Service : Traumatic Stress Service

We help adults (18+) who have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or complex PTSD (CPTSD). We offer assessments and therapy in Reading or Slough, or by video call.

Symptoms of PTSD include flashbacks, nightmares, and intrusive thoughts.

CPTSD often develops from experiencing multiple or repeated traumatic events, such as:

• repeated or constant trauma, including physical or sexual assault, rape, domestic violence, trafficking, torture, or detention
• childhood abuse
• bereavement or exposure to violent loss
• refugee or asylum-seeking experiences, such as war or conflict
• birth experiences
• ongoing struggles with intense shame, guilt, or self-criticism

Our goal is to help you process and understand your experiences and work towards reducing stress and rebuilding your life.

We offer therapy sessions both in person and through video calls.

Our face-to-face sessions take place in our clinics in Reading or Slough.

You must be an adult (18+) and experiencing PTSD or CPTSD.

These are the steps to accessing our service:

1. Ask your GP or health worker to refer you (we don't accept self-referrals).
2. The Gateway team checks the referral.
3. We will arrange a 60–90 minute assessment with you. 
4. We will guide you to the right service.

Waiting list and appointments

If we accept your referral, we will put you on an assessment waiting list and call or write to arrange the appointment. You can choose Erlegh House (Reading), The Athena Centre (Slough), or a video call.

Before your assessment, we’ll send you a booklet which explains what to expect.

All clinic rooms are either located on the ground floor or can be accessed by lift. Parking for Blue Badge holders is also available at our sites.

Your assessment will last for around 60 to 90 minutes. We'll talk with you about your experiences, current difficulties, and recovery goals.

We won’t ask you to describe what happened in full detail. We may ask you to briefly talk about these experiences, but only as much as you feel comfortable sharing.

After your session, you can take a break in our waiting area.

Treatment pathways

As part of your personal care plan, we'll guide your through four therapy phases. They are designed to help you understand your trauma and work towards recovery.

Except for phase 3, sessions can be one-to-one with a therapist or in a group setting with up to eight people (including yourself).

• Phase 1: Understanding and coping with complex PTSD – Learn more about the condition and gain skills to manage the main symptoms.

• Phase 2: Developing compassionate resilience – We will explore our ability to be self-compassionate, how to manage strong emotions, and why we may blame ourselves.

• Phase 3: Working on trauma memories – Make sense of your traumatic experiences, flashbacks, and difficult memories through one of three types of therapy.
• Phase 4: Living life after trauma therapy – We will look at how you want to live your life, based on your values and self-compassion.

Therapy options

There are three types of therapy that we may recommend during phase 3.

• Trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT) – Change unhelpful thoughts and reactions.
• Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) – Use guided eye movements to reduce the distress of memories.
• Narrative exposure therapy (NET) – Tell your life story to put the trauma in order.

We will explain each one and decide together the right option for you.

We always provide this phase as a one-to-one session with a therapist.

Understanding CPTSD and our treatment pathways

We give this booklet to people who are waiting for therapy. Section 2 has some helpful tips on managing symptoms.

Advice for friends and family

We have created this booklet to help you support your loved one through trauma treatment. It has information on PTSD and CPTSD and trauma-focused therapy, as well as tips to help you support your loved one and look after yourself.

Berkshire Women's Aid (BWA)

Support for anyone facing domestic abuse. BWA offer safe refuge, emotional guidance, and expert help to move toward a life free from fear.

• Visit the BWA website

Centre of expertise on child sexual abuse (CSA Centre)

Reducing the impact of child sexual abuse through improved prevention and better response.

• Visit the CSA Centre website

Dr Deborah Lee

Deborah Lee is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist and expert on trauma and PTSD who works for Berkshire Healthcare. The Health Service Journal (HSJ) has recognised her as one of the Top 50 Inspirational Women in Healthcare.

On her Just Ask A Question (JAAQ) profile, she answers questions about trauma and PTSD.

• Visit Dr Lee's JAAQ profile

ManKind

Help for male victims of domestic abuse, including emergency housing and legal support. 

• Visit the ManKind website

PTSD UK 

A charity raising awareness of PTSD and treatments. 

• Visit the PTSD UK website