The Castle Douglas Men’s Group, in Dumfries & Galloway, meets monthly in community woodlands at Taliesin, under Screel Hill. This group is a supportive place for honest sharing, for solidarity, for being real about what it’s actually like living in a bloke’s skin.

Like ‘Fight Club’ we only have 2 rules:

  1. Absolute confidentiality, what’s shared round the fire, stays round the fire;
  2. We don’t try to fix each other, (instead we trust the process).

This group is NOT judgemental, critical, excluding, or coercive. It is not religious, or tribal, or clique-y. It is not tame – but it is safe.
If you decide to join us, it will be the place you can bring your joys, your grief, your rage, your confusion, and your quiet reflection. It can become for you, “the only place I can say this stuff”.

You can also download the Male Journey local group Circle Practice document here: Edinburgh Men's Group Circle Practice (with gratitude to our brothers in the Edinburgh Group).

Where & When:

We meet on the 3rd Friday of the month, at 7pm at Taliesin, just South of Castle Douglas. You can find directions here: http://www.swcwt.org/how-to-find-taliesin.html

What to expect:

  • Some drumming – don’t worry, you don’t have to be any good, you just need ears and hands – and a drum or plastic bucket or crate, or 2 sticks or…
  • Some sharing of what’s going on for you (we use a wonderful, simple, process called the Way of Council). You choose how much you share. We just don’t do small-talk.
  • Plenty of sitting round a fire, surrounded by nature – so bring some warm layers and some rain gear, and something soft to sit on (there are wooden benches but they can be quite hard after a couple of hours!) – a cushion in a bin-bag works well in all weathers.
  • A sense of shared vulnerability and gradually increasing levels of trust. The ‘Stoker’ facilitates the meeting (cos he’s had the training and served his apprenticeship) but you’ll find he will also participate. He will be getting vulnerable with you. This is a group of peers not a hierarchy.

Who to contact:
So, you already know in your heart if this is calling you, or not.
If it is, even if you are 50% intrigued and 50% bricking it – (that’s a normal and healthy response by the way!), then contact us hereusing the form below.

Hope to meet you round the fire.

Castle Douglas
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