Trauma therapy - is there enough available in South Wales?
Trauma is a one-off or multiple intensively distressing event(s) that threatens a person’s sense of physical and/or psychological safety.
Usually when we experience a stressful event, our body and brains are able to process this and reintegrate it into a sense of balance and safety.
Trauma, however, can feel so overwhelming that the event does not get properly processed.
Trauma can leave us feeling stuck in a continuous or reoccurring sense of panic, restlessness and fear.
It can have a negative impact on our emotions, such as shame, anxiety and mistrust.
Talking therapy (with many different trauma-informed approaches available) can help the brain to process the trauma so that the event loses its impact over our body and mind. Counselling is a powerful tool in combating the symptoms of trauma and help move to forward to a safer, happier sense of self.
As a trauma therapist, I have experienced the transformative impact of counselling again and again with clients that I see. Some of my most precious times in my counselling career have been working with survivors of human trafficking and helping them process their trauma experiences. (see a blog I have written about modern slavery counselling here)
However, sadly, in South Wales there are limited specialist counselling services available for trauma survivors.
As an adoptive mother myself and having worked therapeutically with adopted young people and adults who have experienced trauma, I know how important it is to have affordable, sustainable, specialist counselling available to all parties affected by adoption, as trauma so often goes hand in hand with the experience of being separated from birth families. (see a blog I have written about adoption counselling here)
My passion for seeing specialist, high quality counselling provision for traumatised people is why I set up Waves Therapy.
It's also why I have written journal articles on counselling provision for survivors of human trafficking.
Harding-Jones, C. (2019). Counselling survivors of sex trafficking: Cate Harding-Jones describes the challenges of working as part of a team in a safe house for women who have escaped sexual slavery. Therapy Today, 30(1), 20–24.
And it is why I have contributed to the wider academic conversation about therapeutic provision for trauma therapy in South Wales.
There simply needs to be more of it, to ensure that people get the support they need for the future they deserve.
https://metro.co.uk/2022/01/15/in-focus-what-its-like-to-work-in-the-shadows-of-trauma-15905879/
About Me - Hi, I’m Cate - a trauma counsellor, supervisor and trainer in South Wales. I work with individuals, charities and organisations who want help and support to better understand trauma and the effects it has on our lives. If you’d like to chat about how we could work together, please email me - cate@waves-therapy.com