Meet Chonti

The Founder of The Neurodivergent Herd

The Silent Teachers: How Horses Led Me to The Neurodivergent Herd
by Chonti Cleland

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A Lifelong Connection

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Horses have always been part of my story.

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As a child, every birthday wish was for a horse of my own. My parents, hoping the phase would pass, signed me up for riding lessons instead. I spent my weekends at a small farm, riding the Wirral Way and quietly soaking up every moment I could with these gentle beings. With them, I felt something I didn’t feel anywhere else—safe.

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A Safe Place in an Unsafe World

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Growing up in the 1970s wasn’t easy. Home didn’t feel safe. School was worse. I was bullied, misunderstood, and never quite knew how to be in a world that felt loud, fast, and unkind.

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Even the riding school, where I should’ve felt free, often mirrored those same harsh dynamics. But the horses—they were different. They didn’t demand anything from me. They didn’t judge. They simply were.

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Without knowing it at the time, those quiet moments with horses were my first experience of something like equine-assisted therapy.

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Finding Healing Together

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Later, when I rescued my first horse, I saw a familiar pain in his eyes. He had known fear. He had felt confusion. And I understood him.

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It was through this relationship that I discovered Reiki—a practice that helped both of us begin to heal. It deepened our connection and gave us a quiet way to communicate beyond words. I began to realise that healing doesn’t have to be loud or forced. It can be gentle. Shared. And safe.

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The Birth of The Neurodivergent Herd

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What began as Equine-Assisted Reiki has grown into something deeper: a sanctuary for those who feel out of place, overwhelmed, or unseen.

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The Neurodivergent Herd is a space for neurodivergent people and their horses (if they have one), to reconnect, regulate, and heal—together.

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It’s not just about Reiki or mindfulness or trauma support. It’s about creating a place where both human and horse can exhale. Be themselves. And begin to feel safe again.

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Learning Differently, Healing Deeply

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I didn’t enjoy school. It wasn’t the learning I disliked—it was the rigidity, the social rules that made no sense, the feeling of always being too much or not enough.

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It took me a long time to realise I wasn’t broken. I just needed a different way.

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That realisation led me to study healing practices that felt like home. I became a lifelong learner—not of textbooks and tests, but of nervous systems, relationships, energy, and emotion.

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How I Work

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My approach is shaped by my lived experience and the belief that healing happens in relationship—with ourselves, with others, and with the animals who walk beside us.

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Some of the tools I draw on include:

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🌿 Usui Reiki Master Teacher – Supporting energetic balance for both horse and human
🌿 Animal & Equine Reiki Master Teacher – Creating space for shared healing and trust
🌿 Breathwork Teacher – Gentle ways to ground, regulate, and reconnect
🌿 Mindfulness Life Coach – Helping you build presence and resilience
🌿 Trauma-Informed Practitioner – Prioritising safety and consent in every session
🌿 Gestalt Psychotherapy & Life Coach – Inviting growth through compassion and awareness

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But more than techniques, I offer a way of being—with softness, slowness, and space to just be.

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An Invitation

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The Neurodivergent Herd exists because I know what it’s like to feel out of place. To feel like the world doesn’t make sense. To feel things deeply and have nowhere to put them.

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If that’s you—or if that’s your horse—I want you to know: you’re not alone.

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Let’s take the next step together.

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