but also have made me a better mother, wife and human. Duey walks his talk and opens his heart. He helped me be developed instead of damaged by my personal challenges. If anyone out there has an opportunity to work with Duey Freeman – do it! His way of being is transformational and he changed my life!
–Katy S.

Sitting across from Duey Freeman is the closest I have come to seeing myself as I am and who I would like to be as a man. His presence is that of a sentinel tree, deeply rooted with branches forming a vast embrace, a beacon in the landscape of a battered world.

I can put my life into two chapters—before and after meeting Traver Boehm. His guidance has shifted everything drastically. I am the man I am today because of him and his teachings.