About Us

Hello I’m Claire Chapman, the Founder of Woofs and Wellness and this is my dog Charlie the Cockapoo. He has helped me to navigate through a very difficult chapter of my life and is the inspiration behind what we do at Woofs and Wellness. It started as an Instagram account which I set up during the first lockdown to support others with their wellbeing and fast-forward to today and our new home is this space. My experiences with my mental health have led to me discovering that my purpose is to support others to navigate effectively through theirs. Even though we are talking about mental health more, in my opinion, we need to move at a much faster pace from talk to action. My approach to managing wellbeing is suitable for anyone and can be accessed right now– no waiting lists, no call backs. I hope that by being open and honest about my own experiences below, it will emphasise that no matter what you are going through, there is always hope that things can and will get better…

Following University, I have spent most of my adult life working as a Primary School Teacher; I feel most alive and fulfilled when helping others, it’s what ignites my spark. I loved my job, but sadly in 2018, after working in an environment that turned toxic with a culture of bullying as the norm, I had no choice but to leave. I was offered new jobs and leadership roles at other schools but I knew I was too affected by what had happened to pursue them.

I decided I would take the summer off and then get started on something new. Then I had a breakdown. Not the ‘breakdown over a broken nail’ sort, but a really scary, frightening, life-wrecking breakdown of my mind and body at age 27. It’s hard to write that. I had worked so hard to keep everything together and I couldn’t anymore. I had as many as 10 panic and anxiety attacks a day and throughout the night. My symptoms ranged from brain jolts to vision problems, difficulty walking, headaches, chest pain, breathlessness, whole body pain and fatigue, to name but a few. I struggled with reading, writing, my memory and for a period of time, I became mute. I became afraid of people and of life. I later learnt that my hypervigilant behaviours were a form of PTSD that had been born from working in an environment that frightened me. I lost my independence. I was then diagnosed with an Autoimmune Disease and Chronic Fatigue. I became too unwell to live in my own house, struggled to leave the house at all and moved back in with my parents who supported me in many ways. I will forever be thankful to my Therapist and my parents, who have supported me through the darkest of times and provided a safe space for me. Charlie, my dog, is also my biggest support; he says so much without saying anything at all. I truly believe that he is a gift and a blessing, he’s so much more than ‘just a dog’.