BREAK the silence.

That’s what Ardrossan woman Christine Smith decided to do after keeping her story of childhood sexual abuse to herself for years.

After raising more than £2,500 for Break the Silence – a charity which helps support adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse – the 54-year-old mother and grandmother has bravely come forward in order to give her backing to the charity which has helped her over the past two years.

Christine, who was born Christine McColgan, came up with the idea to do a 10 mile sponsored walk to help the charity, which is fully funded from voluntary donations.

She said: “I wanted to help raise funds, but more importantly awareness, and to give something back to Break the Silence.

“Despite there being a real need for these services they rely totally on donations with no government support.

“I wanted to put my story across to help encourage other female and male victims to contact Break the Silence.

“I want to break the silence on the subject that no-one likes to talk about, but we all know goes on.

“I was abused as a young child.

“I had my first realisation of this in my late 20s and lived with the guilt and shame of it, which led to me struggling with severe bouts of depression and other issues connected to abuse.

“Unfortunately, organisations like Break the Silence didn’t exist and I carried on living like this until I finally cried out for help.” Christine decided to contact Break the Silence after her GP gave her their contact number.

Two weeks later she found herself attending her first counselling session.

“Two and half years later I am strong and confident enough to speak out.

“It’s not been easy. The first step is the hardest, but if you’re willing to put in the hard work and talk about your experience, with the support of your counsellor, and in my case my husband, sons and close friends, you can stop being a victim and become a survivor.

“My next goal is to become a ‘thriver’ – I want to thrive in my life.

“I still attend counselling sessions, but now I can see a new beginning.” Susan Dickson, Christine’s counsellor from the Break the Silence, explained a bit about her work with the charity.

She said: “A high percentage of our referrals come from GPs and the NHS but we don’t receive any government funding.

“With all the media coverage over the last few years of historical child sex abuse, Break the Silence has seen an increase in calls from victims of abuse.

“No matter how long ago the abuse happened, victims have to live with the effects and it never goes away.

“In most cases the victim’s abuser still lives in the same area.

“It can be difficult and as Christine has shown, it’s been a real struggle at times and it took a lot of courage to speak out publicly about her abuse, but that’s testament to Christine and her hard work and determination.

“She is now a survivor.

“It can and will be difficult, but at Break the Silence we hope to help victims become survivors – it could be life changing.” Christine would like to thank Barclays Bank in Saltcoats for their donation, all her fellow walkers for their support, everyone who donated to her JustGiving page and, of course, everyone at Break the Silence for their continued support.

If you would like donate go to justgiving.com/christine-smith28.

Break the Silence is a specialist confidential service set up to support adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse and rape over the age of 16 years.

Referrals can be made through other agencies, self-referral, by email, drop-in or through a GP.

Appointments are open-ended giving the client the time and space to deal with their trauma in a safe, secure and trusting environment.

It is a unique service which has been delivering a range of support services in East Ayrshire since 2004 and in North Ayrshire since 2009.

Services include one-to-one counselling, focus group work, couple counselling, alternative therapies including reiki, support for partners and family members, art and craft groups, and they can deliver bespoke training packages to statutory, voluntary and other independent agencies.

They also offer telephone support to other front line staff who work with survivors on a daily basis.

Their main office is in Kilmarnock, however, they now operate from a range of outreach bases throughout East and North Ayrshire.

Volunteers play an important part in the running of Break the Silence and they will be having a volunteer recruitment drive later in the year.

CEO Alison Tait said: “Childhood sexual abuse is prevalent throughout all classes in society and not, as many think, specific to one group.

“CSA leaves survivors with a range of complex issues which have devastating effects on them, changing their lives forever.

“These can include depression, suicidal tendencies, self-harming behaviours, anger issues, drug and alcohol abuse, criminal behaviours, relationship difficulties, trust issues, lack of confidence and self-esteem, eating disorders etc.

“Support services are sparse throughout the country and, as with other charities, funding is an on-going problem.

“We have faced closure due to lack of funds several times over the years, however, we are now in the fortunate position of having Service Level Agreements with both East and North Ayrshire Councils. “This will secure employment and the services we offer for the next year.

“In the meantime, we continue to raise awareness of survivor issues by delivering training to various organisations and companies.” To contact Break the Silence go to breakthesilence.org.uk or phone 01563 559558.