This is where I document my recovery from complex trauma. How did I do it? Therapy with a licensed trauma therapist for 5 years. (IFS and EMDR).
In Recovery
Joined October 2021
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I was traumatized when I was very young. I spent my entire life dissociated, disconnected, anxious and depressed. I wanted to feel better but nobody was able to help. Eventually I connected the dots and realized the suffering I experienced had a name and it was "complex trauma".
I'm thrilled my flu is mostly healed now and I can use my calming vagus breath at bedtime. When my flu was bad every deep breath triggered painful coughing. Now I can use my breathwork tools again.
I had a relative who used arguing as a way to crush people. For her, arguing was a way to feel strong and powerful. Needless to say whenever her points were being refuted, she always changed the subject to something else because for her it was necessary to win at all costs.
During my five years of trauma therapy, as I healed my trauma I started being able to love and accept myself unconditionally. Then I became able to accept that love and appreciation from others.
If you have a disagreement with someone, observe how they argue. Reasonable people respectfully listen to you. Toxic people argue around in circles and constantly shift goalposts. They also use strawman arguments and other logical fallacies. Their goal is to win at all costs.
BeTraumaFree retweeted
Voice and choice are so important in trauma recovery.
Often these were the things that were taken away during trauma.
They can be reclaimed in recovery.
💗❤️🩹It is so important to be able to accurately name your emotions.
BeTraumaFree retweeted
It's surprising to me that even after years of successful therapy and recovery, how quickly I can spiral into really negative thoughts if I'm feeling weak, sleep deprived or sick. Negative thoughts need to be noticed, named and managed carefully.
It's surprising to me that even after years of successful therapy and recovery, how quickly I can spiral into really negative thoughts if I'm feeling weak, sleep deprived or sick. Negative thoughts need to be noticed, named and managed carefully.
I was reading an article online about grief and the author said it was not true that people can be in denial about loss and grief.
I beg to differ. I experienced a huge amount of loss in the first five years of my life but I wasn't even aware it was loss. I had no name for it.
I've been full of nagging anxiety most of the day. I don't know why. Now that my flu symptoms are finally healing I need to get back to my daily EFT tapping practice because the tapping was really helping when I was doing it every day.
BeTraumaFree retweeted
Allowing yourself to grieve and feel all the losses is a really important part of recovering from complex trauma. It's not only the hurtful stuff that happened, it's also the neglect and good things that never happened. It all needs to be felt and grieved.
BeTraumaFree retweeted
"Functional freeze" occurs when we can go through certain motions, maybe at work or around the house, just enough to keep things superficially moving-- but we're not thinking, not engaging, & often at at hard stop w/ larger projects in our life.
I call it "freeze w/ benefits."
BeTraumaFree retweeted
As kids, many of us were taught to minimize the impact of people’s actions & words.
So much so that we slowly became numb to the toll that it takes on the body when you swallow your feelings.
It shows up later as dis-ease in the body.