How We Heal - Trauma Recovery & Wellbeing CIC

20/10/2026

Some wonderful news for How We Heal CIC.

We've been awarded £29,142.50 from the Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner to deliver seven programmes for women across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire,

The funding means more women will have access to a supportive space to explore body led recovery through gentle movement, therapeutic yoga, somatic practices, deep rest and wellness practices - with choice, compassion and care at the heart of every session.

Thank you to the Nottinghamshire Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for supporting this work, and to the women who have placed their trust in Solace along the way.

Warm congratulations to the other organisations receiving funding too. We have so much respect for the work you do and feel very fortunate to be alongside you.

If you'd like more information on the Solace programme please follow the link to our website in the comments below or email: [email protected]

Nearly £300,000 awarded to help domestic and sexual abuse survivors! 💷 🎉

An innovative programme using therapeutic yoga and body-based techniques to help women recover from domestic abuse is among eight projects receiving nearly £300,000 in new funding from Nottinghamshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Gary Godden.

How We Heal - Trauma Recovery & Wellbeing CIC who operate across the city and county, has secured £29,142.50 to deliver seven Solace for Survivors programmes, offering a different approach to recovery for women who have experienced domestic abuse.

The project is among eight successful applications to the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Nottinghamshire’s Domestic and Sexual Violence and Abuse (DSVA) Grants Programme, with a total of £295,893.84 awarded to organisations supporting victims and survivors across the city and county.

📰Read the full story to find out the full list of successful applicants: https://www.nottinghamshire.pcc.police.uk/news/nearly-300000-awarded-to-help-domestic-and-sexual-abuse-survivors

Successful organisations include: Al Hurraya SHE UK Broxtowe Women's Project Ltd Nottingham Women's Centre Imara and others.

06/10/2026

Living with fibromyalgia? There’s room for you here.

Introducing Room to Rest, a six week programme of trauma-informed, compassionate, body-led support for women living with the challenges of fibromyalgia.

Room to Rest combines the therapeutic benefits of five element acupressure, gentle somatic movement, somatic coaching and restorative yoga. Delivered in a small and welcoming group where nothing is expected of you and everyone understands.

Room to Rest includes six two-hour sessions, bringing together:

🌿 Trauma-informed somatic practice and gentle movement to support the nervous system.
🌿 Trauma-informed Restorative yoga and Yoga Nidra for deep rest
🌿 Acupressure tailored to your individual needs, to support relaxation.
🌿 Connection with women who understand

Led by our founder Donna Navarro, a therapeutic yoga teacher and somatic coach who also lives with fibromyalgia, and James Pegg, experienced Five Element Acupuncturist, the programme combines two specialist approaches within a small, supportive group.

Everything is invitational. You can adapt, pause or rest, and no yoga experience is needed.

You’ll meet with the same women each week, giving us time to get to know you and allowing familiarity and connection to grow.

This is an invitation to rest deeply and be held in soft practice and an understanding community.

📍 Hoton, Leicestershire (near Loughborough)
📅 Fridays, 6 November–11 December 2026
🕦 11:30am–1:30pm

Bookings are open now.

You can find programme details, fees and booking through our website.

htps://howwehealcic.org.uk/room-to-rest-fibromyalgia-support

Please share with someone who might welcome this support 💚 Any question please reach out at [email protected]

25/09/2026

This is a small invitation to pause with me. Just 2 and half minutes.

To simply step out of the momentum of the day for a moment and notice that you are here.

You might soften your gaze, feel the support beneath you, or allow your attention to settle somewhere that feels steady. There is no right way to pause—and you remain in choice throughout.

Sometimes regulation begins not with doing more, but with creating enough space to notice what we need.

Save this for a moment when life feels busy, noisy or demanding, and come back whenever you need a gentle pause.

24/09/2026

What happens when the danger has passed—but the body is still responding as though it hasn’t?

Recovery from domestic abuse isn’t always something we can think or talk our way through. We believe the body needs to be included too.

Trauma-informed yoga and somatic practice can offer survivors another gentle, choice-led pathway towards healing.

Not by forcing relaxation.
Not by requiring someone to talk about what happened, but by helping to restore something abuse may have taken away: choice, agency and ownership of the body.

If you’ve ever wondered what makes trauma-informed yoga and somatic practice different, this is a good place to begin.

This work does not replace specialist domestic abuse support or therapy. But it can offer another meaningful pathway into healing - particularly when words feel difficult or are simply not enough.

Your body has been protecting you. Healing can include the body, too.

Save this to return to, or share it with someone who may find it helpful.

25/08/2026

We often hear Solace described as a “missing piece” in recovery.

Talking therapies and specialist domestic abuse services provide vital support. Solace complements this work by creating space for women to understand how trauma can continue to be held and experienced in the body - and to explore gentle, practical ways of supporting their nervous system and wellbeing.

To hear a participant describe the programme as a gift is incredibly meaningful. It reflects why we believe body-led approaches should be more widely available as part of recovery from domestic abuse.

Thank you to every woman who has trusted us to be part of her healing journey, to Nottingham Women’s Centre and Juno Women’s Aid for referring women into the programme, and to for making this work possible. 🤍

24/08/2026

Creating the right environment is an important part of trauma-informed support.

Solace offers women a dedicated space away from the demands of everyday life - somewhere they can pause, feel supported and gently reconnect with themselves and their bodies.

For women who may spend much of their lives managing difficult circumstances or simply trying to keep going, having a space where nothing is expected of them can be deeply valuable.

We’re so grateful to for making these spaces possible, and to and for referring women into the programme. 🤍

21/08/2026

Thank you to for supporting Solace for Survivors, our body-led trauma recovery programme for women who have experienced domestic abuse.

We receive so many words of gratitude from the women who take part, and we’ll be sharing here some of their reflections.

Working with the body as part of trauma recovery offers an opportunity to reconnect with ourselves in a way that is gentle, compassionate and led by choice. But Solace is also about connection with others - creating a safe and understanding community where women can come together without judgement or expectation.

For women who have become isolated through their experiences, simply feeling able to be alongside others can be a meaningful part of healing.

We’re also incredibly grateful to and Juno Women’s Aid for referring women into the programme and helping us ensure this support reaches those who may benefit from it.

Recovery doesn’t have to happen alone. 🤍

26/07/2026

"Just take a deep breath."

It's probably one of the most common pieces of wellbeing advice we hear.

And sometimes it can be genuinely helpful.

But if you've ever been told to take a deep breath and found that you simply couldn't… or that it didn't seem to make any difference… there isn't anything wrong with you.

When our nervous system senses threat, whether that threat is happening now or is being echoed through past experiences, it shifts into survival. In those moments, our body isn't choosing to ignore us or "do breathing wrong". It's doing exactly what it has learned to do to protect us.

For some people, being asked to focus on the breath can even feel overwhelming.

Breath awareness brings attention inward, and when the nervous system doesn't yet feel safe enough to do that, it may feel uncomfortable or inaccessible.

This is why trauma-informed practice begins by meeting the nervous system where it is.

Sometimes that means orienting - looking around the room and noticing that, right now, there is no immediate danger.

Sometimes it means grounding - feeling the support of the chair beneath you and noticing your feet making contact with the ground. 👣

Sometimes it's noticing you're holding a warm mug ☕

Or listening to the sounds around you 🍃

These are all ways of offering your nervous system gentle cues of safety before asking anything more of it.

Breathwork can be incredibly supportive. But timing matters.

Healing isn't about forcing the body to calm down. It's about learning to listen to what it needs first.

If taking a deeper breath feels hard, try this for a few moments, and then try again.

Let us know how you get on.

21/07/2026