Please be advised that Kiam Clinic is not an acute or emergency service. For all urgent or life-threatening health conditions, please contact 999, call 111 for urgent advice, or go directly to your nearest A&E department.

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Specialist assessment

Trauma & PTSD Assessment

Assessment for post-traumatic stress and the longer-term effects of traumatic experience. Assessment is paced by you: nothing has to be described in more detail than you choose to give.

Book your assessment

Online or in person

The assessment itself is the same either way: the same clinician, the same criteria, the same written summary.

Adults

Online Trauma & PTSD Assessment

Online

Assessment for post-traumatic stress and the longer-term effects of traumatic experience. Assessment is paced by you: nothing has to be described in more detail than you choose to give.

  • A full clinical assessment with a Consultant Psychiatrist
  • Structured assessment against recognised diagnostic criteria
  • Screening for conditions that commonly occur alongside it
  • An individualised treatment plan
  • A written summary for you and, with consent, your GP

£450

60 min

Book now

Adults

In-Person Trauma & PTSD Assessment

In person

Assessment for post-traumatic stress and the longer-term effects of traumatic experience. Assessment is paced by you: nothing has to be described in more detail than you choose to give.

  • A full clinical assessment with a Consultant Psychiatrist
  • Structured assessment against recognised diagnostic criteria
  • Screening for conditions that commonly occur alongside it
  • An individualised treatment plan
  • A written summary for you and, with consent, your GP

£550

60 min

Book now
Understanding PTSD

What is post-traumatic stress disorder?

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition caused by very stressful, frightening or distressing events, whether you went through them yourself, witnessed them, or they happened to someone close to you. Distress after a traumatic event often fades with time. PTSD is when it does not: when it persists, disrupts daily life and causes real distress.

People with PTSD often relive what happened through flashbacks and nightmares, feel constantly on guard, and go to great lengths to avoid reminders. Symptoms usually start within six months of the event, but they can appear years later. PTSD is a recognised response to an overwhelming experience, not a sign of weakness.

An adult sitting alone on a garden bench, seen from behind.
Recognising PTSD

Reliving and avoiding

PTSD affects people differently. Common experiences include:

  • Flashbacks, as if it is happening again
  • Nightmares
  • Intrusive memories or images
  • Distress at reminders
  • Avoiding people, places or conversations
  • Gaps in memory
  • Feeling detached or numb

Feeling on edge, and changes in mood

Other common symptoms include:

  • Always being on guard
  • Being easily startled
  • Irritability or anger
  • Difficulty sleeping
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Guilt, shame or self-blame
  • Losing interest in things
Complex PTSD

When trauma was repeated or prolonged

Some people develop complex PTSD after trauma that went on for a long time or happened again and again, often where escape felt impossible, such as ongoing abuse in childhood or in a relationship. Alongside the symptoms of PTSD, it can bring a deeply negative view of yourself, great difficulty managing emotions, and difficulty in relationships.

Recognising complex PTSD matters, because treatment usually takes longer and works in stages: first building stability and safety, then trauma-focused therapy, then rebuilding everyday life.

Causes

What causes PTSD?

Any event a person experiences as traumatic can lead to PTSD. That includes accidents, assault, childhood or domestic abuse, a stay in intensive care, a difficult birth or the loss of a baby, war and disasters. Some jobs carry more exposure, such as the emergency services, healthcare and the armed forces.

It is not fully understood why some people develop PTSD and others do not, but the risk is higher after repeated trauma or trauma earlier in life, and after events that were sudden, prolonged, inescapable or caused deliberately by other people. Good support afterwards lowers it.

Our approach

Your assessment, at your pace

We know that talking about trauma can be hard. The assessment is paced by you. You do not have to describe what happened in any more detail than you choose to give, and if part of the conversation becomes too much, you can say so and we will slow down.

The focus is on how you are now: your symptoms, how they are affecting your life, and what you want to change.

Next step

When should you seek an assessment?

You may benefit from a specialist assessment if:

  • Memories of a traumatic event keep intruding through flashbacks or nightmares.
  • You are avoiding people, places or conversations that remind you of it.
  • You feel constantly on edge, or you are struggling to sleep.
  • It is more than a month since the event and things are not easing.
  • It is affecting your work, your relationships or your sense of who you are.
  • You are using alcohol or drugs to cope.
The assessment

What the assessment covers

Your Consultant Psychiatrist carries out a comprehensive clinical assessment, which includes:

  • How you are now: your symptoms and how they are affecting daily life
  • Structured assessment against recognised diagnostic criteria
  • Only as much about what happened as you choose to share
  • Screening for conditions that commonly occur alongside PTSD, such as depression
  • Your sleep, your physical health, and any alcohol or drug use
  • A careful assessment of risk and safety
  • An individualised treatment plan
  • A written summary for you and, with consent, your GP
How it works

What to expect

From booking to a plan you have agreed to.

  1. Book your assessment

    Choose online or in person and pick a time that suits you.

  2. Before you come

    Questionnaires

    We send short questionnaires in advance, including a standard questionnaire about trauma symptoms, so the appointment is spent on you rather than on paperwork.

  3. 60 minutes

    Your assessment

    A structured conversation with a Consultant Psychiatrist about how you are now, paced by you.

  4. Your plan and summary

    A diagnosis where one applies, a treatment plan agreed with you, and a written summary for you and, with your consent, your GP.

  5. Follow-up and review

    Treatment is reviewed as it goes, and the plan is changed where it is not helping.

Treatment

How PTSD is treated

Trauma-focused psychological therapy is the main treatment for PTSD. Which approach suits you, and where it is provided, is agreed with you at the end of your assessment.

Trauma-focused therapy

Trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy and eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) are the therapies national guidance recommends first. Both help you process the memory so it becomes less distressing.

Help with sleep and other symptoms

Alongside trauma-focused therapy, other talking therapies can help with specific difficulties, such as poor sleep.

Medical treatment and review

Medication is not the first treatment for PTSD. Where it is clinically appropriate, it is discussed with you, started carefully and reviewed at agreed intervals.

Not an emergency service

This assessment is a private clinical service and is not an emergency service. If you are in immediate danger or cannot keep yourself safe, call 999 or go to your nearest A&E. For urgent help that is not an emergency, contact your GP or call 111 and choose the mental health option. Samaritans can be reached at any time on 116 123.

Book an assessment

Take the first step, at your own pace

An assessment with a Consultant Psychiatrist is paced by you, and ends with a plan agreed with you.

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