Donna is one of the Co-founders and facilitators of The Bridge Retreat and has been working with individuals, couples and groups for over twenty-five years. She originally trained as a social worker, specialising in child protection and worked extensively within this and related fields for ten years.

Donna is an experienced group facilitator and trained in Advanced Facilitation. She has designed and delivered numerous accredited courses on a range of subjects and delivered these courses internationally in a wide variety of environments including women’s refuges, schools and prisons. In 2007 Donna qualified as a Hoffman Teacher with the Hoffman Institute UK and became a Supervising Hoffman Teacher in 2009. She then went on to become their Head of Teaching between 2011–2013.

Donna completed the Imago Relationship Clinical Training Programme in 2009 and also trained with the Centre for Systemic Constellations in 2014 to support her work in appreciating and honouring the ancestral influences and dynamics. Her work is heavily influenced by the teachings of David Richo and Sobonfu Some.

Donna is passionate about the subject of grief and the grieving process which she believes offers the missing link for many in their search for wholeness. This interest stemmed from her own very personal experience of ‘depression’ which she suffered from for many years and now knows to have in fact been unprocessed grief. On The Bridge, Donna uses a variety of approaches including ancient ritual practices to support people to grieve and move on from their losses. These losses can include bereavements, divorce and separation, loss of innocence, betrayals of trust, identity, empty nest syndrome and lost opportunities.

‘Through allowing and supporting the natural order of the grieving process to flow, people find themselves remembering who they really are and living from this true place. When there is ‘unfinished business’ in our lives, it is very hard to move on and engage with life fully. Grieving allows us to cross the bridge from past hurts and sorrow into a place of lightness and joy.’

Fréderique is a facilitator of The Bridge Retreat and has over fifteen years experience in the therapeutic world. She graduated from The University of Amsterdam with a Masters in Clinical Psychology.

Fréderique worked at the Priory Hospital in London gaining extensive experience in anxiety and depressive disorders and addictions working both on a 1:1 and group work basis. Frederique has a special interest in the areas of depression, anxiety, addictions and stress prevention.

She has studied many additional therapeutic approaches including positive psychology, CBT, mindfulness and hypnotherapy and combines these to support clients for effective long-term change.

In 2007 Fréderique spent six months in India studying the philosophy of yoga and different meditation techniques. She was inspired by their approaches to healing. Since then she’s been integrating western psychology with Eastern wisdom, with great results in her thriving practice in Amsterdam. During the course of her career, Fréderique has facilitated different retreats and workshops supporting people to find their way back to wholeness.

“I truly believe that life is all about movement. Where there are blockages in life energy, emotions or thought processes, people become very stuck. The key to success is to break through these blockages and recreate flow. It takes courage to let go of the old and a curious mind to embrace the new. My passion is to guide people through this process of self-study, approaching it as a worthwhile adventure of life. Are you ready?!”

Find out more about Fréderique
www.frederiquebicker.nl

Gabi is one of the Co-founders and facilitators of The Bridge Retreat and looks back at 20 years of work in the field of self-development and healing. She is a ITEC qualified Holistic Therapist with a history of Energy Healing and Aromatherapy. She also studied Transpersonal Psychology with IAPP, Düsseldorf, Germany and holds a qualification as an Advanced Counsellor with IAPP with a strong focus on Jungian Psychology, body based approaches of Wilhelm Reich and Bioenergetics by Alexander Lowen.

During her years of living in Singapore, she was fortunate to study and practise various Buddhist based approaches and was a student at Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery. From 2000 until 2005 she ran her own coaching practice in Bahrain, her place of residency at the time. During this time Gabi especially enjoyed organising and delivering lectures and hosting workshops on various transpersonal topics, eg. East meets West, understanding our being through ancient Chakra philosophies and western psychology, sacred contracts, archetypes, meditation, vibrational medicine, etc.

Upon her return to Europe in 2006 she trained and worked as a Hoffman teacher in the UK and the Middle East. She was promoted to Supervising Teacher in 2012. Gabi has also received training in the following modalities: Imago Therapy, NVC by Marshal Rosenberg, Trauma Training Peter Levine, NLP and more. Her work has been inspired by the work of Angeles Arrien PhD, cultural anthropologist, Carolyn Myss and David Richo just to name a few.

“In my work, I often wondered why it was so difficult to change and heal in order to find purpose and lasting happiness. Over the years I came to believe that what we most long for is to find and integrate our spiritual identity. It is my interest and passion to give people a broader understanding of the overall human experience and especially our mystical nature so that we can than view life´s struggles as a temporary transformational crisis leading us into authenticity and wholeness. On The Bridge, we enter into this dialogue to allow your spirit to reveal the true story of your life!”