Category: PTSD

Lose The Anger, Find Better Health

  • Change how you think and behave to manage anger, using cognitive behavioral interventions to connect your thoughts, feelings, and actions.
  • Recognize early warning signs of anger, like a fast heartbeat, to avoid reaching a boiling point.
  • Practicing relaxation exercises like breathing or progressive muscle relaxation can help reduce stress and manage anger. 

19 Ways to manage anger:

1. Recognize the source of your anger.

2. Practice relaxation techniques.

3. Take a brief time out.

4. Get daily exercise.

5. Find workable solutions.

6. Don’t hold grudges.

7. Practice forgiveness.

8. Own your anger.

9. Talk to a friend.

10. Recite positive affirmations.

11. Express yourself in a journal

12. Change your environment.

13. Become more self-aware.

14. Laugh.

15. Take deep breaths.

16. Use a stress-relief tool (stress ball)

17. Avoid the person who causes you pain.

18. Be assertive.

19. Don’t sweat the small stuff.

Source: developgoodhabits

 

Related:  https://tutoringyou.org/when-you-feel-your-anger-long-enough/

To Love A Warrior

 

June is PTSD Awareness Month

How To Love Someone with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Loving someone with PTSD can be a complex journey involving patience, understanding, and love from friends, family, or even the individual themselves. To help, learn about the disorder, understand its causes, and access treatment and support options. Support from family and friends is crucial for people with PTSD, as they may create problems with trust or make it difficult to talk.

To help, it is important to be sensitive and empathetic to their emotions and offer comfort and warmth.   Also, let the person know that it is okay to talk. There are many resources available to help gain understanding, learn tools to cope, and build stronger relationships through tough times.

However, in addition to providing support, there is much more one can do to help.  It is unquestionably important to listen to your loved one, avoid judgment and learn their triggers.  Also, plan ahead for difficult times, respecting their personal space, and looking out for any warning signs. Encourage your loved one to seek professional support through therapy, coaching, or support groups.

In summary, understanding and supporting a loved one with PTSD is crucial for their well-being and overall well-being.  By providing space for open communication, understanding, and support, you can help them navigate the challenges of PTSD and build stronger relationships.

Source:  https://anxietytozen.com/

Related:  June is PTSD Awareness Month – TUTORING YOU

PTSD-Love is all we Need – TUTORING YOU

PTSD Recovery in Progress!

 

Understanding PTSD Recovery

PTSD recovery is highly individual, with each person healing at their own pace. Recovery often involves moving through stages such as traumatic shock, heightened awareness, and gradual emotional processing, which can include fear, anxiety, confusion, or disbelief following a traumatic event

Recovery is a gradual process and may not follow a linear path, often involving setbacks and periods of progress.

Stages of Recovery

Recovery often progresses through stages:

  1. Immediate impact – coping with shock, fear, and confusion after trauma.
  2. Processing – integrating the trauma into one’s life narrative and distinguishing past events from present stressors.
  3. Adaptation – developing coping strategies, regaining control, and adjusting to post-trauma life.
  4. Mastery – refining coping skills, reducing symptom impact, and reclaiming a sense of normalcy

Photo credit:  lifelineconnections.org

Related:  June is PTSD Awareness Month – TUTORING YOU

 

How to Lessen your anxiety

Anxiety is among the most common of mental health issues. In the United States, more than 19% of adults are affected by anxiety disorders yearly.

They face symptoms such as nervousness, agitation, tension, a racing heart, and chest pain.

Natural remedies are generally safe to use alongside more conventional medical therapies. Below you will find 11 natural ways to reduce anxiety.

