Survivors Blog
In 2 places at once
I recently sat with someone, a relative stranger, someone offering to collaborate and connect in the joint purpose and pursuit of protection and awareness. We talked about my story, a few parts of my life experience, about grooming rings and the need for inquiries and greater understanding. I told…
The Journey Before The Journey
If you’d asked me where A Positive Start began when I first started this work, I would’ve confidently said: “It began because of the domestic violence.” At the time, that felt true. It felt obvious. The dramatic moment. The crisis. The breaking point. The event that almost ended my life. But what I…
The TRUST Framework: Creating Truly Safe, Trauma-Informed Spaces
This framework is free to use in community, education, care and support settings. Please credit Deborah J Crozier & A Positive Start CIC when sharing or delivering. © 2021–2025 Deborah J Crozier, A Positive Start CIC. All Rights Reserved. Many spaces say they are trauma-informed because they…
Empathy Will Save Humanity
Why Feeling Deeply Is Not a Weakness, but Our Greatest Intelligence “The death of human empathy is one of the earliest and most telling signs of a culture about to fall into barbarism.” — Hannah Arendt We are living through a time where empathy is being dismissed, numbed, and in places actively…
Why Mindfulness Can Be Triggering for Trauma Survivors
This is a personal theory supported by trauma research… Mindfulness, meditation and stillness practices are widely recommended for emotional well-being, anxiety, stress and mental health. They are used in therapy rooms, schools, GP practices, yoga studios and community programmes. And for many…
The Nervous System Isn’t Asking Your Permission
It is almost impossible to fully convey the impact of nervous system activation to someone who has never experienced it. What may look, from the outside, like being “over-sensitive,” “attention-seeking,” or “childish” is, on the inside, a state of terror. The person is not reacting to the present…
What Looked Like Nothing, Felt Like Everything
A reflection on trauma responses people don’t see Years ago, I had just started a new job — I’d only been there about a week. One day, I went off to a meeting elsewhere in the building. When I came back, the office I usually worked in was completely closed. The lights were off, the door was locked,…
Beyond Blame: Understanding Incel Identity Through Attachment, Not Outrage
There is a growing concern in education, safeguarding, and mental health fields about the influence of figures like Andrew Tate and others who appeal to boys and young men. It can feel easy — and even comforting — to say the problem starts with these influencers. But when we place the blame solely…
It’s Not “Attention Seeking.” It’s a Nervous System in Survival.
Across education, social care, healthcare, policing, and even politics, there is still a widespread misunderstanding of trauma. Behaviours rooted in survival are often misinterpreted as: “Attention-seeking” “Manipulative” “Excuses” “Lack of discipline” “Bad attitude” And those of us who respond…
The camera doesn’t lie?
“The camera cannot lie, but it can be an accessory to untruth.” — Quote by Harold Evans. Whilst reading through comments left on news items about Epstein, Andrew and Virginia Giuffre the most repeated and applauded opinion is that of Virginia looking happy in the photograph and that equating to…
