Just wondered if anyone with PTSD/Complex PTSD fancied a chat?

[pepsiandshirley]

I've accepted I'min this for the longish haul, have a great therapist, get out and do plenty of exercise, spend time in green spaces, stay positive etc etc.

But I'd just love to speak to someone/anyone else who understands what a bitch trauma is (any kind, whatever the cause - trauma is trauma!)

integraleyemovementtherapy.com/ptsd-program/

integraleyemovementtherapy.com/differences-between-emdr-and-iemt/

Also just found this about the differences between EMDR and EMI / IEMT

Morning everyone, I'm glad we've found each other.

Re: minimising, I think it's very c

Oops, very common indeed and part of our protective mechanism.

I tell myself my abuse didn't matter as it was 'only' from a sibling, that the rape wasn't significant because it wasn't a stranger and was someone I had already once slept with consensually.

We tell ourselves all sorts of things to keep ourselves safe. Trauma is trauma and none of us - not a single one of us - would choose to be in this position living with these symptoms.

Guinefort I'm so sorry to hear about your DH

Hope everyone is ok this evening x

Hi pepsi,

Had some news today thats knocked me for 6, can't expand on that without it being identifiable. Not PTSD related but there we go. How are you?

So sorry to hear that nolonger, I hope you are ok today.

I'm doing alright today, thank you. Got this week off so trying to get some reading done while I have some peace and quiet as DH has taken the dc swimming.

Thats good DH is working so my plan is to catch up on housework today. I'm reading a good book at the moment too. Might go for a swim myself if I can motivate myself. I'm ok today thanks.

Morning. Was browning this thread in the early hours of this morning as I could sleep and couldn't shut off my brain.

I was diagnosed with PTSD about 15 years ago after years of childhood abuse (sexual and psychological). What's the difference between PTSD and CPTSD?

I'm starting therapy again soon as I've found as my kids get to the age that I was when the abuse started it's all becoming a lot more difficult.

Also thanks for the link of emotional flashbacks, that's exactly what I'm having at the moment. Never knew what they were. I find I can suddenly be hit by this big wall of emotion and it feels awful and really overwhelming and I didn't know what they were.

The more I read about ptsd the more I wonder if this is where my anxieties are rooted but I'm not sure. An abusive first relationship, a childhood filled with instances where I was effectively bullied excluded or ridiculed, a man giving me magic mushrooms telling me they'd make me feel pissed (cue 6hrs of hell), and a whole lot more. End that with finding my husband of a year on dating sites and being involved in a car accident and my anxiety is out of control. Might be worth looking at.

Hi I have complex PTSD following the traumatic birth of my son at 26 weeks following a car crash, my second son was born at 24 weeks. It's really terrifying the amount of trauma you learn to rationalise to get through the day.
I had therapy, mine manifests itself as flashbacks and panic attacks, I get trapped in the moment, even though the moment isn't there. I am better at recognising my triggers these days but sometimes it still catches me unawares. I'm sorry there are so many others in the same boat :(

Just checking in to say hello and to say that C-PTSD shares many symptoms with BPD
I've noticed that, my best friend has BPD and it's scary how similar our conditions actually are, particularly surrounding intense emotions.

Am sending to you all today.

Hello. I've got C-PTSD. I was diagnosed with BPD in my early 20s, but definitely don't fill those criteria these days (nothing is intensive for me, my relationships are very stable etc), whereas classic PTSD symptoms have become more obvious.

My main issue seems to be dissociation.

Hello all,

Winging, to answer your question re CPTSD and PTSD...

Complex PTSD comes from an ongoing situation from which you can't escape and the threat of repeat victimisation is ongoing and attacks continue to happen - sorry to hear of your childhood abuse. Childhood sexual abuse is a classic cause of CPTD, because you are trapped and helpless and cannot escape from further abuse.

Classic PTSD refers to a single incident - so for me this might be my traumatic birth. A one off even with a fear or actuality or serious injury or death, or something that leaves you feeling terrified, horrified or helpless (other examples could be a car crash, witnessing a suicide, a terror attack etc - anything outside of 'normal' range of experience).

CPTSD is often referred to as developmental trauma if it occurs in childhood, as it has a deep effect on the developing brain and can therefore interrupt our development and sense of self.

I believe that single incident PTSD is considered easier to treat - having come out of the other side of therapy for a single incident trauma in my teens I can confirm that the process was much less 'messy' than I am finding with my CPTSD. The single incident had a beginning, a middle and an end that I could revisit and walk through.

