Thriving Survivors

15/11/2025

One Day. One Global Conversation.
The Thriving Survivors Annual Conference 2025 brings together voices from every continent to explore what lived experience means - and how it can change systems, policies, and lives.

From the Men’s Panel to Exciting Launches, this year’s event is filled with voices that matter. This is your moment to listen, learn, and lead.

🗓️ Thursday, 20th November | Online | 11am–3pm UK
🎟️ Secure your ticket before registration closes: www.thrivingsurvivors.co.uk/ts2025

13/11/2025

At Thriving Survivors, demand for our trauma recovery services continues to grow. Right now, over 500 survivors are waiting for support.

Every shared post, every donation made, and every fundraising activities directly funds more mentors, more counsellors, and more sessions.

💙 We never turn anyone away – but we need the resources to reach them.

Your support helps us reduce wait times, expand our reach, and offer vital care to those who need it now.

📩 Want to help? Host your next event with us, make a donation, or share our story.

https://www.thrivingsurvivors.co.uk/fundraising

Fundraising and donations make a huge difference to our work and ability to support individuals in their journey to justice and recovery. Donations will help us deliver and expand our vision to provide high quality and trauma responsive services to empower individuals and offer them choice and contr...

12/11/2025

Meet David Smith – Men’s Panel Speaker at
As we count down to the Thriving Survivors Annual Conference 2025, we’re honoured to introduce David Smith, a lifelong advocate for equality, inclusion, and survivor-centred justice.

David brings a wealth of experience from across the criminal justice, education, and health sectors. Until his retirement earlier this year, he was the Policy and Communications Officer at the Restorative Justice Council, having previously served as the Victims and Witnesses Adviser to the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner.

Throughout his career, David has worked tirelessly to ensure that male survivors of sexual abuse are seen, heard, and supported. While commissioning Independent Sexual Violence Adviser (ISVA) services for West Yorkshire, he helped secure one of the UK’s first services to achieve LimeCulture accreditation for supporting men and - work that was pioneering in its commitment to inclusion and equality.

For David, this work has never been just policy - it’s personal. A lifelong LGBT+ community activist and equality campaigner, his career has been guided by the belief that every survivor deserves access to safety, dignity, and choice.

At this year’s conference, David joins the Men’s Panel, a rare and vital conversation amplifying male voices in the survivor community. Together with panellists from around the world, he will explore the barriers men face in speaking out, the systems that must evolve, and the collective change required to ensure no one is left behind.

David’s story is one of courage, empathy, and leadership - qualities that continue to inspire systemic change across the UK and beyond.

Join us as we welcome him to and continue our shared mission: to build a world where all survivors’ voices are valued and heard.

🎟️ Tickets: www.thrivingsurvivors.co.uk/ts2025

11/11/2025

Five Workshops. Countless Stories of Strength.

From Pathway to Healing to Creative Advocacy in Action, each workshop is led by lived experience experts who turn pain into purpose.

You’ll choose two live workshops on the day, and get access to recordings of all six.
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn, reflect, and connect through real voices and real experience.

🎟️ Last chance to join us: www.thrivingsurvivors.co.uk/ts2025

10/11/2025

Starting your healing journey after trauma can feel overwhelming, lonely and full of uncertainty. That’s why we created Bridge to Recovery – a gentle, peer-led space designed to welcome survivors into community and support.

This free group, led by trained survivors who’ve walked the path themselves, offers:

🟢 A supportive space for connection
🟢 Weekly confidence-building activities
🟢 Tools for grounding and self-care
🟢 Encouragement from people who understand

There’s no pressure to speak. Just being there is enough.

Whether you're new to therapy, recently disclosed trauma, or simply need a safe space to be heard and seen, Bridge to Recovery is a starting point. We run both in-person and virtual sessions, and you can join as often as needed.

As one of our facilitators puts it:
“On week one, someone might barely make eye contact. By week six, they’re encouraging others. It’s beautiful to watch.”

🟢 Survivors: Drop us a message to join.
🟢 Professionals: We welcome referrals and collaboration.
🟢 Everyone else: Please share this post to reach someone who might need it.

Because healing doesn’t start in silence. It starts in community.

09/11/2025

You won’t get it right every day — and you don’t have to.
Be patient with the process.
Be patient with yourself.

07/11/2025

Men Talking. The Change Starts Here.
At , our Men’s Panel is breaking barriers.
Real conversations. Real courage.
Men sharing their lived experiences of trauma, resilience, and healing - openly and unapologetically.

This is what change looks like.
Join us in listening, learning, and standing together.

📅 Thursday, 20th November | 11am–3pm UK
🎟️ Tickets: www.thrivingsurvivors.co.uk/ts2025

05/11/2025

Meet Nathan Visser – Men’s Panel Speaker at
When we talk about “The Power of Shared Voices,” few embody that courage more than Nathan Visser.

