We know how important it is to be inspired by both big businesses and individuals, which is why we are excited to present Talking Leaders, a monthly initiative from the AHDB which will see a series of inspirational speakers share their life experiences and deliver impactful stories to the AgriLeader community.

In the January episode of Talking Leaders, we were delighted to be joined by Sharon May, a mental health advocate and counsellor – joining us on what is described as Blue Monday.

Following a career in physical healthcare, her love of people and their stories led Sharon to shift her focus to emotional healthcare and retrain as a counsellor whilst bringing up our three children. She set up her own practice on the farm 8 years ago, which has now grown into a multi-therapist counselling hub providing face to face mental health support to the rural community in which we live.

She loves her job, and particularly enjoy working with small business owners, life stage issues and women’s health. She is passionate about tackling stigma and normalising the conversations around mental health and wellbeing.

Her awareness of the mental health challenges within agriculture led to me choosing that as an area of focus whilst completing her Masters in Counselling and Psychotherapy Practice, culminating in a research study on the mental health of farm wives.