AIBU to wonder whether you ever fully get over abuse?

[TheOpalFox]

do you ever fully get over abuse. ?

i have met an amazing man and had therapy etc. but when he’s not here I sleep with the light on . And hate being downstairs on ny own??? I’d rather be upstairs ? Anyone else. 🤯

rejection sensitivity isn’t a diagnosis, and can occur in a a range of mental health conditions.

HSP isn’t a diagnosis; it’s an observed personality type.

this is the problem with all these diagnoses; they’re based on subjective observations. Diagnoses are very helpful and crucial but at the same time what is AS important is what happens next. What will help?

the government are looking at this via this review. The main conclusion was they’ve not been very good at the help bit (no shit Sherlock!)

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/69cbdb2369dd81b3f213c660/independent-review-into-mental-health-conditions-ADHD-and-autism-interim-report.pdf

This does all relate to trauma, as so many children and adults have PTSD with diagnosed conditions which complicates recovery. I’ve personally never fully recovered from mine (hence my interest.)

And I’m sorry this has gone off on a bit of a tangent

But wider conversations are good to have. And more quality research is needed.

Sorry I’m making loads of spelling and grammar errors as I’m rushing. (I should really learn not to mn when I am busy!)

Thanks for the reminder that highly sensitive personality and rejection sensitivity are not diagnosed conditions. I did not capitalise them because that was my understanding too. Afaik the first is a personality trait and the other is a common trait amongst those with ADHD. 😊

I agree that importance is in what happens next? How do we help this? I would think that even though on the surface in how a person reacts to a single situation the two may look alike, the thoughts, patterns and the means to help would be different?

They haven’t been very good at helping, I completely agree with this. Especially for school age children.

Yes it does relate to trauma. I read a report that neurodivergent children are more likely to experience parental and/or sibling abuse. More likely to be bullied. More likely to have an abusive partner. This higher risk of being a victim of abuse consequently means that PTSD is co-morbid with neurodivergence.

In addition, the standard victim support therapies don’t help people with neurodivergency, so they tend to get more severe PTSD and have worse long term outcomes. It’s only recently that trauma therapy has been enhanced to be adaptable to, well, the most common, almost stereotypical presentations of neurodivergent conditions.

Ha ha I’m the same. I’m forever editing typos or my brain goes faster than I type so sometimes I have sentences with missing words. No worries.

This.

I have many therapy sessions and medication over the years.

But because it started in childhood it so deep rooted and part of my brain and nervous system that I see my PTSD/trauma as something that I will never 'get over' but that I can at least manage with the tools and techniques I was given through therapy so that I no longer let it dominate and poison my life.

Re RSD:

https://x.com/naomicfisher/status/1756449386328953332?s=46&t=A2fpFNgDRyXF2d6ye97wEA

now NF has recently run what I felt was a good course on RSD but she did point out that it’s not really a diagnosis. Her suggestions still stood however and were very helpful and holistic.

It is behaviour that psychologists have recognised for a long time - which ways in which to handle it.

There are a few similar things that have evolved into what people think are official diagnoses via the internet. But they’re pseudoscience/ pseudo psychology. Not fully researched or evidenced. Another one is Gestalt Language Processing. It’s a fancy way of describing echolalia, but with an unevidenced programme that’s supposed to help. Speech therapists have always been very aware of echolalia and also how we can support language development in a child who uses echolalia.

This doesn’t negate the issues and experiences at all, all behaviour is communicating something - but it is important to be aware that there’s not the rigorous scientific background behind them, as there is with PTSD.

this is a longer explanation of the issue with RSD: https://x.com/naomicfisher/status/2053083211765371061?s=46&t=A2fpFNgDRyXF2d6ye97wEA