Category Archives: PTSD
The Madness I Lived, the Meaning I Made: A Cohesive Narrative For an Extreme Life
Creating a cohesive narrative of one’s life is one of the most powerful ways to make sense of what we’ve been through. It allows us to see patterns, understand our survival strategies, and reclaim a sense of agency in a … Continue reading
Posted in PTSD
Tagged abuse, clarity, cohesive narrative, narrative, PTSD, resistance, story
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How Repeated Medical Abuse Conditions the Nervous System
Fabrizio Benedetti’s insights into conditioning in his book, “The Patient’s Brain: The neuroscience behind the doctor-patient relationship,” are highly relevant for understanding how repeated medical abuse can shape a person’s nervous system. Conditioning—where the nervous system learns through repeated experiences—plays … Continue reading
Posted in Healthcare, PTSD
Tagged doctor-patient relationship, health, healthcare, Medical PTSD, Medicine, pain, PTSD, trust
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Can Trauma Survivors Recover Without Access to Professional Help?
According to a 2021 study, “most states have fewer than 40% of the mental health professionals needed” and “more than half (51%) of counties in the United States have no practicing psychiatrists.” Even where mental illness industry practitioners exist, many … Continue reading
Posted in PTSD, Trauma
Tagged Complex PTSD, CPTSD, Medicine, Mental Health, Nervous System, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Psychology, PTSD, Regulation, Trauma
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Music Power in the Shower
Most people enjoy taking a shower, but for trauma survivors like me, bathing is often loaded. After being abused and neglected by the medical industry, my nervous system became severely dysregulated. Even something as simple as taking a shower becomes … Continue reading
Posted in PTSD
Tagged bathing, dissociation, flashbacks, IPNB, Medical PTSD, PTSD, Regulation, shower
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How Repeated Medical Abuse Conditions the Nervous System
Fabrizio Benedetti’s insights into conditioning in his book, “The Patient’s Brain: The neuroscience behind the doctor-patient relationship,” are highly relevant for understanding how repeated medical abuse can shape a person’s nervous system. Conditioning—where the nervous system learns through repeated experiences—plays … Continue reading
Posted in Healthcare, PTSD
Tagged doctor-patient relationship, health, healthcare, Medical PTSD, Medicine, pain, PTSD, trust
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A Lion at My Neck: The Coast Guard’s Sexual Assault Crisis Demands Urgent Reform
When the US Coast Guard towed my disabled sailboat 8 years ago today, I encountered a predator within the ranks. My experience underscores a systemic failure: the military’s persistent inability to address sexualized violence, protect survivors, and hold perpetrators accountable. … Continue reading
Trauma is the Problem. Connection is the Solution.
I have spent the last 6.5 years largely treating Complex PTSD myself due to lack of access to appropriate level care. This includes from a Somatic Experiencing psychologist whose bandwidth turned out to be too narrow for my somatic experience! … Continue reading
Posted in PTSD
Tagged connection, interpersonal neurobiology, IPNB, PTSD, safety, therapy
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The Shredding of My Safety Nets
Thanks to the effects of compound trauma on the brain, my resources for many things I used to enjoy have been quite limited for years. Most of my resources for social encounters are used for visits with my doctors. There’s … Continue reading
Posted in Mental Health, PTSD
Tagged allostatic load, connection, interpersonal neurobiology, IPNB, isolation, Mental Health, PTSD, Trauma, well-being
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The Yo-Yo Trajectory of Hell: Standard Treatment for PTSD
Standard Treatment Hell For many survivors of trauma, the journey through standard PTSD treatment is an endless cycle of frustration, pain, and betrayal. Despite the widespread acknowledgment of trauma’s role in mental health, conventional treatments often fail to address the … Continue reading
Posted in Mental Health, PTSD, Uncategorized
Tagged American Psychiatric Association, Community, compassion, ComplexPTSD, connection, CPTSD, Empathy, iatrogenic, interpersonal neurobiology, IPNB, MedicalPTSD, Medicine, Mental Health, MPTSD, psychiatric hospital, psychiatry, Psychology, PTSD, Regulation, standard treatment
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How “Sit With Your Feelings” Can Harm Trauma Survivors
Warning! “Sitting with it” can be harmful for trauma survivors! Their nervous systems may be in a heightened state of dysregulation. Trauma often leads to an overactive stress response, where the body remains in a state of fight, flight, or … Continue reading
Posted in PTSD
Tagged feelings, integration, interpersonal neurobiology, IPNB, Mental Health, Psychology, recovery
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