Whitsunday Counselling and Support Inc.

02/11/2025

SPOTTO 👀THE BEST TEAM EVER!!!🙏

Thank you Mackay and Whitsunday Life for highlighting the importance of the work we do by helping us raise awareness of sexual violence during !

Pictured below are only some of our heart centred, community spirited, professionals who go the extra mile to support our community members affected by Domestic and Family Violence; and Sexual Violence at Whitsunday Counselling and Support.

27/10/2025

TOGETHER, WE CAN.

October is Sexual Violence Awareness Month in Queensland.

As the month concludes, we focus on creating lasting change. Ending sexual violence requires a collective action: changing attitudes, supporting survivors and amplifying their voices. Together, we can drive real change to build communities where respect, safety and justice for all are non-negotiable.

If you wish to talk to someone about issues of sexual violence, please contact the national sexual violence helpline 1800 Respect 1800 737 732 (24/7) or contact a QSAN service at https://qsan.org.au/services/

In an emergency, phone the police on Triple Zero (000).

© Copyright retained by the artist.
This project is funded by the Queensland Government.

22/10/2025

WHAT IS A SPECIALIST SEXUAL SUPPORT SERVICE?

After experiencing sexual violence, it can feel daunting to know where to turn. Specialist sexual assault services provide a safe, supportive place to begin healing.

These inclusive and accessible services are free, confidential and led by trained professionals who understand the impacts of sexual violence.

They can offer:

🩵 Counselling and emotional support

🩵 Advocacy with health services, police or courts

🩵 Safe spaces to process experiences at your own pace

🩵 Information about rights and options

Specialist services work from a trauma-informed and empowerment-based approach. This means you are listened to, believed, and supported to make your own choices about what happens next.

No matter where you are in your journey, specialist sexual assault services are here to walk alongside you. If you wish to talk to someone about issues of sexual violence, please, you can find a directory of specialist sexual assault services at the QSAN Services Page here: http://bit.ly/41yv9jS

Alternatively, contact the national sexual violence helpline 1800 Respect 1800 737 732 (24/7).

In an emergency, phone the police on Triple Zero (000).

This project is funded by the Queensland Government.

20/10/2025

TOGETHER, WE CAN.

October is Sexual Violence Awareness Month in Queensland.

As the month concludes, we focus on creating lasting change. Ending sexual violence requires a collective action: changing attitudes, supporting survivors and amplifying their voices. Together, we can drive real change to build communities where respect, safety and justice for all are non-negotiable.

If you wish to talk to someone about issues of sexual violence, please contact the national sexual violence helpline 1800 Respect 1800 737 732 (24/7) or contact a QSAN service at https://qsan.org.au/services/

In an emergency, phone the police on Triple Zero (000).

© Copyright retained by the artist.
This project is funded by the Queensland Government.

17/10/2025

TOGETHER, WE CAN RISE

Poem: The Weight of Silence

Beneath the scales, I see the truth. He stands strong cloaked in money, degrees, and a mask of “good character,” the criminal code pressed like armour to his chest.

This vision makes clear one thing, there will be justice for none but him.
And me? I stand doubled a body split between ache and fire. Oneself: the child who still weeps, shaking beneath the weight of silence. A body untarnished but a soul marked by what was taken. The other: a woman built of scars and sinew, hauling a gavel vast as a cross, its weight biting deep into flesh.

They call this balance, due process… when my trauma is set against his reputation, when the shattering of my body and mind is measured against his future. This is justice, a system which impedes the very healing it claims to offer. Through my eyes, I am both fracture and flame.
Yes, I weep. Yes, I endure. And though the scales tilt heavy against me, I know this: together we can lift what one cannot, together we can shoulder the weight of the gavel, together we can forge a justice that believes, that restores, that heals.

