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Understanding our feelings and experiences

There are things that you may be thinking and feeling as a result of your experiences. It can be really overwhelming to have these on top of juggling other things in your life. As hard as they are, they can be a sign that you might need some more support.

Some of the things that you might be feeling can build up slowly, and can start to feel like part of your day to day life, for example being extremely worried. Others might happen suddenly, and feel really scary, like feeling like you can’t breathe.

We’ve collected a list of thoughts and feelings that have occured to other survivors. Do some of these make you think ‘Yes! That’s exactly what I feel like..’?

What we see and feel:

What we think:

Things that make it harder to live our life:

You don’t have to have all these feelings and thoughts to use this guide. We’re here to support you and provide information and advice that can help you deal with any or all of these things, to help you on your journey.

Getting better and seeking help

Disclaimer: This guide has not been put together by mental health professionals. It is not intended to be medical advice. It has been crowdsourced by survivors and volunteers of Chayn. Care has been taken in reflecting the experiences and knowledge of people around the world, including therapists but information in this guide should be taken instead of certified medical advice. Please seek professional support.

Getting better & moving on: A guide for mental healing after abuse and trauma by CHAYN is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.