Trauma: “Is not just the event itself…it is also how the community respond to it…”
Dr Bessel Van Kolk shares his perspectives on PTSD in his book “the body remembers”. He provides an example of a young child being bitten by a dog. For a young child this is a mildly traumatic experience and scary experience. How the caregiver responds is crucial to the later psychological consequences for the child. If the child is comforted and supported in their distress, then they will manage to retain a sense that the world is not to fear and that they are not alone. If this support and connection is not available then the child will find it much more difficult to cope.
Sadly if you have experienced trauma in your life, you are certainly not the only one. In Scotland a domestic violence incident is recorded to police every ten minutes. It is estimated that 3/10 women and 1/10 men will be stalked, physically assaulted or raped at some point in their lives. In 2021/22 NSPCC supported 22, 505 children with cases of abuse in the UK. Sadly the experience of trauma is common, but if you are a survivor of a traumatic incident you do not need to suffer alone.
I founded Lucy’s Place based on the evidence for Community support. Lucy’s Place CIC combines individual evidence based psychological treatment with a community of support. We offer therapy either online or in our clinic in Haddington, East Lothian. We combine this work with the opportunity to get together for fun activities in the outdoors with like-minded individuals. It is a friendly and supportive group that is there for each other.