When people think of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), soldiers with traumatic experiences of war and people who have lived through disasters often come to mind.
However, trauma can arise from a variety of situations, such as neglect, abuse, domestic violence or abandonment by the primary caregiver.
This trauma often occurs at vulnerable times in the victim's life – including early childhood or adolescence – creating long-term developmental challenges.
The symptoms of complex PTSD are often caused by ongoing or repeated trauma where the victim has little or no control and no real or perceived hope of escape. These experiences can lead to deteriorated self-esteem and having to cope with intense emotions throughout life.
Thoughts, behaviours and emotions commonly associated with complex PTSD include:
A diagnosis of complex PTSD can take a long time as symptoms commonly overlap with other mental illnesses such as depression, PTSD and borderline personality disorder.
Symptoms that overlap with other mental illnesses include:
Distress tolerance strategies and self-soothing techniques are important skills for survivors of trauma. It's also important for survivors to be supported in a safe environment to ensure emotional support. This can be achieved with support from a psychologist, psychiatrist or through group therapy.
One SANE Forums member describes self-soothing like this:
'In the past, I have only got through memories by focusing on what's around me, looking at what I can see and hear right where I am. Once the replay has lessened enough [I can] come back to where I am. When it's at its worse I just want to stay away from everything and everyone.'
The other aspect of treatment focuses on processing unresolved aspects of the trauma in a safe space with the help of a therapist. This technique looks to strengthen a person's confidence and their motivation to engage with others. This helps improve their ability to build social networks and relationships.
This can take time. Another forum member reflects on this process:
'It's hard to find a therapy technique that is effective. It takes a lot of patience and perhaps a long time. I often become frustrated with my supposed lack of progress. But that's my own self-judgement, not my psychologist's opinion.'
A helpful part of recovery is maintaining self-care. This involves very simple, day-to-day acts that give a person control over their environment. When in an overwhelming emotional state, a self-care strategy can help ground you, bring you out of the state and help you regain control over the difficult emotions.
'Self-compassion has helped me a lot. We were far from validated as children, so now we have to get in touch with those fragmented parts, the parts we had to detach to cope. We have to comfort and nurture and strengthen on the inside so we're not so impacted by the world.'SANE Forums member
Some things you can do when distressed include:
Recovery from complex PTSD is possible. It involves adopting a set of learned responses to traumatic experiences and developing a new sense of self. This is achieved by acknowledging the trauma and building self-compassion for the horrible events experienced.
By going through this process and developing a support network it is possible to learn to be close to others and to deal with emotional pain and stress in a healthier way.