Who do we see?

Adults

• When working with adults we see people individually, in couple relationships or as family groups in a relaxed and supportive setting.
• We see adults with a vast range of behaviours relating to trauma. Trauma can occur at any stage of life and may arise out of early childhood experiences such as sexual abuse, family violence, death of a parent or sibling, accidents or natural disaster and neglect. During the developmental years trauma may relate to identity, dating violence, pregnancy, suicide, bullying, disconnection with peers and alcohol and substance abuse and when left unresolved can be carried through to adulthood.
• Adult trauma may be a result of past experiences or be more directly related to more recent events such as divorce, career and work related events, rape, domestic and family violence, migration, family disconnection and death of close friends and family.
• Trauma can have many effects on you as an adult and can manifest in many ways. People experiencing trauma often also experience memory loss and have traumatic memory intrusions and often feel like they are going crazy. The effects of trauma may include but are not limited to: lethargy, depression, bi-polar disorder, sleep disorders, chronic fatigue, anxiety, irritability, panic attacks, inappropriate alcohol and drug use. Trauma is not something we ‘get over', time does not resolve it, it must be processed however, by working through the experience of trauma we learn to manage the effects and make meaning of our experiences.

Children and Young People

• Infants, children and young people are profoundly affected by stress and trauma just like adults however, they show us this in their behaviour and their relationships with others due to their developmental age and stage. We see children and young people at our location or we do outreach to them depending on what will work best for them and their parents/caregivers. We see many children and young people who have tried other services and been reluctant or refused to continue but our style of making trauma work "fun" leads to ongoing engagement.
• Therapeutic group work programs; Often through natural disasters, relational trauma or school experiences such as bullying children and young people become extremely stressed and this is usually seen in their immediate behaviours making adult-child relations extremely difficult. Our therapeutic group work incorporates animals and play that specifically targets the sympathetic nervous system, provides psycho education about trauma and assists to learn strategies to help with coping with their overwhelming stress and make sense of their traumatic experience. We have provided group work programs in both primary and secondary settings in communities affected by the Victorian 2009 "Black Saturday" fires.

Parents

If you are raising a traumatised child or young person, you may also have experienced trauma making the task of parenting even more difficult. Normal parenting practices often do not work. You may be feeling confused, judged and misunderstood. In these circumstances seeking our help can be extremely beneficial for you and your family.