PTSD and Trauma recovery

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by apocalipstic

I want to make clear that I statrted the thread for anyone who wanted to duscuss coping with PTSD or trauma. I don't think you have to have an official diagnosis to know you have experienced trauma and that it affects your life in many ways.

Jet, sorry if you feel you have wasted you time, I think your posts and discussion have been useful, educational and supportive, and I thought it sounded like you felt supported too.

I think it is important to serve as a place where people who are searching for answers can find out they are not alone. No official diagnosis needed.

In my life I am finding that sometimes the tests for official diagnosis make my symptoms way worse than they were in the first place.

Something I was trying to get across is that this is a support thread for a complex syndrome that really does affect a lot of people. One of the best ways for people to get support is through this kind of forum. So, I just feel that flip remarks are not only rude, but not helpful and makes this space unsafe. And that is sad because this thread is serving a good purpose.

I will be honest, even with a clinical license and a Ph.D, my experience with PTSD is a personal journey. How and why it came into my life has nothing to do with my professional life. When I come into a thread like this, I am doing so as just a person seeking mutual support and wanting to give back to people. And as just a person, I need to feel safe, too.

I just find it very disturbing and down right rude and without one ounce of empathy for someone to question anyone's diagnostic status or announce wasting one's time just because they feel the thread may not be the right one for them. This is dismissive and a put down to other members.

I would love to interact on the thread because I have found that just getting what other people experience is helpful to me. It feels like I am not alone and I can get ideas about coping. My background helps in some ways, but, just other people with PTSD have always been the best medicine for me.

I am not certain about my feeling safe here at this point because of this interaction. So, I'll just check back from time to time and see how it feels. Everyone needs to feel safe in support threads. It is true that by virtue of being on-line, this is a publicforum and that always has its hazards, but, I don't think it is too much to ask for simple courtesy within a specific community such as this one. It is a very diverse community with many experiences and skills and people that care about each other.

I am sorry if I disrupted things for others. I felt I owed you all an explanation out of respect for your participation and to you as the OP.

[Apocalipstic]

Originally Posted by AtLastHome

Something I was trying to get across is that this is a support thread for a complex syndrome that really does affect a lot of people. One of the best ways for people to get support is through this kind of forum. So, I just feel that flip remarks are not only rude, but not helpful and makes this space unsafe. And that is sad because this thread is serving a good purpose.

I will be honest, even with a clinical license and a Ph.D, my experience with PTSD is a personal journey. How and why it came into my life has nothing to do with my professional life. When I come into a thread like this, I am doing so as just a person seeking mutual support and wanting to give back to people. And as just a person, I need to feel safe, too.

I just find it very disturbing and down right rude and without one ounce of empathy for someone to question anyone's diagnostic status or announce wasting one's time just because they feel the thread may not be the right one for them. This is dismissive and a put down to other members.

I would love to interact on the thread because I have found that just getting what other people experience is helpful to me. It feels like I am not alone and I can get ideas about coping. My background helps in some ways, but, just other people with PTSD have always been the best medicine for me.

I am not certain about my feeling safe here at this point because of this interaction. So, I'll just check back from time to time and see how it feels. Everyone needs to feel safe in support threads. It is true that by virtue of being on-line, this is a publicforum and that always has its hazards, but, I don't think it is too much to ask for simple courtesy within a specific community such as this one. It is a very diverse community with many experiences and skills and people that care about each other.

I am sorry if I disrupted things for others. I felt I owed you all an explanation out of respect for your participation and to you as the OP.

I was not disgreeing with you, we just deal differently.

I don't know what Jet is going through right now, so I choose to explain what actually I think the thread is about and go on from there.

Symptoms of PTSD include anger and outbursts and controlling behavior, so to expect no one to ever show symptoms is unrealistic in a ptsd thread. I think we can choose to engage and be upset, or we can explain why we disagree and let it go. Which is also unrealistic in a PTSD thread.

Do I with people would never say hurtful things? yes. Is this realistic? no.

So I say we move on to encouraging each other and working really hard to de-escalate anger when we can.

[Soft*Silver]

ever see an obediant plant? (also known as a sensitive plant)

You touch it and it curls inward?

I think that has happened to two of our folks here...

its ok to curl inward

eventually the plant unfolds when it no longer feels the threat...

[JustBeingMe]

today my anxiety is high, not sure why it's picked today, I can't think of anything that may have triggered my shudder responses either today. My ptsd is giving me night terrros, tons of them, and keeping me from sleeping well at night. I even take anxiety medication and ambien to help me sleep. I still have the night terrors waking me up seems like every hour on the hour. All I can do is go outside when I wake up, smoke a cig, and try to let it go. I don't know wtf else to do to get some actual good nights sleep anymore. I hope the rest of you in this thread is sleeping much better than I and having better days. I don't always come in a post anything here, but when I do, it's because I need to know there are others out there like me dealing with their own issues and know I am not alone.
Thanks for the thread and the support from all of you.

[Apocalipstic]

Originally Posted by JustBeingMe

today my anxiety is high, not sure why it's picked today, I can't think of anything that may have triggered my shudder responses either today. My ptsd is giving me night terrros, tons of them, and keeping me from sleeping well at night. I even take anxiety medication and ambien to help me sleep. I still have the night terrors waking me up seems like every hour on the hour. All I can do is go outside when I wake up, smoke a cig, and try to let it go. I don't know wtf else to do to get some actual good nights sleep anymore. I hope the rest of you in this thread is sleeping much better than I and having better days. I don't always come in a post anything here, but when I do, it's because I need to know there are others out there like me dealing with their own issues and know I am not alone.
Thanks for the thread and the support from all of you.

I have been having probelms sleeping too lately, not sure where you live, but could it be the heat?

Sometimes I get a cool clothe and put it on the back on my neck and it helps.

Hopefully this week will be better. Last week was a very anxious one. I was trying to think about some big issues I could not grasp and I had a wedding to go to this weekend I was DREADING.

I made it ok, but did end up halfway through the reception reading in my G/Fs parent's room after things got really loud.

I hope this week brings sleep and calm to all of us!

xoxoxoxoxoxo

[Soft*Silver]

I am NOT sleeping well. I took 2 tylenol PMs last night hoping to nod off, but at 3AM I took an a half an ambian too. At 5 I finally fell asleep and at 630, woke up gagging...my hiatal hernia and acid reflux was flaring. I also worked hard yesterday in the garden so my muscles were sore.

My schedule is all off and I am going to have to fix it by staying up 24 hours and getting back into a normal sleep schedule...and laying off caffeine after 5PM. I bought green tea which is high in caffeine. And I have been off caffeine for weeks now...

[Apocalipstic]

Maybe there is something in the air, I am really achy and not sleeping too. UGH.

I stop caffeine usually at 2pm, if I have it later it can mess with my sleep too, especially iced tea for some strange reason.

I hope you sleep well tonight! Sleep makes everything better.