Symptoms

Symptoms of PTSD: Being easily startled or frightened.  Is this you?

Of Toxic Friendships and PTSD


I saw the list for symptoms of toxic friendships on Spirit Daily and had to read them.  Yep.  I have had friends like that.  Family members as well - including parents.  Maybe I'm toxic?  Contaminated?  Contaminated as in the sense of one having survived a nuclear power plant accident?

PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is something I think of in relation to wounded warriors or survivors of the Holocaust, or survivors of terror, torture and so on.  In many cases, the diagnosis has been expanded to include survivors of abuse, sexual or otherwise.  For a long time I didn't believe in PTSD.  To a certain extent, I do now.

Holy Week may be a ritualized form of PTSD - wherein we recall the Sacred Passion and Death of Christ.  In a kinda-sorta way, maybe?  Over the centuries, mystics seem to have relived the trauma - showing signs of whatever form of stigmata they had - sometimes in very dramatic fashion.

Just thinking out loud here, but a lot of our stigmata may show up this week.  The invisible kind, that
is.

Yeah, huh?  I'm not really seeing it, but if you say so...

For your convenience, here is a quick list of symptoms for PTSD:

(Check it out thoroughly before calling 911.)

PTSD symptoms are generally grouped into four types: intrusive memories, avoidance, negative changes in thinking and mood, or changes in emotional reactions.

Intrusive memories

Symptoms of intrusive memories may include:

Recurrent, unwanted distressing memories of the traumatic event
Reliving the traumatic event as if it were happening again (flashbacks)
Upsetting dreams about the traumatic event
Severe emotional distress or physical reactions to something that reminds you of the event

Avoidance

Symptoms of avoidance may include:

Trying to avoid thinking or talking about the traumatic event
Avoiding places, activities or people that remind you of the traumatic event

Negative changes in thinking and mood

Symptoms of negative changes in thinking and mood may include:

Negative feelings about yourself or other people
Inability to experience positive emotions
Feeling emotionally numb
Lack of interest in activities you once enjoyed
Hopelessness about the future
Memory problems, including not remembering important aspects of the traumatic event
Difficulty maintaining close relationships

Changes in emotional reactions

Symptoms of changes in emotional reactions (also called arousal symptoms) may include:

Irritability, angry outbursts or aggressive behavior
Always being on guard for danger
Overwhelming guilt or shame
Self-destructive behavior, such as drinking too much or driving too fast
Trouble concentrating
Trouble sleeping
Being easily startled or frightened - Source

I hope that's helpful for all of you stigmatists who read me.



Song for this post here.

Avoiding places, activities or people 

that remind you of the traumatic event.