I want to thank Kathryn Tull, Marriage and Family Therapist, for joining me on the important topic of Coping with Psychological Triggers!
Living life as a survivor means dealing with the effects of the trauma which includes PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). It can come from so many sources because of how our bodies absorb our environment through the 5 senses – taste, sound, touch, smell and sight.
The first phase of PTSD involves incapacitating and overwhelming fear. They feel like they have been thrust into a nightmare or a horror movie. They are rendered helpless by their own terror. They keep re-living the experience through recurrent and intrusive visual and auditory hallucinations (“flashbacks”) or dreams. In some flashbacks, a person can completely lapse into a dissociative state and physically re-enact the event while being thoroughly oblivious to where they are.
In an attempt to suppress this constant playback and the attendant exaggerated startle response (jumpiness), a person will try to avoid anything associated with the trauma, directly or indirectly.
Many develop full-scale phobias (agoraphobia, claustrophobia, fear of heights, aversion to specific animals, objects, modes of transportation, neighborhoods, buildings, occupations, weather, and so on).
People that suffer from PTSD are especially vulnerable on the anniversaries of their abuse. They try to avoid thoughts, feelings, conversations, activities, situations, or people who remind them of the traumatic occurrence (“triggers”).
This constant hypervigilance and arousal, sleep disorders (mainly insomnia), the irritability (“short fuse”), and the inability to concentrate and complete even relatively simple tasks erode a person’s s resilience. Utterly fatigued, a person can manifest protracted periods of numbness, automatism, and, in radical cases, near-catatonic posture.
Response times to verbal cues increase dramatically. Awareness of the environment decreases, sometimes dangerously so. The victims are described by their nearest and dearest as “zombies”, “machines”, or “automata” or “autopilot”.
Take a look at the questions below. Being honest with yourself to see if any of these apply to you is a way to begin understanding your personal triggers.
- I have strong physical sensations (e.g., sweating, rapid heart beat) when I think about the event.
- I try to avoid having upsetting thoughts or having contact with things or places associated with the event.
- My feelings are numb and I have difficulty experiencing normal pleasure and happiness.
- I am always watchful to make sure I don t experience the same event again.
- I have feelings of guilt associated with the traumatic event.
- I have the feeling of being unreal or that the world is unreal.
- I feel alienated or isolated from others.
- I get irritated or angry a lot.
- I have flashbacks of the event (feeling like the past event is happening all over again in the present).
- I have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep because memories of the event come into my mind.
- I have memory difficulties and trouble concentrating these days.
- I am easily startled when I hear a loud noise or when danger seems imminent.
- I have been relying increasingly on alcohol or drugs to get through the day.
If you can answer “Yes” to these symptoms, please seek help from a mental health professional. It doesn’t mean that you are “weak” or “crazy”. It means that you are taking charge of your health and your life!
Kathryn is offering a free preview of her mini-book called The Ten Core Components for Your Success: An Introductory Guide for Transformational Change. Please visit www.nextboldstep.com to subscribe (at no cost). You will get the free report immediately; then she will communicate with you after you become a subscriber so you can get your free preview!
Until next week, God Bless!
