PTSD

Cphillips · 29-03-2014, 09:12 PM

A few yrs ago, I had a bad experience of being mentally ill, I have bi polar and what happened was really a long story, but it left me with PTSD. If I try to explore even a bit of what happened to me it brings all those frightening things back and I get upset. I cant go there any more though I always get that feeling of wanting to make sense of what happened- now that I am not sick any more- but cant. It's too hard. Yet like typical PTSD, things trigger it when I am not even wanting to go back there. What things do people who suffer from it too do, to not feel upset every time?

Laura2.0 · 30-03-2014, 09:37 PM

When you are getting triggered by specific things it could be helpful to avoid those triggers.
If you aren't sure what triggers things, then you could write down what happened immediately before you were triggered including what you thought about.

The best way to explore things and getting better is to do therapy. Do you have a therapist or counsellor?

Morpheus · 31-03-2014, 09:42 AM

To avoid everything that triggers you can be extremely difficult and almost impossible. It can also be very limiting in life and it wont cure you or solve your problems. Id say therapy is your best option and maybe prn to cope with flashbacks etc when the occur. Findind out your triggers is important as well as challenging them but it needs to be in a controlled and safe enviroment hence why therapy is a great idea. It has to ve done slowlyband with someone who understands ptsd and the reactions it can cause. Starting to challenging triggers on your own can be very dangerous. Also talking through your experineces is important. Learning that they can no longer harm you and that you are not in danger. Memories can be difficult and they can upset you and can cause flashbacks but they cannot harm you and that is an important thing to realise when you have ptsd. That you do not have to be on guard all the time and though flashbacks are very distressing and uncomfortable, it is possible to sit through them. I do not recommend avoiding triggers as a whole as that can cause huge limitations on your life like isolation and so on. However i do find it important that you challenge them with a professional and not on your own. To be able to do thst you have to be able to recognise them though. Avoiding triggers will not cure you or make you better at coping. Only working with your issues, talking about what happened and so on, can do that.