Nathan is a husband, father of three, rehabilitation specialist, musician, and survivor of sibling sexual abuse. For years, he carried his story in silence. In 2022, that silence broke - and Nathan began the difficult journey of truth-telling, confronting his trauma, and rebuilding his life on his own terms.

Since then, Nathan has become a strong advocate for awareness and change in the Netherlands. Through his blog, Dagboek van een Overlever (“Diary of a Survivor”), he shares the realities of recovery, complex family loss, and the hope that comes from speaking out - not just for himself, but for others who still cannot.

At this year’s Thriving Survivors Annual Conference, Nathan joins the Men’s Panel, a rare and vital space where male survivors from around the world will share their experiences, challenge stigma, and call for systemic change.

Nathan’s vision is one of compassion and reform - where support exists not just for survivors, but for the entire family system impacted by sibling sexual abuse. As he says:

“No one should ever be as alone as I have been.”

Join us at to hear Nathan and other incredible speakers share their lived experience, their strength, and their hope for the future.

🗓️ Thursday, 20th November 2025 | 11am–3pm (UK time)
🌍 Online via Zoom
🎟️ Tickets: www.thrivingsurvivors.co.uk/ts2025

04/11/2025

The countdown to is on.
In just a few weeks, survivors, advocates, professionals, and changemakers from across the globe will come together to share stories, research, and lived experiences that inspire change.

This isn’t just a conference - it’s a movement.
Be part of it. Be part of The Power of Shared Voices.

🎟️ Final tickets available now: www.thrivingsurvivors.co.uk/ts2025

31/10/2025

Last year Ashley Scotland wrote this blog: Confronting My Inner Tiger: Leadership and Life
It hit hard at the time and a year on - it still holds true:
I used to be a workaholic, as the founder of Thriving Survivors, I lived and breathed my business, working 60 hours a week, convinced it was the only way to keep everything afloat. Taking time off felt impossible, like the whole thing would crumble without me. I felt trapped in a cycle of constant hustle, neglecting myself and my family in the process.

Then came my experience with the' Leadership Development Intensive (LDI), created by Dr John Scherer, delivered and facilitated by Limen Associates. This wasn't your average leadership training. It's a transformative, four-day retreat that dives deep into your challenges and helps you become a truly authentic leader. It's about embracing your whole self – the light and the dark – and it made an enormous difference to my life, almost instantly.

Let me tell you about my journey:

I used to be a workaholic, as the founder of Thriving Survivors, I lived and breathed my business, working 60 hours a week, convinced it was the only way to keep everything afloat. Taking time off felt impossible, like the whole thing would crumble without me. I felt trapped in a cycle of constant h...

30/10/2025

A reminder of all our workshops confirmed for the Thriving Survivors Annual Conference 2025 – Lived Experience Around the World 🌍

Our incredible workshop hosts are:
✨ Rebuilding After Breakdown – Georgia Etheridge Stephens
✨ Unseen, Unspoken, Undone – Ambreen Kazim
✨ Pathway to Healing – John Cardamone
✨ Success and Silence – Ed Cohen
✨ Creative Advocacy in Action – Susan Dunlop & Team
✨ There is Still Time – Shirkydra Roberts

On the day, attendees will be able to choose from two live workshops. Don’t worry if you miss any – the others will be available as recordings afterwards.

Date: Thursday 20th November 2025
Time: 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM (UK)
Location: Online via Zoom

Annual Conference | Thriving Survivors

29/10/2025

Christmas Appeal 2025 – Complete!
We are absolutely overwhelmed with gratitude and joy! Thanks to the incredible generosity of so many, we are delighted to share that we no longer require any more toy donations - because of YOU, every one of the 13 families we set out to support will have gifts under the tree this Christmas.

A huge thank you to everyone who made this possible, especially:
⭐ Stella D’Oro Memorabilia
⭐ Barrowfield Shamrock CSC
⭐ Johnny Gallagher No1 The Harp Bar Cork (Aine)
⭐ Kate Devlin
⭐ CWM Graphics
⭐ JS Roofing Derry
⭐ David McLachlan
⭐ Slaters Men’s Wear (2 x £50 vouchers)
⭐ The Jungle Deep
⭐ Everyone from the page who donated and supported
⭐ Everyone who took a team on our football card
⭐ Everyone who supported through the Amazon Wish List – it made a massive difference
⭐ Our amazing staff and volunteers who made it all happen 💜

Words can’t describe how grateful we are for each and every person who helped.
Because of you, families will sleep easier and children will wake up smiling on Christmas morning.

From the bottom of our hearts - thank you.