I am so sorry you are hurting. I have felt the way you feel. I am taking a break from therapy. I am now trying to stay focused on the positive and not the negative. I look at each day as a gift from God. I will pray for you. Jami

i think you feelings are normal for the process. When a person does therapy such as for trauma it is different then regular talk therapy.

It is painful and it doesn't go away until things have been changed. I had ot go through a lot of pain before the change started to happen. What I can say is that in the long run , it is the best thing to do.
I think doing therapy for PTSD is like doing an operation with out the anesthetic. but sooner or later the results take form . Hang in there .

Been there, done that. Guess that is a normal reaction to therapy. My anxiety would go up the day of therapy and I was depressed after therapy. The duration after therapy of depression will begin to shorten the longer you go but will never go away completely. It will become less intense. If I am doing EMDR, the after period will depend on what we were working on and it it brought up something new that I was not prepared for.

I sounds like you are going thru normal reactions to therapy. Nothing to worry about. Good Luck.

I used to feel that way about therapy. I couldn't take it anymore so I found a new therapist & new type of therapy. To each his own I say. What works for some may not work for others. I hope things improve for you!

I would say that it depends on the therapist and how he/she facilitates the process. Therapy is no picnic, but I am convinced it is helpful, however, if it is too much for you, the therapist should be made aware of this (if it isn't evident). I used to dissociate more then, and at times would black out sometimes after a session...not good when one is crossing a busy street. We have a responsibility to ourselves to ensure that we are addressing things at our own "pace." A responsible therapist is sensitive to this. I think it also depends on the strategies he/she trains you with. One of my therapists, for instance, suggested a technique in which my thoughts, feelings were put in a box. The box was then closed and put away. This was good to a point (I actually still rely on it symbolically). All the while, you will discover what works best for you and what does not.

I recall at times getting very upset during and after sessions, and generally reflect on the overall experience as "emotionally intense." After several years, I began to feel strengthened by it, and recall feeling very strong especially afterward. I would also suggest, "Hang in there," however would add that it is important to communicate to your therapist that you are feeling overwhelmed.

After therapy today i feel like screaming.We're talking about my childhood and its bringing up feelings and now i'm starting to have flashbacks.On top of that i'm trying not to dissociate from these feelings and deal with them.ahhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!This is too hard!!!!!!!!I need to be sedated and put in a padded cell i think sometimes.therapy is not easy.I don't think its supposed to be easy.i think if your doing the work and going places that are out of your comfort zone its bound to be unpleasant and i truley hope all of this is worth it in the end

Like i'm looking at the therapist and thinking "do you actually get paid for this?"

Sorry but i had some bad therapists for the most part..

LonelyinNY, Do you like your therapist? Maybe it's that or perhaps it's all part of your healing process. We all face different challenges when the healing begins. Mine was ANGER.

When I come out of therapy, I feel hopeful most of the time. You deserve that too. So do a little detective work and figure out if your therapist is draining you or your recovery. Best of luck. Prayers Barb-Detroit

I have a FABULOUS therapist that I have been seeing for a year now, and still, every appointment, I throw up, I leave absolutely drained, I DREAD going there. But I can say that I have made huge improvements over my time with her, as painful and mixed up as that seems to be. All the best to you :)

i am not a therapist. but i would say that it sounds like the catharsis part isnt getting correctly processed for you at the time you have gone thru it in your session. this may not mean anyone is doing anything wrong, but could mean that there isnt enough communication between you and your therapist as to what and when you are experiencing your emotions from the accident. sometimes a session of reliving and catharsis can be extremely draining, and leave you in pain for awhile. but it shouldnt keep happening without any feelings of relief and greater lightness. (45 years of therapy for ptsd!) susan

i want to clarify something about my reply after reading other peoples replies. i am assuming your crash is what you are being treated for. this is how i taylored my reply. i personally had 25 years of hell and 10 years of intense hell to process and it went on and on and on...i am 56 and still weeping and full of despair as i relive some forgotten thing. but unless you have many years of repressed memories to process which can go on for the rest of ones life if enough horror over long enough timeline, you should be getting a feeling of relief and clearing away of the dark clouds periodically after a cathartic fear and grief experience. if you arent, then in addition to my thought that you need more communication between you and your therapist, or that the therapist isnt helping to process it properly, i would add another possibility...that you might perhaps have other trauma(s) that have been reawakened by this one and that are not being recognized or addressed. i say this cautiously because i sure dont want to add stress from uneccessary worry over what you might have in your past if this isnt the case! if reading this strikes a chord with you then pursue it, if it does not, then pay no thought to it...good luck!

What you are feeling is normal. First it gets worse, then it starts to get better. Getting there is hard tho. Symptoms increase, hyper-vigilance, nightmares, other sleep issues, anxiety, etc. Try to hang in there, therapy is hard, but its the only way to find some real peace, in my opinion.

THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE FOR YOUR INPUT I AM GLAD I AM NOT ALONE IN ALL OF THIS..GOOD LUCK TO ALL OF YOU IN YOUR JOURNEY OF TREATMENT..

I saw clients for 10 years helping them relive and discharge the trauma of feelings in my sound proofed room. I started my own processing after reading The Primal Scream by Arthur Janov, which really has a lot of helpful information. The triggering event was an adult rape, but it also brought up a lot of other earlier fears and troubles, all of which I ended up processing over the years.

Trying to process feelings is like being on a river. If you resist letting your body cry or rage or do what it seems to want to do, it is like trying to row upstream. If you allow yourself to flow with the crying, it is more like floating downstream. The thing is, don't try to stop it. In fact, turn on sad music and cry as long and as hard as you are able. There is probably a lot of fear, and screaming into your pillow could be an effective way to process.

Janov thinks that an intense emotional catharsis my be related to the 90 minute sleep cycle. Most therapists see clients for the 50 minute hour. Just as the client starts to open up the therapist says, "sorry your time is up." This is convenient for the therapist who doesn't have to deal with the heavy stuff, but hell for the client who leaves feeling worse than on arrival. I would contract with my clients for 1 hour, but go for 15 minute paid increments after that until we both felt the feeling work was completed for the day. Sessions usually ran from 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours. I scheduled clients 2 hours apart for that reason. Good luck and cry all you can.

Yes that is so normal. I was told that therapy for PTSD is different . You may not feel it then, but by going in and facing these things will better you in the end. Every time i start therapy.. I go back to flash backs, Nightmares , etc. Then in time I get better. it is when I am not in therapy I tend to go down hill. I was told what to expect in PTSD therapy .

1.You will feel worse before you get better
2.You have to relive the event to get past it
3.This also helps the therapist to understand your issues and how to help
4.They are there for you during this time and will help you through it
5.It dose not help over night.

Focus on the GOOD DAYS or LITTLE THINGS that improve or "break through" only if it is for a min.

I went almost a year and then I was better talking about it and then one day I cried for my husband. THAT WAS HUGE FOR ME! As I have been emotionally dead for a long time.

I stopped going and I went down hill FAST! It is hard , but keep yourself in mind and know this is the best thing.