I am passionate about helping people heal their trauma. It’s a big part of what I do all day, in my consulting room in north London. As a Cognitive Therapist and Advanced Accredited Schema Therapist, Trainer & Supervisor, I draw from a variety of proven, trauma-informed models, but my main model is schema therapy.

This warm, compassionate, powerful approach was developed by Dr Jeffrey Young in the late 1980s to help trauma survivors and other people struggling with complex mental health problems.

And it really works, helping people overcome even the most painful experiences in childhood – I see this every day in my practice and it’s a wonderful, magical thing to behold. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s easy – healing from serious problems like trauma can be a long, challenging, arduous process.

And people are on a spectrum both in terms of the trauma, abuse or neglect they experienced as children; and the impact of those painful experiences on their adult selves. Some people heal more slowly, some find change more difficult, but I strongly believe that however bad it was for you, there is always hope – every kind of painful childhood experience can be healed.

trauma recovery

If you are a truma survivor, I would strongly advise you to find a skilled therapist offering one of the trauma-informed models, such as schema therapy, trauma-focused CBT, compassion-focused therapy, sensorimotor psychotherapy, internal family systems therapy or somatic experiencing therapy.

If you experienced trauma, abuse or neglect as a child, it’s imperative that you get some good therapy to enable your healing process to begin. Sadly, self-help books and other personal-development tools – although helpful – will not be enough for you. Instead, you need a warm, kind, patient human being to help you overcome the wounds of your past.

Choose your therapist with care

If you are struggling with the impact of trauma, please do not get help from a counsellor or therapist who can’t explain to you, in simple terms, how their model is designed to work with trauma. We now know that just ‘talking about’ traumatic experiences is not only unhelpful, it can be retraumatising.

Instead, trauma work should help you to regulate your nervous system, teach you vital mindfulness skills, reframe negative self-beliefs and – if it’s necessary – process traumatic memories in a structured way, which is not the same as just talking about them in great detail. Please believe me that this will make you worse, not better.

Knowledge is power

That is why I have created my Heal Your Trauma project, including this blog. It will guide, support and inform you as you attempt the challenging journey towards a happier, more peaceful and meaningful life. I will teach you all about the effect of trauma on your mind, brain, nervous system and body.

I will provide techniques that you can use right away, to help you feel calmer and to regulate your nervous system – a key first step in trauma work. And I will try to be a voice of hope, another precious resource, as you attempt to put the dark days behind you and let the sun shine into your life.

Warm wishes,

Dan