Trauma Informed Care

Trauma is not something limited to soldiers, or those who have experienced conflict in places like Afghanistan or Ukraine. It can happen to any of us—our friends, families, and neighbors. As humans, we are an incredibly resilient species. Throughout history, we have bounced back from relentless wars, natural and man-made disasters, and personal betrayals and violence. However, traumatic experiences leave lasting impacts, whether on a large scale, affecting our cultures and histories, or closer to home, influencing our families. These experiences also affect our minds, emotions, and our ability to experience joy and intimacy, as well as our biology and immune systems.

While we are still far from fully understanding the depth of trauma's effects, the emergence of new scientific fields has led to an explosion of knowledge about the impact of psychological trauma, abuse, and neglect. These disciplines have shown that trauma leads to actual physiological changes, including a reprogramming of the brain's alarm system, increased stress hormone activity, and shifts in the brain and body's systems that filter relevant from irrelevant information.

In my role, through assessment and formulation, I aim to help you understand how past traumatic experiences have affected your health, well-being, and social environment. The insights from this trauma-informed perspective will guide the identification of problem areas and help in creating a tailored care strategy to address them.

Mental health of LGBTQIA+ people

Psychiatry has not always had a positive history with the LGBTQIA+ community. For many years, the World Health Organisation (WHO) classified homosexuality as a mental illness, and it wasn't removed from the International Statistical Classification of Diseases (ICD) until May 1990. Until 2019, it appeared nearly impossible to eliminate the pathologising categories related to trans and gender-diverse individuals from the ICD-10 list of mental disorders.

Considering this history, it is unsurprising that LGBTQIA+ individuals frequently face difficulties in accessing high-quality psychiatric care from mainstream mental health services. Research consistently indicates that unless mental health professionals possess a thorough understanding of the unique health concerns, barriers to care, and specific needs of LGBTQIA+ individuals, they will be unable to offer the appropriate support.

Over the years, my practice has shifted from being primarily focused on diagnostic assessments to a more supportive and collaborative approach in addressing mental health challenges. This includes exploring the effects of marginalization, shame, and the influence of both negative and positive life experiences. I am committed to fostering an inclusive and respectful environment for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual, and other individuals within the LGBTQIA+ community who are seeking mental health support.