Life After Trauma is an early-stage social enterprise which aims to help survivors of sexual violence feel less alone.
We are currently surveying people who’ve experienced sexual violence. We want to better understand how sexual harm has impacted us, and what resources would help us rebuild our lives in the aftermath.
Our survey is anonymous, confidential, and you can skip as many questions as you like. If you would find it useful, here is a simple grounding exercise before you start too.
Every week, we share articles, podcasts and resources on life after trauma.
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How to find a good therapist
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Sexual violence is a healthcare issue
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![A reading list on surviving childhood sexual violence]()
A reading list on surviving childhood sexual violence
Survivors of sexual violence are one of the most under-served communities in Ireland.
According to the CSO, 52% of women and 28% of men in Ireland have experienced sexual harm. That amounts to about 2 million people, or approximately the population of Connacht and Munster combined.
Sexual violence has profound and wide-ranging consequences for survivors, impacting their physical, emotional, psychological, and social well-being. The World Health Organisation has described sexual violence as “a global health problem of epidemic proportions”.
People who’ve experienced sexual violence are significantly more likely to experience addiction, suicidal ideation, mental and physical health problems. One study put the average lifetime cost per victim of child abuse at $210,012. Sexual violence also impacts survivors ability to maintain loving relationships, to feel safe in their bodies and to work and socialise as normal. The harm doesn’t stop with survivors, but ripples out into our families and communities. Survivors can also pass their trauma to the next generation epigenetically.
But statistics can’t tell the full story. Sexual violence is among the darkest aspects of human experience and too often, survivors are left to sort through the wreckage of their lives alone.
Ireland’s healthcare (both physical and mental), legal, justice and social policy systems are not properly equipped to serve us and survivors get almost no support as they work to rebuild their lives.
Our vision is of an Ireland where:
Survivors are recognised for their enormous strength and resilience. Our society values and supports survivors of sexual harm as they recover from the trauma they’ve experienced.
Sexual violence is recognised as a healthcare epidemic which has life-altering and life-long consequences for survivors. Survivors have access to comprehensive support services, including holistic mental and physical healthcare. These services are adequately funded, easily accessible in every community, and free from stigma.
Sexual violence is understood as a societal issue, not an individual one. Survivors' individual experiences are a manifestation of a wider societal issue and to properly address that harm, we need to bring the issue back into the community. This requires collective action, empathy and specialised support.
Irisih society understands that it is a community responsibility to ensure that everyone is safe from sexual violence. We work together (as individuals, communities, and institutions) to achieve that goal.
We challenge harmful cultural norms which perpetuate sexual harm, including victim-blaming, rape myths, and gender stereotypes.
We speak openly about sexual violence, without shame or stigma.
We invest in survivors' wellbeing and recovery and empower them to challenge societal attitudes to sexual harm.
Life After Trauma was founded in 2023, by survivor and social entrepreneur Clare Egan.
Our work is made possible by a community of patrons who believe in a better conversation about
life after trauma.
We are a proud member of the SEI alumni community, and graduate from the ReThink Ireland
Start Your Own Social Enterprise Course.
Contact us
Life After Trauma is reachable at lifeaftertrauma AT gmail.com or via this form.
Beyond Survival in The Irish Examiner
Volunteering in the Sexual Assault Treatment Unit
Graduating from The Ideas Academy
Celebrating 20 years of Social Entrepreneurs Ireland
Beyond Survival in The Irish Times
Social Entrepreneurs Ireland showcase
Beyond Survival case study
“Sexual trauma is profoundly isolating, but we are not alone”
- Clare Egan