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We may be making small inroads, but it's been so refreshing to meet with like minded counsellors and look at ways we can collaborate together to help support our clients who are experiencing the psychological impact of medical trauma and/or medical anxiety.  Interestingly, Wales, Scotland and England are still behind Ireland and the US so far in resources, but the numbers will we hope gradually start to expand. The intention is to offer combined resources, whether that looks like group meetings, workshops, and educational presentations for clients,  or tailored, inclusive training packages  to our clinicians and Health Care Professionals, educating them in a trauma informed care (TIC) method of working, with a compassion focus at it's heart. A TIC approach  provides a cultural shift  around the nature of care, compassion and empathy as it actively works to create environments that promote safety, trust, empowerment, and healing. It’s a system that recognizes how trauma and/or anxiety affects a person’s brain, body, and behaviour, and responds in ways that promote safety, trust, and healing instead of re-traumatization. In simpler terms, this means understanding that many people have experienced health anxiety and shapes policies, interventions and systems that are sensitive to those experiences.  

I love this quote from Thomas Moore's 'Care of the Soul in Medicine.' 

“The soul of a hospital resides in the awesome spirit of healing found there. That spirit might be reflected in the architecture and décor or in the attitude of those who work there. Many hospitals give the impression of being factories for rebuilding bodies rather than temples of health and healing, and that is another way of saying they lack soul.   A hospital with soul is a place of healing.  A hospital without soul is a body repair shop”

My passion at the moment is not just to support my clients through their lived experience, but generating awareness through conversations with the Health Board about investing in a different training approach within the medical environment. Can supporting our clinicians from a point of inclusivity, empathy and understanding impact on their ability to harness the mantle of compassion for patients, themselves and each other? Can investing in them bring a sense of re-connection, and ‘soul’ back to the vocation that brought them to the profession in the first place? 

I'm very excited to have recorded a podcast with Sarah Stasica, a medical trauma educator and social worker from Texas, US. Both Sarah and I are recent invitees of the soon to be formed Medical Trauma Recovery Alliance in the US, and share many commonalities in our vision, ethos and practice. Sarah hosts the Medical Traum support podcast which has helped hundreds of people feel validated, normalised and heard and I was privileged to have a conversation with her about my love of group work and what a valuable space it can hold within our medical trauma work.  Sharing one's lived experience can be so powerful, feeling listened to, heard and understood by others can be part of the healing process, helping with that forward shift from symptoms of post traumatic stress to post traumatic growth. I look forward to sharing this with you when it's available, as we also spoke of my training programmes in trauma informed care for health care professionals. Hopefully, where our schedules allow, Sarah and I will be working closely together over the next few months. For more information about Sarah visit here: www.medicaltraumasupport.org 

It's been an exciting couple of months networking with other colleagues in the UK and the US, meeting with Health Board representitives and beginning the creation of workshops and bite sized training programmes for Health Care Professionals. The work I feel privileged to do with my private clients shows there is still a real need for medical trauma informed professionals, and I am becoming increasingly interested in links made between the secondary effects of medical trauma which more often than not affect the intrapersonal self, how we identify and see ourselves and the meaning attached to this.  In addition there are often associations of our medical trauma  mirrored within our day to day routine that have become triggers for us. This means stabilising and grounding work is even more important. My colleague Professor Michelle Flaum whose second book on medical trauma will be out shortly has recently shared some helpful mindfulness grounding practices on soundcloud, one of which may be a helpful exercise to try when preparing for  a medical appointment. Enjoy!

https://soundcloud.com/drmichelleflaum?ref=clipboard&p=i&c=1&si=700D3AAA05C949FEB5130460333FC465&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

I've also attended some CPD training with Babette Rothschild and Deborah Malmud, an Aspiring Nonfiction Writers seminar. My book 'Daddy & Dementia' is still a work in progress but the intention is to highlight the challenges a loved one with dementia faces in the medical setting, when we become their voice and still fight to be heard. Coupled with the psychology behind why we act the way we do as carers and the intricacies of the disease, this will also draw on the lived experience, from myself as well as others. 