16/10/2025

✨ Reclaim the Night – March and Event 2025 ✨

Saturday 25th October | Airlie Beach

This Sexual Violence Awareness Month, we come together as a community to stand united against sexual violence — to walk in solidarity, raise our voices, and reclaim the right for everyone to feel safe, respected, and free. 💜

Join us for an empowering evening of connection, courage, and hope.
🌟 5:30pm – Inspiring speakers at Coral Sea Marina
🚶‍♀️ 6:00pm – March begins from Coral Sea Marina to the Airlie Beach Foreshore
🎶 6:30–7:30pm – Refreshments and live music under the stars

Everyone is welcome — survivors, families, friends, and allies. Together, we can make change. 💪

Hosted by Whitsunday Counselling & Support Inc. in partnership with Together We Can – Sexual Violence Awareness Month 2025.

16/10/2025

15/10/2025

HOW TO RESPOND IF SOMEONE DISCLOSES SEXUAL ASSAULT TO YOU

If someone discloses sexual assault to you, it's ok to not know how to respond.

You do not need to be an expert to be able to support someone. By being a trusted person and listening, you are already helping.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when providing support:

🩵 LISTEN

Listen with respect and patience; and without judgement, interruption or questions.

🩵 BELIEVE

Trust what they are telling you. help them feel safe and comfortable.

🩵 SUPPORT

Let them to make their own choices about what happens next when they are ready to, but offer practical help and let them know free, confidential and professional help is available.

There are specialist sexual assault and counselling support services throughout Queensland who can help people to heal. If you wish to talk to someone about issues of sexual violence, please, you can find a directory of specialist sexual assault services at the QSAN Services Page here: http://bit.ly/41yv9jS

Alternatively, contact the national sexual violence helpline 1800 Respect 1800 737 732 (24/7).

In an emergency, phone the police on Triple Zero (000).

This project is funded by the Queensland Government.

11/10/2025

TOGETHER, WE CAN RISE

October is Sexual Violence Awareness Month in Queensland. This year’s theme, Together, We Can celebrates the resilience and courage of victim-survivors.

This week, our focus is the sub-theme “Together, we can rise”. Victim-survivors show extraordinary courage, resilience, and determination to be heard. But we can and must do better. By amplifying survivor voices and creative work, we honour the courage and determination it takes to overcome trauma and drive change.

If you wish to talk to someone about issues of sexual violence, please contact the national sexual violence helpline 1800 Respect 1800 737 732 (24/7) or contact a QSAN service at https://qsan.org.au/services/.

In an emergency, phone the police on Triple Zero (000).

© Copyright retained by the artist.
This project is funded by the Queensland Government.

08/10/2025

CONSENT

The way we communicate and practice consent can look different from person to person.

But the basic requirement for consent is the same for everyone: a clear, ongoing and enthusiastic “yes”.

Consent should never be assumed. Not before, not during, and not because of something that happened in the past. Saying “yes” to one thing does not mean agreement for something else or for the future.

Unfortunately, harmful attitudes persist. A 2021 national survey on attitudes to violence against women found that 10% of people believe women often say “no” when they actually mean “yes”. Such is a dangerous misconception that can put people at serious risk.

💡 Remember:

- Consent must be freely given, without pressure or coercion

- It must be informed, with a full understanding of what is being agreed to

- Silence, freezing or lack of resistance is not consent

- Consent can be withdrawn at any time

Affirmative consent is about respect, safety and choice for everyone.

If you wish to talk to someone about issues of sexual violence, please contact the national sexual violence helpline 1800 Respect 1800 737 732 (24/7) or contact a QSAN service at https://qsan.org.au/services/.

In an emergency, phone the police on Triple Zero (000).

This project is funded by the Queensland Government.

07/10/2025

🌊 A masterpiece in our Bowen Family Room 🎨

We are beyond proud to share this stunning mural, painted by our incredibly talented Counsellor Ayla Wright. 💙

Ayla has beautifully captured something deep and meaningful in this piece — a moment between the vastness of the ocean and the quiet presence of a lone figure in a tiny boat. It reminds us how much exists beneath the surface… in the ocean, in others, and within ourselves.

What do you see when you look at it?
What message do you think this magnificent whale and the night sky might be sending?

Come and see it in person next time you visit our Bowen office — it truly is breath-taking.