Established in 2014 as a charity (to deliver a programme that was developed in 2011 by IFEEL), we combine groundbreaking coaching approaches with evidenced-based psychosocial wellbeing methodologies, that includes (safe and unridden) facilitated interactions with horses.
Our fully accredited facilitator teams include ex-service personnel who offer mentorship and post-programme support that our clients find invaluable.
Why Horses
Horses are an integral part of the programme as they facilitate participants to gain new insights and strategies for successful communication and relationship building.
Horses are highly sensitive to humans’ intentions and feelings; they are naturally able to help participants understand how their actions or behaviours appear to others.
As participants begin to explore positive ways of interacting with the horses they gain important insights for their human interactions.
The Team
Dare to Live facilitator teams include ex-service personnel who offer mentorship and post-programme support that our clients find invaluable.
We work collaboratively with a number of non-governmental associations, military mental health teams and veterans’ agencies as well as private and NHS psychotherapists.
Sun Meyer
Lead Facilitator and Founder of Dare to Live
(PG Dip Trauma & PTSD, MNCP (Accred), CD-ABNLP, ABH, TLTA, BCMA)
Sun founded the International Foundation of Experiential Education and Learning (IFEEL) in 2007 and Dare to Live in 2011. She is CEO of IFEEL Qualifications that offers Ofqual regulated psychological training through Crossfields Institute – Levels 5, 6 & 7 in Equine Facilitated Human Development (EFHD) and Equine Facilitated Psychotraumatology (EFPT). Her consultancy work includes working with Charities, Local Authorities, CEOs and International Business Schools and her current research studies are preparation for her PhD in the applications of Equine Facilitated Accelerated Learning for Human Development. She is an Advanced POH Eponaquest Instructor, a member of UK Psychological Trauma Society and The European Society for Traumatic Stress Studies.
Hugh Forsyth
Support Facilitator
(Cert.EFHDL, MNCP, MSAFE)
Corporal in the Royal Engineers, Hugh served in Germany, Canada, Cyprus; two tours in Northern Ireland in IED search teams and a tour in Bosnia with the Bomb Disposal/Mine Clearance Teams. He has faced his challenges with PTSD (diagnosed in 2006). Thanks to an employment/training grant by Poppy Factory (Walking with the Wounded funded), he has recently completed the Equine Facilitator Learning degree-level equivalent course with IFEEL Qualifications.
Jenny Eichner
Equine Facilitator
(BSc (hons), Ad Prof Dip PC, Ad Dip EFHD, MSAFE, MBACP)
Jenny has worked with us since 2010 and has various roles here including Facilitator and Researcher for Dare to Live, and Programme Director for IFEEL Qualifications Ltd. In addition, Jenny worked as a Counsellor and Group Facilitator for an addictions charity (2014-2017) and as a Counsellor, Equine Therapist, and Equine Behaviourist in private practice (since 2015).
Sharon Clifton
Equine Facilitator
(Dip. TA Psych, Cert.EFHDL, MBACP, ITEC, MSAFE)
Sharon is a Transactional Analysis Therapist and a qualified IFEEL Facilitator. She runs her own private practice as well as being part of a new Integrated Healthcare Service within the NHS. Sharon specialises in working with individuals and groups and has a keen interest in working with trauma and PTSD.
Mary-Joy Johnson
Programme Co-Director Equine Facilitator and Inclusion, Equity, Diversity Lead
(Dip.EFPT, Dip.EFHD, Cert.EFHD, CFTP, MNCIP(Accred), MSAFE(Accred), MUKPTS/ESTSS)
Mary-Joy is passionate about the care of vulnerable children and young people through the systemic support and education of parents/carers/professionals. She is a strong proponent of Trauma Informed practice. Mary-Joy is qualified in Psychotraumatology and Brainspotting and is a Certified Family Trauma Professional. As a mother and adoptive parent Mary-Joy has extensive personal knowledge and experience of issues affecting adoptive/foster families, particularly those affected by Trauma, PTSD, C-PTSD, SEN and Developmental Trauma and is developing new programmes with Dare To Live to support Parents and Carers. Mary-Joy is also the Inclusion, Equity and Diversity lead for Dare To Live and brings professional and personal experience to this role with a passion for advocacy and allyship with those who have experienced (are experiencing) oppression and/or discrimination of any kind due to their identity, race, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, gender, disability, neurodivergence or economic background.
Grace Lawson-Baker
Equine Facilitator
((BA (Hons), MRCSLT, Reg. HPC, Cert. EFHD, MNCP, MSAFE))
Grace began her career as a Speech and Language Therapist, working with adults following stroke and head injury. She is a qualified IFEEL Facilitator and is currently studying for a PG Dip in Trauma and PTSD. Grace has a private practice as well as working part-time within the NHS.
Jackie Turner
Dare to Live Cymru
(Member of MSAFE, NCP MBWY)
Jackie is a member of the IFEEL Qualifications Faculty and fulfils the roles of tutor, mentor and assessor.
Jackie set up Chiron Hair Beauty and Holistic center in 2001, teaching, training and mentoring within her own business as well as teaching within her local higher education college (Coleg Sir Gar). Here she continued her training, completing a PG Certificate in Education. This, and her practitioners certification in NLP and Advanced Diploma in clinical Hypnotherapy and BST, enabled her to build positive relationships with individuals in distress and to work with individuals recovering from addiction.
Jackie qualified as a yoga teacher in 2011 after extensive training at the Mandala Yoga Ashram and holds a certified Diploma from the British Wheel of Yoga. She teaches in her local community and has a special interest in yoga, mindfulness and mental health and offers classes through Arts Care and Community First programs. These programmes target harder to reach communities’ which, within the Welsh wellbeing Act 2015, have been highlighted as areas of deprivation with high ACEs.
Jackie’s life long love of horses, seeking a deeper connection and her passion promoting wellbeing came together whilst reading the Tao of the Equus. This led Jackie to study with Sun Tui and IFEEL Q, qualifying in 2015. Jackie has set up Equus Ferus (Wild Horse) a registered Community Interest Company (CIC), No. 7964085 in 2017, she continues her training with IFEEL and is also completing a PG level 7 Traumatology.
Thomas Gonschior
Equine Facilitator
(Cert EFHD, Dip. EFPT, Europe)
Thomas is a journalist, author and documentary filmmaker based in Munich, Germany. An important milestone in his professional career was a 13-part documentary series ‘On the Traces of Intuition’ (‘Auf den Spuren der Intuition’) commissioned by German public television.
Thomas achieved certifications in the IFEEL Method of Equine Facilitated Human Development & Psychotraumatology.
His aim is to establish IFEEL Method in Europe, especially in German speaking areas.
Julian Johnson
Creative Arts Coordinator
(Delivering innovative and engaging art projects)
Julian has joined the Dare To Live Trust as our Creative Arts Coordinator to oversee and help deliver innovative, engaging and impactful art projects as part of our bio-psycho-social therapeutic programmes. A commercial digital artist and professional street artist for nearly 30 years, Julian has worked within the third sector as a recognised service provider for Local Authority and NHS schemes, in particular working with vulnerable and ‘at risk’ young people, alongside his successful commercial street art and design business. Julian is passionate about supporting young people and families to thrive through accessing creative and therapeutic arts opportunities.