Stories of human trafficking, surviving violence, building a family business and navigating women’s health will take centre stage in Christchurch this month when Real Women Raw Stories returns for another powerful evening.

The event brings together women prepared to speak openly about some of the most difficult periods of their lives, with organiser Moira Murphy saying the focus is ultimately on hope rather than hardship.

“Every year, Real Women Raw Stories brings different women with different versions of their life, some of the hard challenges that they have faced and overcome, and they come and share their powerful stories with the audience.”

This year’s programme features four presentations from five women, covering vastly different experiences.

Sarah Scott Webb will speak about what more than 20 years working against human trafficking and exploitation has taught her.

Scott Webb has worked across 18 countries, trained frontline workers and spoken at the United Nations about human trafficking and survivor responses.

Her presentation, From Darkness to Hope, will examine what she has learned about courage and humanity while working in an area Murphy acknowledged could be confronting.

Keela Atkinson Cranwell and her mother Tamara Kirwan will share the highs and lows of developing their family business, Mauriora Kombucha.

Another deeply personal story will come from Simonne Butler, who survived a violent attack that resulted in both of her hands requiring reattachment surgery.

Butler later wrote about her experiences and recovery and has hosted the domestic violence series Breaking Silence.

Her Christchurch presentation will focus on violence, healing and reclaiming her life.

Women’s health will also feature, with Christchurch based author and women’s health practitioner Lara Briden discussing hormones, symptoms and the way women understand changes within their bodies.

Murphy said selecting speakers was one of the most challenging parts of organising the event.

She deliberately looked for women who had reached a point where they could reflect on what they had experienced while offering hope to others.

“I try and focus on women who are far enough along through their journey that whilst they’ve been through hard, they really have come out the other side.”

“It’s about inspiring other people to realise that if they find themselves in hard times, that there are better days ahead.”

Murphy said one of the most interesting aspects of the event was that audiences did not always connect most strongly with the story they originally came to hear.

“Often the stories that end up resonating with people are different to the ones that they were originally attracted to the event by.”

Real Women Raw Stories grew from Murphy’s desire to create a place where difficult experiences could be spoken about openly.

Murphy has previously said part of the inspiration came from wanting to help her mother, who had been living with the effects of past trauma.

She was able to tell her mother before she died that the event had been created with her in mind and would continue as part of her legacy.

What began as an event where Murphy approached potential speakers herself has also changed as its profile has grown.

“I think people are now finding me, which is amazing.”

“Women now come up to me and go, ‘I know someone that should do this’, or they put their friends forward.”

Murphy said the weeks following each event often brought conversations with women interested in sharing their own experiences in future years.

While some of the subjects explored on stage are serious, Murphy said Real Women Raw Stories was never intended to leave people feeling overwhelmed.

Instead, she wanted audience members to leave knowing difficult experiences were far more common than they might realise.

“I think an important message is that we’re not alone.”

“Everyone goes through hard things, but we may not talk about it. So I want people to feel understood and feel seen.”

She said listening could also change the way people responded to friends or relatives experiencing something they had never personally faced.

“Maybe some of the stories don’t resonate with them, but maybe it helps them have a bit more understanding for other people in their life and their friends or their family that may be going through difficult times as well.”

Despite its name, the event is not restricted to women.

Murphy said the number of men attending had increased over the years.

“They always get a lot out of it as well, so they are more than welcome.”

Real Women Raw Stories will be held at McFadden’s Centre in St Albans on Friday 16 October from 7pm until 10pm.

Tickets and further information are available through the Real Women Raw Stories website.