Counselling participants share their thoughts
SVS Living Safe (now RISE) offers an individual counselling service to people who are or have been affected by violence and/or abuse and who are significantly traumatised. These clients initially may not be able to participate in a group setting but we work with them toward a point where they feel more comfortable in a group setting, where sharing with others who have been through similar situations could benefit them.
We always ask participants for their feedback so that we can measure how they feel about their own progress. When asked about attitudes and beliefs they felt had changed through the programme, we had these responses:
“I have rights and choices.”
“My attitude has become a lot more positive towards myself and others in the weeks during my appointments.”
“My eyes have opened with some of my old views towards women and people I thought were weak.”
“My partner and I are equals.”
“Confidence in my ability to set boundaries.”
Counselling offers the chance for talking about issues, but clinicians also offer practical tools to their clients that should help them cope throughout their lives. The women who filled out the evaluations this time told us that some of the tools they have learned to use are:
“Cry when I am alone.”
“Read and take time for myself”
Count on the “scale 1-10 and chart my anger and anxiety, understanding when to remove myself from situations.”
“Awareness, mindfulness, communicating, making sure I have self-care.”
“Breathing and relaxation tools”
“I use drawing as stress release.”
In these surveys, we’re equally interested in improving our service too. We are delighted that 100% of the women surveyed said:
their ability to cope in life has gone up a bit or a lot
they would recommend the course to other men
they achieved the goals they set in the programme
rated the service as ‘excellent’
