Not crazy but a Warrior

• I recently realised you can have PTSD and have flashbacks in words rather than images but if you look up Life's been a little bit hard on me - Juice Newton on YouTube, it does flashbacks in images well.

If you look up "both sides now" - Judy Collins lyrics on YouTube it also strikes a chord for trauma of grief and intergenerational love.

Hi I am new I suffer with PTSD and especially with flash back in my brain can't calm myself down I coanstly on high alert can't sleep can't settle my self back down is there any thing you can help me threw this

Hello @Meghan30

Welcome to the sane forums.

Thank you for sharing a little about you and how you are feeling.

I hope you feel supported within the sane community.

Hey there, hope you found some peace and sleep after your post. Have you had a look into some of the useful tool through something like DBT or CBT? When you're in that state its hard to be able to think clearly, or even pause for a breath! I have spent a lot of the last few months starting to try and develop more awareness of these situations, when I am getting dysregulated, potentially dissociating, and yes the anxiety! The crippling anxiety and hypervigilance. I suffer from panic attacks as well, I started a technique where when I start to feel that 'feeling' of blood pumping, heart rate increases, a fear creeps over you...I try and see what's happening for what it is (its dysregulation of the nervous system because of the trauma wounds), and have started saying out loud "You're ok. You are safe right now, it isn't happening again. You can be calm and safe now", the 5 sense trick works a treat which is something like find 5 things you can see, 4 things you can touch, 3 things you can feel or smell....the general idea is than you focus your mind onto external things and it does really help you almost give the hypervigilance a moment to go, "Oh, I am not needed now". Check out DBT as well. they have some really good Distraction techniques, etc. Also you may want to consider a trip to a decent Psychiatrist, as you might benefit from some meds temporarily to just give your system that initial "stablisatiion phase".

Thanks for sharing @Senaro01 . That was very helpful to read.

Tagging @Former-Member @Meghan30 who may be interested to read the above post.

I'm currently knee-deep in CPTSD recovery tools, but I like to see a lot of different techniques and just gravitate towards the ones that 'make sense' to me personally.

Thank you for sharing this poem.

I often say to others that ppl think I am weak, but they don't understand that's not true from my point of view.

I am here because I'm strong, but even the strong tire and deserve a place to rest their weary heads at times.

That doesn't make me weak,

It makes me fully enmeshed in my experience of humanity.