Posted on: 18 October 2022
The following was written by Dr Sian Williams after she was welcomed into CNWL's CAST team.
_________________
Some of my TV colleagues raised an eyebrow when I said I was stepping away from life as a daily news anchor to join an NHS team, helping the emergency services with trauma. But my interest in how we respond to difficult and challenging events had begun nearly two decades earlier, when I trained as a trauma assessor at the BBC.
I’d just returned from the epicentre of an earthquake in Pakistan, which had killed nearly ninety thousand people. A year before, I
’d reported from the Asian tsunami where more than two hundred thousand died. In the many years covering natural disasters, tragedies and terror attacks, I’ve watched how they take their toll on those at the centre, but also how they can affect those sent to witness, or help.
Wanting to know more about how traumatic experiences affect the brain and body, I completed an MSc, conducted research on journalists and PTSD and published a book on recovery after trauma. I also completed a Professional Doctorate in Counselling Psychology, working with cancer patients at Imperial NHS Trust and Maggie’s Cancer Centre, spent time with families in complex trauma in Kent and helped students with mental health issues like acute stress and depression at King’s College London.
I was still the news anchor for Channel 5, starting work early at the placements, before scripting and reading the news in the afternoon. I’d do my research, into cancer and self-compassion, and assignments in the evening and at weekends.
Last year, I qualified and became a Chartered Psychologist. I continue to help journalists and work privately, but when I saw an advert for a job with CAST (Centre for Anxiety, Stress and Trauma), I knew I wanted to apply. Most of my work has been ar
ound witnessing trauma and helping others deal with it, but my son, brother, mother and grandparents all worked for the NHS and that commitment to public service runs in the family too.
Once I’d got through the interview process and fifteen mandatory training courses, I was welcomed onto the team in the summer. I’m still relatively new, but am proud to be part of a service which offers vital help to the fire brigade and police, helping staff manage the impact of traumatic events. That, and the important work CAST does with refugees, is long-lasting and profound.
We all have lots of roles and identities. I am a psychologist and am also still a broadcaster, hosting BBC Radio 4’s ‘Life Changing’ series and ‘Mind Matters with Dr Sian’ on Channel 5. Occasionally, clients will make the connection. Yes, the woman on the telly or radio is the same one that sits across the room, but one is public, the other is very private. And as someone said recently ‘I don’t care who you are. If you’re helping, that’s all that matters.’