What were they, and how did you find ways to feel hope, feel you could conquer it? How did you figure out a way to not identify that 'you' are bad/weak etc from trauma?
Yes.
Mine is not severe, but still enough to impact my life and relationships.
My primary symptoms: depression, overly reactive, overly defensive.
Have mostly recovered but am still prone to lapses.
I tend to be hypervigilent in crowds.
I don't experience the flash backs, dreams and sleep disturbance that others do.
(Well, sleep is an issue, but that's age, not PTSD.)
May 26, 2016 - Research shows it is the most effective type of counseling for PTSD. The VA is providing two forms of cognitive behavioral therapy to Veterans with PTSD: Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Prolonged Exposure (PE) therapy. To learn more about these types of therapy, see our fact sheets listed on the Treatment page.
There are other specialist sites (in all countries) on-line for rape, and for PTSD not associated with war experiences.
I chose the above because of its mention of Cognitive-Behavioural-Therapy and Prolongued Exposure (desensitisation) therapy. Both of these have been proven to have a high rate of success, and where they don't succeed completely, can still greatly reduce the level of suffering.
Exercise helps enormously. The key is finding a form that you enjoy.
Feel free to friend me and discuss it privately if you wish.
Nightmares. i got over it.
There's a list of symptoms here: https://www.adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/posttraumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/symptoms
I personally experienced most of them as a result of an event that happened when I was a teen. I never thought I was bad or weak for having them. I recognized them for what they were and knew that they were related to PTSD. Getting people in my life to recognize that's what they were was a different story. Some things, even little things, like a touch or a scent, or a song, can put your right back in it, like you're living through the event again and when you have those moments, it's pretty awful. Like I said, I understood what they were, but the people around me would make me feel bad about it, as if I had some control over it, or they'd twist it to complain about how it affected them.
Getting over it... that was a matter of facing it.
If you're dealing with this in real life, I'm glad to explain what my situation was and how I confronted it via PM, but not out here. Feel free to message me if you need support or suggestions.
Yes. I returned from Vietnam in 1972. Two weeks later, I went to a high school football game. At the end of the first quarter, a small cannon was fired, which I did not expect. I was sitting in the bleachers and I dove on top of the woman who was sitting in front of me. It was quite embarrassing. I had to leave. I actually did pretty well after that until seven years later, when I started having nightmares and night sweats. Group therapy at the Vet Center, along with some one on one counseling with a volunteer psychologist helped a lot.
I haven't been attacked nor served in any wars, so no.
Once. It surrounded a traumatic death I went through and my grief was not getting better. I had flashbacks and everything seem to set me off into crying spells. I couldn't eat, sleep, and had nightmares.
I went to a therapist that specialized in PTSD and this woman had me coping again within 6 weeks. The treatment was very intense, but I was amazed she could help me with something that I thought would ruin my life forever.
My best to anyone that has experienced this.
Glad you got through it. Thank you for your service.
Just as you described...all those little things that will set off and make you relive it. Glad you found your way through it and are willing to help others.
Thank you. My dad saw far worse during World War II.
Hart, thank you so much for your detailed reply. I also get hypervigilant in crowds or especially if someone is behind me :( i do it even in restaurants.... ugh. It makes the meal (sometimes ) not as enjoyable than if I didn't go on 'guard' of who is around me ... Ty for those links .. I will def. check them out. I just tried looking up complex trauma specialists today as well, and most of them do not accept my insurance.. :( It is something I need, and have put off for years b/c I felt like how could anyone understand what happened..and how it affected me ?? I felt even a therpaist would not understand. Have you found relief from symptoms? Was it through empathy and a self worth or over time with a therapist? If y ou'd like to reply in pm, no problem :) I just realized I should have put this into a Pm..ty again so much
I am sure he saw a lot.
I did ten years with a specialist in Family of Origin Therapy, which is a mix of many different styles and techniques. Wendy was highly qualified, including training in PTSD with St John of God in Sydney, one of our nation's top centres. She worked a lot with Vietnam and other veterans, but also with rape, accident victims and many other types of trauma.
I stayed for that time not just to deal with PTSD but also a lot of other family issues.
The PTSD treatment helped a lot in several ways. The CBT worked by repeating the story over and over under hypnosis, gradually desensitising myself to the specific events. It works on the unconscious without affecting one's empathy for the suffering of others or oneself. Wendy helped me develop good boundaries. She also helped me recognise when symptoms like hypervigilance were occurring and to deliberately calm myself with slow, deep breathing. Each time I did this I got a little better. Fortunately, I can still invoke the super-alertness very easily if a genuine need arises.
