I was going to ask this question. I totally understand. Well, maybe I can help in some way. I have done some research and a few people in my life have gone through therapy for this and said it does help. I believe that our painful memories do not go away, but the way we learn to deal with them does change and will be better. Once we begin to learn to cope with these painful experiences and memories, it will get easier.

I have meant so many people over the years in my persut to solve a lot of this in myself. My flashbacks passed years ago. It doe's get better each person heals in there own way. I've meant many people that it has passed and gone on to a normal life. Time seems to heal well. Some people are able to just walk away after they go threw stages of healing. So people do get a lot better. Take the time you need nad don't give up.

I know where you are coming from. It all resurfaces every time I look in the mirror and see the face my attackers made for me.

I don't think the memory/pain/nightmare 'goes away'. I think it eventually turns into a 'ghost'. A tiny fragment, without as much power. A wisp on the wind that carries us along in life.

I understand completely. My 1 yr. anniversary (you can look at my page if you'd like to know more) just passed...And in past few months, it was as if old ghosts had come back to haunt me...
But I have to agree with what has already been said...Therapy can be a really good way to learn to cope and understand what you are going through.
Time can be a great healer, if you take deep breaths and hold on to patience and hope.
I know I say this in alot of posts (Sorry!) but I also truly beleive that creative outlets are very healing. Another thing that has helped me is getting more involved with charity work...It gives me so much peace and clarity to make something for someone else who is suffering.
My thoughts are with you, and just remember...
Don't give up. You deserve to have a beautiful life, and not have your life taken from you.
Best Wishes, Lily

hello, i was told that it doesnt go away it just gets easier as we become more abl;e to cope with it. i know that the memories of what happend to me will alwasy be there, they'll never go away they'll just become easier to cope with. but it doesnt help knowing they going to alwasy be there and at anytime could come up. it doesnt make it much easier for me to deal with.
sorry thats probably not helped you at all. xx

I have been going to therapy for over a year and have been working with strategies, to control the flashbacks, sometimes they work and at other times they do not work, I get to terrorized to even think of using them. I find it helpful to name things around me, things that are familiar to me. Thanks for all the advice everyone has given me it has helped me some.

For me the flashbacks have finally stopped, even without therapy. I still have the awful memories, but I can cope with them better now, and they aren't haunting me much anymore. The pain doesn't go away, but with time your perspective can change, and you will be able to see things differently.
I used to try to fight off the flashbacks but then I would have horrible nightmares instead. So I just had to deal with it.
But it really does get better with time.

I don't know if it ever goes away.I'd like to think it gets better.I am still struggling like you to understand and deal.I think all of us here can understand, that makes this place so good for me.I am not alone in this anymore.

*sigh* i sure as hell hope it gets better. a psychiatrist once told me that, once upon a time, people with PTSD were just institutionalized whereas today, they go through treatment and get better. i so much hope that's true.

I can only tell you about what I've experienced. I was abused for 5 years when I was a child. Had flashbacks (didn't realize that's what they were)for the next 27 years. When I was under a lot of stress, really depressed and just couldn't cope anymore, they got really bad. Intense, and happening more and more frequently. Was in therapy for 4 years- the flashbacks and body memories eased off a lot. Less frequent, less long-lasting, and less intense. I only have them once in a while now, and they don't last as long. Also, it's as if I've finally figured out in the moment of them that that's all they are- really bad memories. The intensity is a lot more tolerable now. If I'm under a lot of stress or get over-tired, that's when it seems to become an issue again. So I think you can be pretty hopeful that they will get better. The only thing is- it's as if you have to wade straight through them to get to the other side. It's a long process, that feels like it won't end. Good luck.

i have gone through the same thing. i have found that, so far, 3 years later it is a little better. but tht is just me. it could be different for you. dont get you hopes down. consentrate on the postitive and only the positive. it may help. you can ask me for help anytime.

i dont think it really ever goes away, ive had ptsd since about 1981
mine has not got any easier, i hope that it will, but i dout it.

I wish there was an easy way to answer such a great question. But just as others have shown in their insightful replies... recovery from ptsd is a very individual and often complicated process. There is a great book with an equally great title: "The body remembers." Our bodies are built to hold trauma and keep it at bay from our consciousness as way to protect us. When triggered, (which happens often with ptsd) the body will in one form or another show that it is still holding the trauma in ways such as "flashbacks". There is often a disconnect between the mind and the body. The body cannot tell that a "trigger" is life-threatening or not and automatically goes into crisis mode. The mind (or our consciousness) often never saw the trigger coming or aware of its presence and then has no ability to soothe the body by signaling that there is no crisis. The effect is that flashbacks and other symptoms can run amuck and seem to happen out of nowhere. The work in therapy is to make that mind-body connection so when the body responds to a trigger, the mind can send a message to relax. There is a lot of cutting edge work around this now days.. such as "somatic therapy" & new twists on the old standard "cognitive behavioral." Some people recover completely from ptsd... most, I think recover from parts and learn to manage other parts. Also, wanted to mention that therapy is a great choice but also, other modalities such as meditation, yoga, acupuncture can help alot as well.

There is no key to happiness. The door is always open.

http://www.helpguide.org/mental/post_traumatic_stress_disorder_symptoms_treatment.htm

I don't know if it goes away- mine hasn't. However, it's a lot better than it used to be, and a lot more manageable. Doesn't interfere with my life like it used to. If this is the best it ever gets, I'm grateful for this much. Because at least now I can do some things because I have more energy, and the abuse is much more on a back burner. I have a lot of days where I really enjoy myself. That works for me.