Lindsey’s Story… Living with the stigma of not having her dad around when she was growing up was just the start of the restricting labels that had been put onto Lindsey. She struggled to fit in or have a sense of belonging, and she drifted into dead end jobs and dysfunctional relationships. Her academic studies … Read more
Laura’s Story… Coming from a middle-class family, going to good schools and having her own horses looked to the world as though Laura’s life was perfect. What wasn’t seen was the physical and emotional abuse that she and her mother endured. Laura had to find her escape by leaving home as a 16-year-old with nowhere … Read more
Shelley’s Story… Her husband’s terrible and disfiguring accident turned life around for Shelley and her family. She’d already had her share of adversity and perhaps that has helped her to remain courageous, resourceful, and to face life with humour and optimism. She learnt how to turn things around and now even shares her menopausal symptoms … Read more
Gill’s Story… Gill had to endure sexual abuse from her father for years and wasn’t protected from him by her mother, other family members or outside authorities. Sexual abuse decades ago was a taboo subject and she suffered in silence. Her deeply dysfunctional family was well-regarded in society and there was no help or rescue … Read more
Brenda’s Story… A childhood of parental mental illness and domestic violence – and the extra emotional abuse from a later step-father – meant that Brenda was emotionally on her own from a very early age. She had to become responsible for adults in a way that no child should have to, and she later became … Read more
Susan’s Story… Having a happy background didn’t prepare Susan for the trauma of marriage to an alcoholic man. When things became so bad after 27 years of trying to cope she filed for divorce – which made her husband’s drinking worse and resulted in him dying in front of her and the children. She had … Read more
Barbara’s Story… Barbara’s teenaged mixed-race marriage and pregnancy set in motion a massive change in her outlook, and mental and physical health problems. Battling Post-Natal Depression and undiagnosed Post-Traumatic-Stress Disorder years ago was enough for Barbara to consider suicide as she was left alone with the heavy responsibility of child-care whilst medicated. It took a … Read more
Yasmeen’s Story… This is a very unusual story of having the courage to walk away from a restrictive religion and culture, and having to re-build a life from scratch. The pressure and threats to conform and return to her marriage were great. Yasmeen even became estranged from her children for a time, but her need … Read more
Vanessa’s Story… School experiences had left Vanessa with little sense of her own self-worth – which was reflected in the relationships and sexual assaults she encountered. She then became a dutiful wife and mother, but was seriously put to the test by her husband’s drug and alcohol addiction and aggressive behaviour – to the point … Read more
Irene’s Story… After a shock diagnosis of bowel cancer Irene found herself quickly admitted to hospital, and after surgery being in intensive care for two weeks. She found out that she had been given only a 40% chance of survival and yet her own grit and determination got her through – and instigated a move … Read more