Who We Can Support

Our advocacy is specifically for people who have experienced, or believe they have experienced:

• Domestic abuse, coercive control or trauma that was misdiagnosed as mental illness, leading to inappropriate psychiatric labelling, medication, or treatment instead of proper assessment and support for the abuse they were facing.

• Being medicated or diagnosed with a mental health condition when the underlying issue was domestic abuse or coercive control — and not being signposted to specialist domestic abuse services, safety planning, Independent Domestic Violence Advisors (IDVAs), or trauma-informed holistic support.

• Harm caused by psychiatric practice, inappropriate diagnosis, or medication when services failed to explore or address domestic abuse, coercive control, or trauma as the root cause.

• Situations where life experiences, relationships, and patterns of abuse were not properly explored before a psychiatric label was applied.

• Difficulties accessing rights-based, trauma-informed, or holistic support because their distress was framed only as “mental illness”.

Our Approach

We help people have their experiences of domestic abuse, coercive control and trauma properly understood and responded to — rather than being medicalised. We work to ensure their voices are heard, their safety is prioritised, and they are connected to the right support (domestic abuse services, safety planning, holistic approaches) instead of (or alongside) mental health pathways when that is what they actually need.

How our advocacy can help you:

• We support people in their mental heal act section and request for a second opinion and to consider trauma-informed care beforehand.

• We prepare evidence-informed advocacy reports to help professionals consider trauma, life history, and current psychological and neuroscience research when reviewing care.

• We assist individuals in requesting second opinions and reviews of medication, including Community Treatment Orders (CTOs), where appropriate.

• We attend GP, community mental health, social care, housing, and multidisciplinary meetings to ensure your voice is heard.

• We write letters, complaints, and professional correspondence on your behalf.

• We help you prepare for Mental Health Tribunals, CPA meetings, and care reviews (while being clear that you are not providing legal representation unless qualified to do so)

• Trauma-informed formulation reports (distinct from diagnosis).

• Preparation for Care Programme Approach (CPA) meetings.

• Support with complaints to NHS trusts and other healthcare providers.

• Assistance requesting access to medical records and helping clients understand them.

• Support drafting reasonable adjustment requests under equality legislation where applicable.

• Advocacy during safeguarding meetings.

• Help documenting concerns about coercion, domestic abuse, or systemic failures in care.

• Psychoeducation on trauma, stress, attachment, and the effects of adversity using accessible, evidence-informed resources.

• Signposting to legal, therapeutic, housing, financial, and domestic abuse support services.

• Training for organisations on trauma-informed approaches (if this aligns with your expertise).

Is My Situation Suitable?

If you are looking for support with general mental health advocacy, benefits claims, housing, employment, or social care alone, we may not be the right service for you.

However, if these issues are connected to concerns about trauma, coercive control, psychiatric harm, misdiagnosis, or a failure to consider the context of your experiences, we encourage you to get in touch. We will discuss your circumstances and let you know honestly whether our service is the right fit.