Gradually, I learned how to be my own therapist. I notice when I over-react. It's pretty clear when a reaction is inappropriate to what's happening in the present. But something about it, some common factor, is triggering my unconscious to react as if it was the event in the past,a time when as a child I had neither the power not the coping strategies to deal with what was happening - when the effects for me were overwhelming. Then by looking at what's really happening now, and through having developed better skills in communication and ways of relating, I can apologise for my over reaction, take some time to calm down, and come back to resolve the issue later.
A big help for me was learning Vipassana meditation. It develops the self-discipline of keeping my awareness thoroughly focused in the present moment or the task at hand (which might be remembering if I'm writing). It allows me to recognise much more quickly if I'm having a reaction so that I can catch myself before I do or say something stupid or hurtful. I'm not saying I've mastered this by any means - but I feel, and my husband agrees, that I'm many times better and easier to live with than I used to be.
The Vipassana also had a major effect in healing my depressions.
One other thing also helps against depression, and that is another form of self-discipline. Recognising when I'm having thoughts that lead to suicidal thinking - various forms of negative self-talk and exaggerated pessimistic expectations - often triggered by something as simple as being over-tired or a disappointment. Suicidal thinking actually causes depression and leads into a dangerous downward cycle of reinforcing the negative thoughts and emotions. It actually suppresses serotonin in the brain and leads to the changes in neurochemistry that initiate clinical depression.
The last part of healing (or maybe the first) is good self-care: moderate, healthy, fresh, home-cooked wholefoods, good exercise every day, and a regular routine for sleep.
It's not a simple or easy thing, and we can never completely eliminate all suffering. But with the right motivation, we can overcome and prevent all unnecessary suffering: that which is caused by our own minds. Thankfully, the path is very reliable. It gives its returns in direct proportion to the degree that we practise it.
He was wounded three times. The first time on Omaha Beach on D Day. The second time in a field hospital in France while he was recovering from the first. His third and last was during the Battle of the Bulge in Bastogne, Belgium. It was Christmas Eve, They never did take out all of the machine gun slugs from that.
Bravo for you. You've obviously learned a great deal about yourself and how to deal with various PTSD related issues. I owe you a beer if you ever visit Austin, Texas.
I second that.
Wow I'm so sorry :( I'm very glad your therapist madesuch great strides and change with you, that is wonderful *huggg.* I hope to find someone like that, b/c some days I feel no one will ever love me , I'll never find someone:( I've never dated, even at 34:/ It feels so so lonely to be the only one who has never had a true relationship amongst your friends. That the reason you feel so low is b/c you cannot convince your subconscious , that believes all the awful cruel words spewn at it for years, that it is UNtrue. That somewhere down deep I'm worthy. I need to believe it in a real, conscious level, like anyone else who loves and receives love from a bf, husband, etc. Ty so much for sharing your very tough experience with me.. was the therapy hard/invasive? Night peapod and ty.
I'd like to help but you need face to face with a local therapist. Best of luck though.
Thank you Kisses.. I'm so sorry you went through the things you did. What a strong guy and ty so MUCH for all your effort and service :) I think I do need that; face to face with someone who specializes in complex trauma, or PTSD.. my only therapist i had a few yrs. ago would stare at me, just be quiet, and offer one or two sentences to me at the end of session. :/ I don't think she understood even the depth of how I feel INHUMAN sometimes, that I don't feel i have a 'right' to joy, or love, or anything similar to that. I hope to find someone soon that can truly empathize or maybe help me ont o a new path.. ty Kisses.. *huggg
You are very kind Baybreeze. Thank-you for your words. That was many years ago, but one that taught me that none of us are immune.
I found this therapist through a local university that had student therapists doing their internship. I didn't even have to pay for the help. She was good because she wasn't jaded like a lot of therapists get after years in practice. She employed very modern techniques to get me to face all the emotions of my trauma. It wasn't just talk therapy.
I also am a big believer in support groups, even if it's online. You chat with people that have similar experiences and you realize you are not alone. That is half the pain of going through something simply horrible and having no one to talk to about it.
My very best to you. I hope you can connect with the right people and work through all your emotions. You seem like a very sensitive and caring individual that deserves to feel better.
Words of wisdom from PeaPod.
It has been a process for me. Initially I learned to get mean to protect myself. It got to the point where part of me had to demonize my abuser. I learned to hate too. I got counseling and during a group session I brought these feeling out and realized that while the abuse was real my abuser was a real person and not some demonic force. I have since found coping skill for the few times I have to deal with her. I draw the line on what type of behavior I will accept and am prepared to hang up or end the contact when the lines are crossed. Before I treated each encounter as a potential disaster and would tense up expecting the worst. The truth was some of my contacts with her were not like that. So I learned not to stress out every time her name popped up on my caller ID. I am still in control but have much less stress.
Wow same here PeaPod. I got on medication and was seeing a psychiatrist (several actually) and everyone kept telling me I needed counseling. It got real frustrating because a large part of the stress in my life was financial. They finally got me free counseling from an intern.
