Family & Friends
If your loved one has experienced sexual violence, you might find yourself struggling or needing support or advice.
Although you may not see yourself as the person who needs help, it's important to look after you too.
Not only is your wellbeing important, but you are also an important person. Your support can help your loved one along their counselling journey and beyond - so they can feel safe, supported and understood.
How can we help?
The Birchall Trust offers specialised counselling to family members, carers and friends of survivors. We welcome everyone - regardless of your sexual or gender identity.
Our qualified and experienced counsellors are registered with a professional body and have specialist trauma training - they understand how far the impact of sexual violence can reach.
We can also offer joint counselling involving parents, carers or siblings of our younger clients who are accessing our children's services (4-12 years).
How can sexual violence impact you?
Your loved one experiencing sexual violence can have a profound impact on your life. For example, you may be feeling:
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Numb, shut down or living on auto pilot.
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Angry, sad or confused - or all of these at once.
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Guilty or ashamed.
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Afraid for your loved one or worried about how they're coping.
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Vindictive or outraged on your loved one's behalf.
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Like this is "your fault" or you are somehow to blame for what happened.
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Exhausted - you may be struggling to sleep or have nightmares.
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Afraid of losing control if you talk about how you feel.
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Hopeless - like you can't go on or want to die.
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Isolated from everyone - like nobody else could ever understand.
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Hurt - you may be using drugs, alcohol or self harm to cope.
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Agitated - for example, you may need to always be busy, have mood swings or lose your temper easily.
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Like you have "no right" to be impacted or feel how you are feeling.
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Needing to "control" your pain - for example this could include excessive exercise, having rules about eating or rituals to get you through the day.
Or maybe how you are feeling is not even listed on here. In any case, you are not alone - these are understandable reactions to traumatic events.
If you would like help untangling all this, Birchall is here to support you - so you can support your loved one in turn.
