I was referred to Survive by my mental health social worker. I had become too ill to work.

“Fragmented memories in the form of flashbacks from seven years of child sexual abuse flooded my waking hours. When I did sleep, I had horrific nightmares.

I received trauma therapy and Eye Movement Desensitisation Reprocessing (EMDR) to help me come to terms with my memories of horrendous abuse by multiple abusers.

Over time, I learned that every flashback was a signpost to the next memory to work on and my tolerance to the emotional rollercoaster grew.

Following my work with Survive, I have been able to go on a holiday with my family and swim in the sea – something I had not been able to do since I was a child. Survive has given me the skills to work through my memories and I am looking forward to getting back to work.”

Names have been changed to protect the identity of the survivor. Images are for illustrative purposes only.