The truth will make you free but first it will make you really miserable. ~ Barry Stevens, born Mildred Fox, used by James A. Garfield and others Judy (my sister) and I often discuss the importance of truth. Our perspective changed abruptly when we understood our childhood was littered with lies. Lies upon lies or…
June is declared by someone to be PTSD awareness month. For those living with it, we are aware 24/7, if you unfamiliar with this number combination it means, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. No time off for good behavior. I sometimes get fairly smug thinking it is gone from my life…
I started counseling with my husband in marriage counseling. After several ‘failed’ homework assignments, the counselor asked me about my childhood. I chirped, “It was great, we went to the park, we went to the zoo. It was a great childhood.” He shook his head and persisted, “Tell me an average day.” He knew before…
Last month I experienced a person taking advantage to me because of my not understanding how things were done at school. A month later, I knew I would encounter the same person. I decided to write an email to try to repair the problem. It didn’t work. I went to my supervisor and explained what…
One of the books I read a few years ago wrote about filling your own bucket. (How full is your Bucket? http://strengths.gallup.com/114079/Full-Bucket.aspx) The theory following air flight attendants advice of put on your own oxygen mask before trying to help someone else. Over the years I learned that PTSD punches a hole in my bucket. …
This is from Facebook. I read it and reread it. Then I put it in a draft on my blog to give me time to reconsider if this is helpful or discouraging. It certainly made me think, a lot. Awareness of childhood sexual abuse “When we embrace the dirt of our lives, tapping into the…
Emotional abuse is part of all other abuses. http://liveboldandbloom.com/11/relationships/signs-of-emotional-abuse?c=JWells This article is longer than most but worth the read this is one excerpt from the beginning. So what is emotional abuse? It involves a regular pattern of verbal offense, threatening, bullying, and constant criticism, as well as more subtle tactics like intimidation, shaming and manipulation.…
I’m not sure I am ready….yet, this was what I did in my 10 years of counseling. Embraced one trigger, fear, incident, memory at a time, even if they tried to crowd forward all at once my counselor would help me focus on a bit a time. I read this article that set me thinking…
I follow several pages on Facebook that advocate for those with PTSD. When I see an article that interest me or adds to the story of living with PTSD I like to share. I also feel that if I am going to share it I need to add my perspective. SometimesMagical shared these insightful suggestions…
I read this article and it lists 20 symptoms of unresolved trauma. My counselor recognized I was severely messed up, long before I knew I was severely messed up. After each line, I add my comments to Kathy Broady’s MSW. She writes more on each symptom on her blog. She also has videos and other…
PTSD - Accepting, Coping, Thriving 