I feel guilty just for smiling and laughing. Like as a survivor of serious sexual trauma the public expect me to always be melancholic or angry and if I don’t fit that stereotype I’m not a real survivor.

“Recovery [from trauma] can take place only within the context of relationships; it cannot occur in isolation. In renewed connections with other people, the survivor recreates the psychological faculties damaged or deformed by the traumatic experience” —Judith Herman

If you are a trauma survivor, it's likely need the reminder: You owe people much less than you think you do.

When I was abused by grooming gangs it was completely normalised by the authorities and the local people around me. Everyday, normal people, men and women, stuck in a misogynistic echo chamber, agreeing and siding with the perpetrators. #misogyny #echochambers

Really pleased to hear about the results of the Casey Review. So glad there is going to be a National Enquiry. Other survivors and myself have been fighting for this. 🙏 #caseyreview #groominggangs

Well done #fionagoddard and Gemma @BipolarMumJourn you were both amazing. Let’s hope we can finally get justice for so many other survivors and hold people to account.

The Casey Review may bring a lot up for survivors, families, loved ones, even professionals. Please take care of yourselves. Whether it’s counselling, mental health support, or self-care, do what feels right for you. Nothing stays the same. This moment will pass. You’re not alone

We should speak up more to help each other learn and grow. When louder voices go unchallenged, we deny them the opportunity to learn from their mistakes - or to take accountability for them. #nationalinquiry #homeoffice #survivors #ukgroominggangs #telfordcse

In the aftermath of a traumatic experience, survivors often struggle with upsetting emotions, memories, and anxiety that won’t go away. It can also leave them feeling numb, disconnected, and unable to trust other people.

The Japanese concept of kintsugi, the ‘golden repair’ is often used in therapy to suggest we can become more beautiful through our healing. But when I went through trauma, my mind didn’t crack neatly like pottery, it shattered like a glass sphere. And the thing about clear glass

My dad’s cancer has come back after years in remission. Watching him face this is heartbreaking, and it reminds me why I’m training to support others living through trauma and loss. Thank you so much to all my supporters. Your kindness means the world to me.

Congrats to our podcast guest Kate Elysia for the upcoming publication of her book with Mirror Books! amazon.co.uk/dp/191743961X? Kate’s website; shesaskingforit.com She also has an update on her courses; if you head to the 'support my study' to find out the updates she is now

Good men show themselves not in the easy moments, but in how they take responsibility and love a woman through her trauma. #couples #relationships #copingthroughtrauma #ptsd #cptsd #survivors #cse #groominggangs

✨ Update ✨ I’ve just booked my first 6 weeks of accommodation for my course: First week: £38.59 Following weeks: £37.42 each Total: £225.69 So happy that I have managed to get it at this low cost, I originally estimated it could be up to £100 a night! Last year’s amazing

Twinny S A M M Y Woodhouse Samantha Smith Holly Archer Joanne_Phillips Scarlett Jones Survivor TelfordSurvivor(Correne) We shouldn’t be politically divided, that is what the abusers did to us. Divided us and isolated us. Now we echo our trauma and do it to each other.

I’m devastated to see this continue. Another survivor dismissed by the system, blamed and evicted, and now has her death written up in a way that shifts blame onto her mental health. When will Mental Health services finally become trauma informed and stop the stigma She was

Something I learnt in my last lecture: “The trauma is the injury, PTSD is the wound, and CPTSD is the festering wound that shapes how someone feels about themselves and the world.” Your support helps me keep learning, and build a future where survivors get the understanding

Well done to Fiona goddard for speaking out. As someone who works with trauma and has lived experience myself, I’m deeply concerned by reports of a toxic, fearful survivor panel and potential conflicts of interest in the grooming gangs inquiry. This is the antithesis of