Experiences in childhood can affect us in ways we don't always recognise. You may struggle with trusting others, setting boundaries, feeling ‘good enough’, or understanding why certain situations leave you feeling anxious or overwhelmed. Sometimes these patterns become so familiar that they simply feel like part of who we are.

For some people, it isn't until adulthood that they begin to recognise the impact of what happened in childhood. Others have always known about the abuse but haven't connected it to the difficulties they're experiencing today. It can also take many years before someone feels able to acknowledge what happened or find the words to describe it.

Counselling can help you make sense of those experiences and understand how they may still be affecting your life today. Often, simply understanding where these patterns come from can be the first step towards making sense of them.

Sexual assault can happen in many different circumstances. It may have involved someone you knew, someone you trusted, or a stranger. It may have happened once, or on more than one occasion. Whatever happened, it's common to be left trying to make sense of how it has affected you.

You may have noticed changes in yourself since it happened. Perhaps you feel more anxious, find it difficult to trust people, avoid certain places or situations, or feel constantly on edge. For some people, these feelings begin straight away, while for others they don't appear until months or even years later.

Counselling can help you understand the impact the experience has had on you and support you as you begin to regain a sense of safety and control.

Many people spend a long time questioning their experiences. You may have found yourself wondering whether you're overreacting, comparing your experience to other people's, or telling yourself that it "wasn't bad enough" to still be affecting you.

Sometimes an experience may meet the legal definition of sexual assault, and sometimes it may not. But that doesn't change the fact that it may have left you feeling frightened, confused, ashamed or unsure who to trust. If something continues to affect your thoughts, feelings or relationships, it's okay to want to understand why.

Counselling can provide an opportunity to explore those experiences without needing to decide what to call them. Together, we can make sense of what happened and the impact it has had on you, without judgement or pressure to reach any particular conclusion.

You might find yourself replaying what happened, wondering if you should have said something different, left sooner, fought back, or noticed the warning signs. Looking back with the knowledge you have now can make it easy to believe you could have prevented what happened.

Counselling can help you gently explore these thoughts and begin to understand why responsibility belongs with the person who harmed you, not with you.

Sometimes the hardest part isn't what happened, it's the thought of saying it out loud. You might worry that talking about it will make everything feel worse, that you'll become overwhelmed, or that someone won't understand.

There is no expectation that you'll tell your whole story. Counselling can begin with whatever feels manageable, whether that's talking about today, asking questions, or simply getting to know one another first.

It's common to wonder why something that happened years, or even decades ago, is still affecting you. You may have spent a long time trying to put it behind you, only to find that the thoughts or feelings return when you least expect them.

Sometimes this happens after a significant life event, or when something reminds you of what happened. For some people, it isn't until life feels safer or more settled that they begin to notice the impact of experiences they had pushed aside for many years. For others, there isn't always a clear reason why those thoughts and feelings resurface.

There isn't a time limit on when it's okay to ask for support. Counselling can help you understand why these experiences may still be affecting you and how they may be influencing your life today.

Supporting someone you care about after sexual violence can be incredibly difficult. You may be feeling helpless, worried, angry, upset or unsure how to make sense of your own feelings about what has happened. Many people find themselves putting their own thoughts and feelings to one side while they focus on supporting the person they care about.

Our work together would focus on you - your thoughts, your feelings and the impact this has had on your own life. It would be a space where you don't have to put your own emotions to one side, or worry about burdening family or friends by talking about how you're feeling.

Counselling can help you make sense of your own emotional response and provide a space where you feel heard and supported, without feeling the need to hide how you are feeling in order to protect others.