What are the symptoms of post traumatic stress and how severe can it be?
i am thinking in particular of a case of repeated sexual abuse / rape but i think the symptoms of PTSD are the same no matter what the trauma. what are the chances of overcoming this?
Answers:
I think that you would be wrong to compare the stress caused by rape/sexual abuse, painful as that would be, with the trauma caused by genuinely believing that you are going to die. And I mean, really believe it. I passed out during a road accident, because I believed I was as good as dead. Many years later I get flashbacks that are so severe, that I have to run out into the street during the middle of the night to try and escape. But I have been told that I am trying to escape from myself. The mental pain is beyond description, it is impossible for anyone to console you, you are so agitated that you have to be left alone. I have spent many sleepless nights. I was told by my GP that many soldiers from the second world war still suffer from similar symptoms. Your brain might protect you at the time but my God do you pay for it later. There is nothing else in my life that has even come close.
it would be difficult without support. there are people who specialise in this disorder. and there is no shame in asking for their help
PTSD is a coping mechanism adopted to try and deal with events that are simply to difficult to cope with. unfortunatly its a coping mechanism which itself has side effects that affect quality of life. you dont have to live with it. and you can cure it. but not alone.
your gp can refer you to counselling services in your area
did the police ever get informed of the events? maybe thats another route worth considering, even if there is little to go on and you think it would be hopeless. surely the smallest chances of getting justice would be worth it, and bring some kind of closure and help the feeling of security return
Although the symptoms of PTSD are the same regardless of the cause or type of trauma; a trained rape crisis counsellor is the best person to assist a rape survivor.
Rape needs to be dealt with as a specific trauma, not as a generic trauma.
Google for 'rape crisis + your town' and click the UK radio button.
The chances are up to you. It took me three years to get over being attacked, hospitalized, and getting a new face because some asshole decided to crush it in with a baseball bat. To this day I HATE crowds. I no longer go to concerts, too many people to try and keep track of. Anyway think of a dog that is hit as a part of discipline. It either cowers or it gets mean. The choice is yours. I hope you keep going forward, because you are worth it. Seek all the help you can, but just don't stop seeking. Good info does not displace good info so there is nothing to worry about when it comes to finding the answers.
Good luck to you and get some Brazilian Jujitsu in you as well so you can defend yourself with ease. Keep in mind that when taking any kind of class like that there are no "rules" in the street and you may not want to use "ring" moves out there. Find a good instructor in your area and stay safe.
Trauma is trauma, whether it occured from repeated sex abuse or another cause. I was diagnosed with it after finding the dead bodies of my sister, father and husband in my home over a period of 14 months in 1999-2000. One of the key symptoms is flashbacks. You can be lying there and all of a sudden, it breaks into your thoughts. The smallest noise or clamor can send you into a certain state. In my case, I cannot look at dead bodies without getting depressed. The Katrina news coverage sent me back to therapy.
In order to get better, anti depressants and therapy are the best. If it's a severe case, one without the other won't be enough. And it may take years. I have been on Prozac for 3 years out of the past 7 and seeing a therapist for the same amount of time. But don't worry, it's not a stigmMF It does help, but sometimes just making that phone call just seems like it's too much. However, once you have done so, you'll feel better and will be on the road to recovery.
My husband has it after serving in Iraq.When he sees debri in the road he automatically starts sweating ,heart pounds.he has memories of roadside bombs. Medicine has its own set of drawbacks because its not good to get hooked on psych meds,I hope you have a good support system and dont feel embarssed to seek professional help.You can overcome everything darlin as long as you keep trying:)
Each persons experience of trauma is as individual as they are - and can never be compared to another persons experience from the same means or not.
Believing yr going to die in a car accident can not be compared to a childhood of sexual abuse and or rape - each individuals interpritation and reactions are very different, and yet they ammount to similar reactions in a varied presentation of symptons.
PTSD is the minds way of kicking back and saying 'enough-no more'. Before PTSD was recognised, what was the diagnosis back then?
How many individuals truly understand the way in which the mind of an abused child works in their adult years? How do we comprehend what suffering is like, unless its experiential - having been in a major car accident, and, sexually, physically and emotionally abused in a torturous way for the first 18 years of my life, l know which was more damaging to my mind - the car accident had very little impact on me-after spending 18yrs being told l would be killed. We cannot and should not compare.
What is major to one person is different to another.
As human beings we are all so much worthy of healthy love and our expectations of this is not often high enough.