If you are struggling to put yourself first and be self compassionate, I'm a huge fan of US Psychotherapist Kristin Neff and her ways of using self compassion as a really valuable tool. Take a look at her website  https://self-compassion.org/

As the months progress I'll be sharing more helpful tools and information so please watch this space!

And what an amazing 2026 I anticipate it will be!

The work I've invested in on medical trauma awareness is growing at a faster pace and collaborations are forming in the UK and US to generate greater awareness. In the Spring of this year I will be finalising the introduction of  a UK version of Professor Flaum's trauma informed training programme from the US in addition to shorter versions of this programme tailored to the needs of all those working within a Health Care environment. This approach is unique in it's inclusivity and pays attention to the systems currently in place within our Health Sector.  How can we expect our Health Care Professional Colleagues to treat their patients as human beings when their needs are not included within the process? Preventing burn out and exhaustion by providing compassion, empathy and a listening ear to those who we expect to keep us safe is an integral part of my vision for a healthier, inclusive Health Service. Ideally, one where medicine treats the person as a whole, with common humanity and kindness,  not as a body part on a production line. And equally importantly, one where the culture within medical environments recognises and engages  once again with the meaning of the word 'care'

Watch this space for updates.....

to accommodate the above, there is also sadness in saying goodbye to my active work with the 'In this 2gether' metastatic breast cancer groups. A hard decision to make, but they are in safe hands going forward and I will be proud to remain a Consultant and peer Supervisor for this incredible service.

The relationship across the pond is expanding with introductions to other clinicians who are working with medical trauma. Here in the UK we are also forming new relationships and the intention is to produce a central 'hub' of expertise, comprising of health care professionals with different skill sets, collaborating to educate, generate awareness and communicate ways of supporting patients and clinicians alike. 

'In this 2gether' metastatic breast cancer groups are expanding, and I'm temporarily supervising the establishment of a new group  later in the Autumn in Cwm Taff, with an additional group in Aneiron Bevan planned for 2026 as well as a new location for the SE Wales group.

My private practice is now solely supporting medical trauma patients which is a privilege. As need is further afield all of my work is now done remotely and my wish is to expand this into  group work at some stage going forwards! 

It's been a challenging 2024 for me on a personal level and I haven't been as active as I would like to be on my blog. Still recovering and recharging my batteries after the loss of my father under very difficult circumatances late last year; the first time on a personal level I've experienced vicarious medical trauma...... I am looking forward to FINALLY going on my trip to Borneo at the end of March, to volunteer in an orangutan conservation project.  I think this will be excellent personal therapy!

On a p[ositive note I managed to attain my Medical Trauma Accreditation and am now the only Certified Medical Trauma Psychotherapist in Wales, and  the UK.  I'm hoping to expand this knowledge working with my clinical supervisor Professor Michelle Flaum in the US, creating educational workshops/courses and podcasts for patients and clinicians alike in the UK......watch this space!

As we continue to emerge from lockdown and are facing new experiences, the psychological impact can be quite frightening for some. Many of us are faced with an increase in our emotional base rate, where our bodies have become  accustomed to a slight raise in anxiety levels, meaning we may be more hyper vigilant or reactive to certain situations. My Clinical Supervisor who I'm collaborating with on my research and knowledge of medical trauma has published an interesting piece on the possibility of medical PTSD or PTS symptoms that could arise in some from their covid hospitalisation. This of course doesn't imply everyone who has been hospitalised through covid would share this experience. But it's worth paying attention to in the context that knowledge is power. Having an understanding of why we may feel a certain way can have a normalising effect, as well as being a helpful coping mechanism.

https://theconversation.com/a-perfect-storm-for-medical-ptsd-isolation-intensive-care-and-the-coronavirus-pandemic-137981

A collaboration with my lovely colleague Dr Pippa Mundy for BBC Wales on line: anxiety v covid.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-52680174