WithYou launches pilot treating the trauma related to substance use - for those who have served

With research showing that 65% of people in the armed forces have a problem with alcohol, and 12% of personnel seeking mental health support, WithYou is launching a veteran trauma-focused treatment pilot in North Lincolnshire, Wigan and Leigh, North Somerset, and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.

This initiative builds on the success of WithYou’s Rebuild Project, which gave specialist trauma-focused therapy to female veterans. Every woman who took part had complex, long-unaddressed trauma - and had lost trust in the services that were supposed to help them. By the end of the 16-week programme, every single one had seen their mental health improve. Clients who presented with severe PTSD were no longer showing symptoms. One client said, “Recovery didn’t just save my life; it gave me a new one.”

This new pilot programme will embed trauma-focused therapies - including Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing), Compassion Focused Therapy, and Cognitive Processing Therapy - into WithYou’s veteran treatment pathway, ensuring people do not have to choose between addressing their substance use and addressing their trauma.

Claire Wyatt, National Psychology Lead at WithYou, said, “The Rebuild Project proved that when we treat the trauma behind the substance use, we see life-changing results.

"By expanding this work to everyone in the armed forces community in these locations, we will reach more people who desperately need our support. This pilot places mental health on an equal footing with physical health, providing the integrated care our armed forces personnel deserve.”

Ann-Marie Robinshaw, Treatment and Recovery Manager for Wigan, said, “Having been part of the Armed Forces community for over 25 years, this is something I feel very personally about.

“I have seen how women can carry the impact of their service and trauma quietly, sometimes for many years, feeling unable to speak about what they have experienced. Too many have suffered in silence, both while serving and after leaving the Forces.

“This trauma support means we can offer something that truly understands veterans' experiences. It provides a safe space to be heard, supported and, most importantly, to heal. I genuinely believe this could change lives.”

Barry Pratt, CJIT Recovery worker and Veteran Lead for North Somerset service, said, “WithYou are leading the way in supporting veterans and their families. The client-centred focus brings support in a way that is unique and perfectly in tune with the trauma experienced by these clients.

"For example, EMDR does not require talking about the trauma out loud. Veterans only need to hold the memory in their mind while focusing on the bilateral stimulation. This is uniquely beneficial for veterans who find talking about their experiences too distressing or unbearable, who cannot share specific details because the information remains classified, or who hesitate to speak because they worry about ‘burdening’ their therapist with graphic details.”

Caz Anderson, Head of Service Delivery for WithYou in BCP, said, "For many of the veterans we work with, substance use has become a way of managing experiences they have never had the chance to properly process. Treating one without addressing the other only ever tells half the story.

"By bringing specialist trauma therapies directly into our treatment pathway, we can offer a genuine opportunity for people to understand what's driven their substance use, and to build a life beyond it."

Kate House, Head of Service Delivery at WithYou in North Lincolnshire, said, “We know that substance use and trauma are often deeply intertwined, as people look for ways to cope with the psychological wound they have received.

"We cannot treat substance use in isolation without addressing the pain that so often lies at its heart.

"By embedding specialised trauma therapies directly into our veteran treatment pathway, we’re creating a seamless system that treats the whole person, helping our clients heal from their past while building a safer future.”

The Rebuild Project pilot was funded by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust’s Fulfilling Futures programme.