Client Feetdback: Matthew's Story

I suffered historic abuse. It is no longer a case of an 'ongoing abuse', but I am still in therapy, as many issues are still unresolved.


 I am dyslexic, therefore some of my experiences were challenging to me personally.   Before meeting with a counsellor at Uomini, I approached some twenty different organisations in attempt to get help. However I have not received any help or support from any of them. In fact number of these organisations has completely ignored my plea for help. 


 I have been treated by victim support groups as if it was me who was a perpetrator. I was often left with comments like: 'Oh, you are the victim?!'; 'How is this possible, you are a bloke'.    All that; the abuse that I have been experiencing, lack of support, complete dismissal and disregard for my painful, abusive accounts, have left me feeling angry, hopeless, and feeling suicidal, at times. It is only after contacting Men' Help Line and given Uomini’s number that things started to change for me.


 I first met with someone at Uomini. Once I have got in touch with the counsellor, he has offered to meet me right away. I have been since attending my therapeutic sessions. Initially, because I was in a really bad state, the counsellor would see me twice every week. Gradually, I would begin to see him once every week. Except the times when I travel, I attend my therapy with the counsellor regularly.


 I am in the on-going therapy at the present time.   I have still a lot of work to do with in counselling, to be where I would like to see myself. Having said that, I have come, already, a long way, and I am at much better place today as compare to where I was at the start of the therapy. 


 I have interacted with many therapists/counsellors in the past. None of these sessions brought any resolution to the issues that I have been struggling with, none of them was in fact addressed. Therefore, entering therapy with a counsellor at Uomini was for me a bit daunting, until we actually met. Unlike the previous therapists, the counsellor was interacting with me, it was a two-way communication. He was guiding me towards a proper understanding of what an abuse was, which brought me to the point when I realised that I was, in actual fact, a victim of domestic abuse. 


I can say: I am recovering and I am at much better place today.   The counsellor has offered me a very useful and strong support. He is obviously very well educated, understanding and non-judgmental as a therapist. He is, from the start, very open about the way he conducts the therapy. He is very open and transparent. If it was not for the counsellor that I was allocated and his therapeutic help that he has offered me, I do not know where I would be today.