Seek out further info for PTSD from a medical site rather than on here, that will offer safer explainations.
You are worth every moment of love in your life, and so much more.
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Answers:
I think that you would be wrong to compare the stress caused by rape/sexual abuse, painful as that would be, with the trauma caused by genuinely believing that you are going to die. And I mean, really believe it. I passed out during a road accident, because I believed I was as good as dead. Many years later I get flashbacks that are so severe, that I have to run out into the street during the middle of the night to try and escape. But I have been told that I am trying to escape from myself. The mental pain is beyond description, it is impossible for anyone to console you, you are so agitated that you have to be left alone. I have spent many sleepless nights. I was told by my GP that many soldiers from the second world war still suffer from similar symptoms. Your brain might protect you at the time but my God do you pay for it later. There is nothing else in my life that has even come close.
it would be difficult without support. there are people who specialise in this disorder. and there is no shame in asking for their help
PTSD is a coping mechanism adopted to try and deal with events that are simply to difficult to cope with. unfortunatly its a coping mechanism which itself has side effects that affect quality of life. you dont have to live with it. and you can cure it. but not alone.
your gp can refer you to counselling services in your area
did the police ever get informed of the events? maybe thats another route worth considering, even if there is little to go on and you think it would be hopeless. surely the smallest chances of getting justice would be worth it, and bring some kind of closure and help the feeling of security return
Although the symptoms of PTSD are the same regardless of the cause or type of trauma; a trained rape crisis counsellor is the best person to assist a rape survivor.
Rape needs to be dealt with as a specific trauma, not as a generic trauma.
Google for 'rape crisis + your town' and click the UK radio button.
The chances are up to you. It took me three years to get over being attacked, hospitalized, and getting a new face because some asshole decided to crush it in with a baseball bat. To this day I HATE crowds. I no longer go to concerts, too many people to try and keep track of. Anyway think of a dog that is hit as a part of discipline. It either cowers or it gets mean. The choice is yours. I hope you keep going forward, because you are worth it. Seek all the help you can, but just don't stop seeking. Good info does not displace good info so there is nothing to worry about when it comes to finding the answers.
Good luck to you and get some Brazilian Jujitsu in you as well so you can defend yourself with ease. Keep in mind that when taking any kind of class like that there are no "rules" in the street and you may not want to use "ring" moves out there. Find a good instructor in your area and stay safe.
Trauma is trauma, whether it occured from repeated sex abuse or another cause. I was diagnosed with it after finding the dead bodies of my sister, father and husband in my home over a period of 14 months in 1999-2000. One of the key symptoms is flashbacks. You can be lying there and all of a sudden, it breaks into your thoughts. The smallest noise or clamor can send you into a certain state. In my case, I cannot look at dead bodies without getting depressed. The Katrina news coverage sent me back to therapy.
In order to get better, anti depressants and therapy are the best. If it's a severe case, one without the other won't be enough. And it may take years. I have been on Prozac for 3 years out of the past 7 and seeing a therapist for the same amount of time. But don't worry, it's not a stigmMF It does help, but sometimes just making that phone call just seems like it's too much. However, once you have done so, you'll feel better and will be on the road to recovery.
My husband has it after serving in Iraq.When he sees debri in the road he automatically starts sweating ,heart pounds.he has memories of roadside bombs. Medicine has its own set of drawbacks because its not good to get hooked on psych meds,I hope you have a good support system and dont feel embarssed to seek professional help.You can overcome everything darlin as long as you keep trying:)
Each persons experience of trauma is as individual as they are - and can never be compared to another persons experience from the same means or not.
Believing yr going to die in a car accident can not be compared to a childhood of sexual abuse and or rape - each individuals interpritation and reactions are very different, and yet they ammount to similar reactions in a varied presentation of symptons.
PTSD is the minds way of kicking back and saying 'enough-no more'. Before PTSD was recognised, what was the diagnosis back then?
How many individuals truly understand the way in which the mind of an abused child works in their adult years? How do we comprehend what suffering is like, unless its experiential - having been in a major car accident, and, sexually, physically and emotionally abused in a torturous way for the first 18 years of my life, l know which was more damaging to my mind - the car accident had very little impact on me-after spending 18yrs being told l would be killed. We cannot and should not compare.
What is major to one person is different to another.
As human beings we are all so much worthy of healthy love and our expectations of this is not often high enough.
Seek out further info for PTSD from a medical site rather than on here, that will offer safer explainations.
You are worth every moment of love in your life, and so much more.
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