The childhood stuff is a foggy mess of flashbacks, thoughts, feelings, self-doubt, abuse memories, emotional neglect all interspersed with the happy and joyful things that also went on in childhood for me and I find it much harder to get a handle on all of that. Not least because I was a dissociation ninja and managed to put the abuse to one side in my mind when I was growing up, so what I remember is so sparse as to be almost impossible to decipher.

All that said, I am as optimistic about getting through CPTSD as I was about my single incident trauma, even though that felt overwhelming at times.

Hi Joto, it definitely sounds as though you might benefit from some kind of support to investigate a possibility that your anxiety might be linked to trauma. Going by this thread the NHS response seems quite mixed, but sounds as though it would be worth seeing your GP - could you afford private therapy if the NHS can't help?

Hi Mama,

I'm sorry to hear of your diagnosis. I can't imagine the trauma of another such early birth after having already been through what you did with your first.

Glad you are aware of your triggers - has your therapy finished now?

Sailaway and prozac that's really interesting about PTSD manifesting in a similar way to BPD.

@pepsi thanks for the explanation, I can really relate to what you say about your childhood stuff.

I describe as a bit tangled mess with so many conflicting emotions.

Am still reading this and am very grateful to you all for posting your experiences. Have so many questions, but as usual my physical health prevents me from joining in as much as I want to.

Once I am a little better, I will return and try and unravel my head on here. Although what's in my head (C-PTSD) may be interfering with my physical health/recovery? Stuck in a vicious cycle maybe?

I have no idea how many times I've attempted to write something now, I struggle greatly with seeing things written down most of the time, all becomes a bit too real for me most of the time

So I'm just going to say thank you for keeping this thread going as it is really helping me greatly, and once I'm on a bit less of a rollercoaster will be back a bit more to chat.

I also think that it is not possible to 'recover'from C-PTSD because it is a developmental disorder caused when children's brains are immature. One simply learns to adapt. BPD can also be caused by the same recurring trauma and for some people but not all, they are co-morbid. They are for me, but I see not for others, so that's interesting.

I've been diagnosed with GAD. I've had panic attacks since the end of my degree (which I came out of thinking WW3 was imminent and that it's all deliberate - which made me look closer at WW2 which sucked for my family). Generational PTSD from military service on my dad's side too. Not sure how I could help but you are not alone.

mimi talking of generational PTSD, you have reminded me of something I read on wiki about Genetic Memory:

"Neuroscientific research on mice suggests that some experiences can influence subsequent generations. In a study,[2][3] mice trained to fear a specific smell passed on their trained aversion to their descendants, which were then extremely sensitive and fearful of the same smell, even though they had never encountered it, nor been trained to fear it.

Changes in brain structure were also found. The researchers concluded that "[t]he experiences of a parent, even before conceiving, markedly influence both structure and function in the nervous system of subsequent generations.[4]

Scientists speculate that similar genetic mechanisms could be linked with phobias, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorders, as well as other neuropsychiatric disorders, in humans."

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_memory_(psychology)

Actually I think I first read this on MN .

If this is true, I am in deep trouble! . I expect most of us are products of parents who were raised by the war generation. In my genealogy, I have also uncovered masses of mental illness, suicides and psychiatric hospital stays. Both sides.

Does anyone think you can be born 'sensitive'? I think I always struggled with my emotional intelligence and then this was compounded by an unexpected series of 'traumas' throughout my life, leading up to possible C-PTSD. (My siblings are affected too).

I am very interested in the discussion on this thread. During my internet research days, I have come across GAD and was even seeing similarities with BPD. With my history though, C-PTSD does seem to 'fit'.

I do not have a firm diagnosis and I am a little wary of taking the steps to an assessment. I think I have C-PTSD about having C-PTSD et al . I might have an underlying fear about not wanting to end up in mental health units, such as those I was visiting as a small child . I do think I have to unravel it though. Might have to start soon.......

Phew, this was a bit deep for for my first post this morning, sorry!

Hey Wood, I'm interested in the epigenetic side of things, too, though I must say I find myself not wanting to believe that it could be a possibility because I hate the idea of passing trauma down to my DC

I think I recall reading that some of the epigenetics stuff was discovered via a study of holocaust survivors and the study was later found to be not that robust. Apologies I can't be more specific, might be worth googling. As I say, though, I am deeply biased against wanting to believe the idea of passing any of this on to my DC (as we all are).