Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Support Group
Find support with others who have gone through a traumatic experience. Whether you have chronic or acute PTSD, we are here for you.
Hey everybody,
I know as people with PTSD it is in our best interest to stay away from stress and stress-related triggers, but as adults I realize this isn't always possible. Stress is bound to be a part of life and we all have tools/techniques to help deal with the 'stressful pockets' that pass through our lives.
That said, I am in a graduate program and find that I live in a stressful world. I have 'stress pockets' that pass (major exams, deadlines, etc) but also live in a day-to-day state of chaos and stress (which is normal for any graduate program) and this has become the 'new norm' since school started a year and a half ago.
I realize that I am going to survive my graduate program and go on to do great things, but I was just wondering:
when it comes to chronic day-to-day stress what coping skils/techniques work for you?
what activities do you participate in to reduce stress, and which have you tried and not had work?
when you end up run down despite your best efforts, what steps do you take to get back on your feet?
and lastly, do you find that stress (good or bad) impacts you in a physically tangible way? If so, how do you treat/deal with this?
Thanks in advance,
Alice
I know as people with PTSD it is in our best interest to stay away from stress and stress-related triggers, but as adults I realize this isn't always possible. Stress is bound to be a part of life and we all have tools/techniques to help deal with the 'stressful pockets' that pass through our lives.
That said, I am in a graduate program and find that I live in a stressful world. I have 'stress pockets' that pass (major exams, deadlines, etc) but also live in a day-to-day state of chaos and stress (which is normal for any graduate program) and this has become the 'new norm' since school started a year and a half ago.
I realize that I am going to survive my graduate program and go on to do great things, but I was just wondering:
when it comes to chronic day-to-day stress what coping skils/techniques work for you?
what activities do you participate in to reduce stress, and which have you tried and not had work?
when you end up run down despite your best efforts, what steps do you take to get back on your feet?
and lastly, do you find that stress (good or bad) impacts you in a physically tangible way? If so, how do you treat/deal with this?
Thanks in advance,
Alice
Yoga? Good. Breathing exercises? Very good. Guided imagery medigtations? Bad! Grounding techniques? Good. (Ironically, they use imagery.) Breath-oriented physical inventory practices? Good. And some days, none of them work.
Time off? Always good. Someone here (Lilly, I believe) posted last year to a site for helping people with PTSD, and my hubby has it bookmarked. It does blanket tenets. Those are huge for me. Sometimes, fifteen minutes in my blanket tent (literally, tent of blankets on bed), and I get a "break", and can get out and face the day again after my "break".
Aromatherapy is one I like. I can pretend I am dabbing my nose, but the handkerchief is folded around a cotton ball soaked in aromatherapy oil scents I like. Also useful in grounding.
So that's my daily arsenal.
Yes, stress is always physical, even if not tangible. It's biology. I always assume that the stress is hitting me physically even if I don't notice it (yet) and stick to the usual baseline daily routines. Healthy eating, hydration, gentle exercise, try to get sleep. Good for anything that ails a person.
The only other thing is to make sure you have a good outlet for your stress. Running, exercise maybe?
Good luck
CrazyCanuk - my school does have a therapy program and it is available to students for free. I went a few times last year but the therapist I was assigned to ended up telling me there wasn't anything she could do to help me (or recommend) but she was still there if I needed someone "to listen."
I have stress techniques and grounding exercises that work for me, and I was pretty much told the same thing I was told by my previous therapist -- I am well adjusted given what I've been through and I need to learn that given my background this is as good as it is going to get. I am going to have ups and downs but I have the knowledge, coping skills, and techniques needed to make it through PTSD episodes, and if anything I am "overly well adjusted."
I constantly strive to be a better version of myself and this has led to a lot of emotional and psychological growth for me, but I guess I'm just unrealistic in my expectations. In a perfect world I would like to think I can fully get past the things I've been through and hit a point where i either (1) have no more flashbacks or (2) have them and remain unaffected by them.
I should probably just accept the fact I'm cracked around the edges, and this is as good as it's going to get for me. My episodes are manageable even on their darkest days, and my husband (who has experience identifying and assisting PTSD through the military) thinks I'm the most adjusted PTSD-diagnosed person he's ever met. I've had a few therapists now tell me that this is it, I guess I just can't stop wanting to push myself to be better even though there might be no better place for me to go.
Do any of you struggle with this?
Scents are *highly* individual. What soothes me triggers another. Smells are one of the strongest memory-evokers, and you have to really choose carefully. I blend my own. I use scents that were not part of my childhood, or were part of the happy parts, the safe parts. I personally, for example, love eucalyptus smell. For one person I know, it triggers bad memories. So if you're staring at aromatherapy oils in, say, Whole Foods? If something in you says "Nah"? Run with that. Choose something else. Don't challenge the scent-memory connection. Even "pleasant" smells can be bad for PTSDers.
Take it as you go. I have epilepsy, and I consider it when I make life choices, and I am the same with the PTSD. It's a chronic thing, it may or may not be "active" , but if I make awareness of it part of my daily routine, blah blah blah, you've bene to therapy, you know the routine.