Counselling Addresses Trauma That Can Lead to Crime

Men’s Trauma Centre in Victoria offers 15 free one-hour sessions

When more than 80 per cent of Canadian inmates are male and with a significant number of those inmates reporting incidents of childhood trauma, it’s hard not to link the two. But where do you begin combating a problem so deeply rooted?

The Men’s Trauma Centre is chipping away at the bigger issue by offering 15 free trauma counselling sessions for men or those who identify as men, aged 16 to 30, as part of their Youth Crime Reduction Program aimed at helping individuals avoid re-offending.

The non-judgmental and confidential service is funded through civil forfeiture with space to help 30 individuals “ease their relationship to trauma.”

Paula Greene, executive director of the centre, says on average about 280 men come through their doors seeking help every year. Due to the number of stereotypes surrounding men and abuse, she says men usually delay reporting their abuse for decades and develop their own coping methods which can lead to mental health issues, addictions or sometimes even involvement in the criminal justice system.

“They tend to come to us with layers and layers of complex trauma that they’ve been living with for years,” she says.

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