CATHY BROWN
Cathy Brown was adopted at an early age and experienced many of the emotional challenges that can come with being placed in an orphanage and later growing up within a family that was not biologically her own — feelings of not belonging, isolation, low self-worth, and a deep lack of confidence.
As a teenager, Cathy entered an abusive relationship which resulted in her experiencing violence, coercion, and rape. These experiences profoundly affected how she saw herself and led to long-term struggles with anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and emotional trauma. Cathy understands first-hand the lasting psychological impact abuse and mistreatment can have on women and young people, particularly the way trauma can erode confidence, identity, trust, and self-belief.
At the age of 22, Cathy discovered kickboxing as a way to rebuild confidence and regain some sense of control over her life. What she found was not simply a sport, but a powerful emotional release. Through movement, discipline, and physical training, she began releasing anger, fear, anxiety, and emotional pain she had carried for years. The empowerment she experienced did not come from learning to fight, but from reconnecting with herself physically and emotionally, rebuilding confidence, and finding the strength to break the silence around what had happened to her.
Driven by this transformation, Cathy eventually left her career as a forensic photographer to pursue combat sports professionally. Between 1992 and 1996, she competed in over 25 kickboxing competitions and won two British titles before moving into professional boxing during the late 1990s — a period when women’s boxing faced significant resistance and very little support within the industry.
Cathy encountered continual barriers from promoters, sponsors, gyms, and even fitness professionals, but the opposition only strengthened her determination to help pave the way for women within a deeply male-dominated sport. Over the next decade, she became one of the pioneering women in British boxing, winning both the British Boxing Board of Control English title and the WBF European title, while rising to become ranked Number 3 in the world between 2002 and 2007.
In 2007, Cathy was forced to retire from professional boxing due to neural damage in her neck. The loss of boxing had a profound emotional impact. Much of the mental strength, identity, confidence, and emotional stability she had rebuilt through years of training and competition suddenly felt lost again, triggering another period of depression and emotional struggle.
Determined to better understand the relationship between trauma, mindset, emotional wellbeing, and resilience, Cathy went on to study sport psychology and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). She became a personal trainer and coach, eventually becoming known by many as “The Soul Trainer” because of her unique ability to combine physical training with emotional understanding, confidence building, and mindset work.
Today, Cathy brings over 30 years of combat sports experience together with her studies in psychology, CBT, emotional wellbeing, and trauma-informed coaching. Through HeadGuard and Boxology, she now works to support children, young people, women, and vulnerable communities affected by trauma, violence, exploitation, displacement, and adversity — using boxing, movement, mindfulness, education, and community support as tools for empowerment, resilience, healing, and hope.