DUDES AND DOGS AIM TO GET OUR MEN TALKING
DUDES AND DOGS AIMS TO GET MEN TALKING
A NEW mental health initiative focusing on men’s wellbeing with a bit of canine therapy is coming to the East Lincolnshire coast on Sunday.
Dudes and Dogs aims to get men talking about their mental health with the aid of a scenic walk and the company of man’s best friend. Simon Dendle is leading the Lincolnshire-based Dudes and Dogs group with the help of cockerpoo Jasper and will be starting his stroll at Theddlethorpe beach.
Mr Dendle said: “I live locally and having dealt with anxiety, burnout and doing the typical ‘man’ thing of bottling up all of life’s problems, I was approaching breaking point and
I decided that I needed to get away from it all for a while.
“I ended up doing a remote trek and rafting across the Lofoten Islands where I discovered the benefit of using the outdoors to help reset and realised that downing tools and talking to someone else was a really good thing.
“When I heard of the Dudes and Dogs initiative, it really resonated.” Dudes and Dogs was founded in 2019 by Rob Osman and was so successful in his native Bristol that he decided to expand the initiative across the country.
On the Dudes and Dogs Facebook page, Mr Osman said: “What has helped me hugely, is the fresh air and getting out with my dog, the good it does me is for another time. “But when I was reaching out to others, part of my message always said, come on a dog walk and it reaffirmed what I already knew – this was a way I could help p people. “By giving them what I had, that time out, that t time away, no signal, no o noise but nature, just t time. “And that in a nutshell is s the basis of Dudes & Dogs. Helping others by y doing what helped me.” Dudes and Dogs Lincolnshire will launch on October 4 and will be e meeting at the nature e reserve notice board on n Theddlethorpe beach, booking is essential but bringing your own dog is optional.