On this page, our former clients speak to you about their experience.
It took me almost 40 years to accept that I had been raped. I had been a pretty, naïve, polite, sensitive, talented boy who wanted to be accepted and loved in the same way his grandparents had shown him. Instead, once I got to boarding school, I was groomed, teased, tormented, bullied, ostracized and abused.
Of course it was all my fault. I made some really bad choices – or so I believed.
I just thank God it ended when it did. As life went on I became moderately successful in business, but never stayed in the same place for too long, because after a couple of years anywhere I ‘needed a change’. I was a highly functioning alcoholic and it generally took two years for my habit to destroy my progress and for people to catch me out.
In 2019 I hit rock bottom. Depression, anxiety, debt, deceit and despair had taken me to a very dark place and I could see no hope. I planned my suicide carefully with no thought of the impact it would have on my family. They would all be better off without me. I went to see my GP on a routine matter and he could see something was up. It was his professionalism and compassion that made me open up and there was no looking back.
I was so lucky to be referred to Kinergy. Even over Zoom, my weekly sessions helped me to come to terms with what had happened. Most importantly, for the first time in as long as I could remember, I felt safe, not judged. I experienced unconditional positive regard and learned that shame, guilt and fear had no place in my life and that the coping strategies I had developed subconsciously over the decades had not served me well.
Without Kinergy, there is a very real possibility that I would not be here to share this story. With their help and support, my life has changed beyond all recognition. I am still fragile, because trauma leaves deep scars which others will never see or understand. However, I have been able to discover the root causes of my dysfunction and to build more resourceful and resilient strategies than I have ever had. I now have more compassion towards myself and consequently towards others.
I feel proud that I had the courage to seek help and privileged to have received it. I hope and pray that many, many more people will benefit from what you do, but that fewer and fewer people will need to!
Mary Carpenter House,
Britannia Road,
Bristol BS15 8DB
E: contact@kinergy.org.uk
T: 0117 908 7712
Opening Hours:
Mon & Fri: 9:00 - 16:30
Tues - Thurs: 9:00 - 20:15
Charity No: 1099140
Company No: 04391957