Rachel Riley now reported to have got PTSD from Strictly too

[chachacharcoal]

Both the Daily Mail and the Mirror are now reporting that Rachel Riley also claims to have developed PTSD after doing Strictly. She went on to marry her partner though so he doesn't seem to have been the problem. One of the articles is also claiming she says that many of the other former contestants she's spoken to since doing the show have shared similar experiences. I was surprised by some of the vitriol Amanda Abington got for saying similar but I do realise most people have a fairly basic understanding of trauma. Anyone else very interested in this story?

Faye Tozer is also being reported to have had a negative experience with Giovanni. But the word trauma hasn't been used in that story as far as I'm aware.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13262881/Rachel-riley-strictly-come-dancing-ptsd-amanda-abbington-exit.html

https://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/rachel-riley-reveals-bbc-strictly-32493863

DSM 5

Criterion A: stressor (one required)

The person was exposed to: death, threatened death, actual or threatened serious injury, or actual or threatened sexual violence, in the following way(s):

• Direct exposure
• Witnessing the trauma
• Learning that a relative or close friend was exposed to a trauma
• Indirect exposure to aversive details of the trauma, usually in the course of professional duties (e.g., first responders, medics)

That's single incident trauma.

Complex CPTSD hasn't been included in the DSMV (earlier iterations of the DSM included homosexuality as a mental disorder, just for clarity of understanding the DSM) but it's generally agreed that a repeatedly stressful situation from which you cannot escape - such as domestic violence, CSA, workplace bullying can lead to PTSD symptoms.

I wouldn't listen to anything that attention seeker has to say.

Criterion A for PTSD is: Exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury or sexual violence. Unless any of that happened (which I doubt), she and the others don't have PTSD.

'PTSD symptoms' is not PTSD. The DSM-5-TR criteria is very clear on what sort of trauma is required for an actual PTSD diagnosis. 'PTSD symptoms' might mean a diagnosis of adjustment disorder etc. i.e. symptoms reactive to a stressor. Bottom line: it's not PTSD.

That second article says she was diagnosed with, and treated for, a disorder.

I can’t imagine having the arrogance to assume I knew enough to state confidently that someone I’ve never met was mis-diagnosed then blame and criticise them for their actions
prior to diagnosis.

Some disgusting behaviour here.

I was quite surprised at Faye Tozer. Her career received a major leg-up as a result of Strictly, and much of that was down to the fantastic choreography Govanni put together and the way he taught her. I realise she was a good dancer anyway, but some of those dances were near-iconic and I'm not sure she would have achieved as much with other professionals.

Yeah, rach - I got my ptsd from being misdiagnosed for three months before find out out that I had pancreatic cancer with a one year old and a 3 week old at home.

22 rounds of chemo and a whipples procedure as well as the sheer fear of the what if really solidified the trauma.

It was the femoral artery bleed at home that was the real kicker, though.

Please, tell me how traumatic working on strictly is? All that money and the husband you got out of it sounds harrowing...

Sick of people throwing the phrase ptsd around Willy nilly. She had a tough time on a tv show that requires intense practice and exercise. She was well renumerated for this. No more to it than that.

She wasn't a good dancer at all, very stiff. The PTSD was probably because she couldn't cope with not being very good!

Complex PTSD develops when someone has experienced Criterion A events over a period of time, when the trauma is interpersonal and feels inescapable. It’s incredibly debilitating.

Lots of situations can give PTSD type symptoms because PTSD is a stress disorder, so there’s a lot of cross over in symptomology but the diagnostic criteria is quite clear. It would be interesting to know how/who diagnosed given psychotherapists aren’t actually qualified to make a diagnosis.

She literally stated this herself:

"I needed cognitive behavioural therapy after competing in 2013 and developed post-traumatic stress disorder".

Wow I am completely out the loop with this. Some wild claims

I would have thought that professional actors & singers / dancers would know the drill with a show like Strictly. Giovanni said it was his job to make the show (therefore his partner / routine) work every Saturday night. I’m sure he’s under huge pressure from producers. Surely those in the game understand?

Jellycatspyjamas - which criteria are you using for CPTSD? Aren't there several? The medical community are still reaching a consensus (as they are for PTSD itself - hasn't cancer only recently been added as a permitted cause?)

I'm sure they did all understand hence why all but Amanda stuck it out to the end even if many are now saying they've been damaged by the experience. I'm sure Amanda understood too but no amount of understanding can prevent you from developing trauma - it's an involuntary process.

As said before, Rachel Riley has spoken out before. It's all just conjecture until someone speaks out and says what really happened, which I am sure will happen in time. Unless they are tied in to non-disclosure agreements as part of their contracts.

I don't understand. What trauma was Rachel Riley subjected to when doing SCD?

This. Piss off with the trauma of being in a dance show!
Dh was in Afghan and it was fucking traumatic fighting isis. Oh no wait, flouncing about for TV likes clearly harder than ieds, losing colleagues and limbs

People's bodies and brains behave differently to each other.
One person could go to war and murder children and be happy doing it, another might kill themselves even before they put the uniform on to avoid the personal trauma.
Just like some people are physically stronger than others, or more or least susceptible to disease or dying of Covid.

I don't really understand why people can't understand this.

www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/complex/

She quite clearly does not meet diagnostic criteria for classical PTSD due to the nature of the trauma but might do for cPTSD at a push. ICD 11 (although not DSM 5) recognises cPTSD.

Complex PTSD is a controversial diagnosis but is recognised by psychologists and psychiatrists to exist. It was originally envisaged in the context of childhood sexual abuse and domestic violence so that level of traumatic event.

It does piss me off the level of diagnostic creep that is happening with this now vs the original definition and it is linked to the boom in private therapists offering EMDR therapy for trauma.

Being unable to escape is one of the key features. Quite clearly you can quit SCD at any time as evidenced by the many people who have done so. I personally find it insulting that being in a TV game show is being equated to the damage suffered by survivors of domestic abuse and CSA.

Rachel was so traumatised that she married her dance partner? Seriously?!

I can imagine that it could be particularly difficult with SCD because you’re basically in constant physical contact, in a subordinate relationship. You can’t remove yourself from it without doing what Amanda did - and you can see the response she’s had.

Quite clearly you can quit SCD at any time as evidenced by the many people who have done so.

I doubt it’s a quick or easy decision based on the professional and personal impact. Looking at how Amanda has been publicly treated - looking at how she’s spoken about on these threads - it would be a complex decision while you’re also within the situation and no chance of downtime to consider your options. If you’re having a hard time with your dance partner you’re literally pressed up against them for hours each day.