Alison Dunevein-Gordon of Gold & Bee shares how horses can help your mental health!

We’re coming to the end of April and today we’re talking to Alison Dunevein-Gordon of Gold & Bee about a launch that is happening in time for Mental Health Week in May.

Gold & Bee Ltd Equicoaching, based in Wiltshire, connect humans and horses to heal, support, and guide individuals through personal development and the discovery of oneself.

How can horses improve your mental health? How can a creature from another species communicate with us in such a profound way that we can heal from deep traumas?

Last summer, my friend Agathe and I were enjoying a late evening carriage drive round a beautiful area of farmland. We were discussing how lucky we were to have horses in our lives and how they help to keep us sane. We had both crashed from the stress and anxiety of our lives – Agathe trying to cope with ‘A’ Levels during the pandemic, and I emerging from a truly toxic work environment that had drained the very life out of me.

I happened to mention a tiny dream I had of one day retraining to be an Equine Facilitated Learning (EFL) Practitioner, so that I could share this very special gift that horses give so freely. It turned out that Agathe had the same dream!

Three seasons later and Gold and Bee Ltd is ready to launch in time for Mental Health Week 2023. This year’s theme is anxiety, with 60% of adults feeling at least some of the time that anxiety paralyses them from doing the things they want. Young people are emerging from the last three years feeling unable to cope with the demands of entering the workplace as I found out when I presented work skills training to 18 to 24 year olds, many of whom felt they couldn’t even attend the course.

So how does EFL work? Horses are naturally great therapists and tune in to our emotions and energy. Together, we work on nervous system regulation and awareness of your emotions. We work with people who have had horses in their lives for many years and, also, those who have never met a horse before.

Agathe and I have very different life experiences and are at different ends of our careers - how many 20 somethings go into business with someone in their 50s? We have both been profoundly helped by our horses who have also inspired our business: Gold is retired sport horse with a great deal to say for himself, and Bumble Bee was a recycled racehorse who would have loved to have joined our business but sadly was taken too early from this life. We have access to horses of different sizes and personalities to help us in this work.

To launch Gold and Bee Ltd and promote Mental Health Week, we are running a discovery clinic on Sunday 21 May 2023 at Leigh in North Wiltshire. You can discover how our horses can help you with anxiety and other mental health issues, meet some of the beautiful horses and ponies, and take aways some useful tools and insights. There’s also cake! Please take a look on our website for more information about the morning and how to book in. It will also be a wonderful networking opportunity to meet other like-minded people and discover something new.

For more information visit www.goldandbeeltd.co.uk