Here are 11 tips for coping with an anxiety disorder:

  1. Avoid alcohol and recreational drugs.
    These substances can cause or worsen anxiety. If you can’t quit on your own, see your healthcare team or find a support group to help you.
  2. Eat healthy foods.
    A healthy diet that incorporates vegetables, fruits, whole grains and fish may be linked to reduced anxiety, but more research is needed.
  3. Identify triggers.
    Learn what situations or actions cause you stress or increase your anxiety. Practice the strategies you developed with your mental health professional so you’re ready to deal with anxious feelings in these situations.
  4. Keep physically active.
    Develop a routine so you’re physically active most days of the week. Exercise is a powerful stress reducer that can improve your mood and help you stay healthy. Start slowly and gradually increase the amount and intensity of your activities.
  5. Learn about your disorder.
    Talk to your healthcare team to discover what might be causing your specific condition and what treatments might be best for you. Involve your family and friends and ask for their support.
  6. Make sleep a priority.
    Do what you can to ensure you’re getting enough sleep to feel rested. If you aren’t sleeping well, talk with your healthcare professional.
  7. Quit smoking and reduce or quit drinking caffeinated beverages.
    Nicotine and caffeine can worsen anxiety.
  8. Socialize.
    Don’t let worries isolate you from loved ones or activities.
  9. Stick to your treatment plan.
    Take medications as directed. Keep therapy appointments and complete any assignments your therapist gives. Consistency can make a big difference, especially when it comes to taking your medication.
  10. Use stress management and relaxation techniques.
    Visualization techniques, meditation and yoga are examples of relaxation techniques that can ease anxiety.
  11. Write in a journal.
    Keeping track of your personal life can help you and your mental health professional identify what’s causing you stress and what seems to help you feel better.

Your worries may not go away on their own and could worsen over time if you don’t seek help. See your healthcare team or a mental health professional before your anxiety worsens. It’s easier to treat if you get help early.

Photo credit: Mayo Clinic©

Effective treatments for PTSD

Effective treatments for PTSD exist. Learn about treatment options and care after trauma.

 

 

PTSD Treatment Basics

Talk Therapies

Studies show that certain talk therapies (psychotherapies) work best. The talk therapies with the most research support are trauma focused. “Trauma-focused” means that the treatment focuses on the traumatic event and what it means to you. The talk therapies that work best are: Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and Prolonged Exposure (PE).

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) 

Cognitive behavioral therapy focuses on the relationships among thoughts, feelings and behaviors; targets current problems and symptoms; and focuses on changing patterns of behaviors, thoughts and feelings that lead to difficulties in functioning.

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) 

Cognitive processing therapy is a specific type of cognitive behavioral therapy that helps patients learn how to modify and challenge unhelpful beliefs related to the trauma.

In these talk therapies, you’ll learn ways to work through your trauma, by visualizing, talking or thinking about the traumatic event until it becomes less upsetting. Or you will focus on changing unhelpful beliefs about the trauma or since the trauma happened. These talk therapies usually last about 8-16 sessions. There are other options that have less research support but may be good options for you. 

Medication

There are medications that are helpful for treating PTSD symptoms. Your best options are those with the most evidence. Over time, you will work with your provider to check on your response to the medication, discuss side effects, and change the dose, if needed. The benefits of medications take time to work and end after you stop taking them. Research is ongoing to learn about medication-assisted therapy that may help more people with PTSD have a better response to treatment. And there are some medications that are not helpful for PTSD. 

Four medications were suggested for use in the treatment of PTSD (listed alphabetically): fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline, and venlafaxine.

Other Approaches:

Practices that support whole person health may be used with conventional treatments for mental health care, including for PTSD. These “complementary” approaches may be integrated into your treatment plan.

Prolonged Exposure 

Prolonged exposure is a specific type of cognitive behavioral therapy that teaches individuals to gradually approach trauma-related memories, feelings and situations. By facing what has been avoided, a person presumably learns that the trauma-related memories and cues are not dangerous and do not need to be avoided.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy 

A structured therapy that encourages the patient to briefly focus on the trauma memory while simultaneously experiencing bilateral stimulation (typically eye movements), which is associated with a reduction in the vividness and emotion associated with the trauma memories.

Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET) 

Narrative exposure therapy helps individuals establish a coherent life narrative in which to contextualize traumatic experiences.

Please get help!

Source:  apa.org©

Photo credit: shutterstock_2159210529 (1)

 

June is PTSD Awareness Month

Key Symptoms of PTSD

In observance of PTSD Awareness Month, it’s important to recognize how PTSD can affect individuals differently. Symptoms typically fall into four main categories, and understanding these signs is key to offering support and raising awareness.

Intrusive Memories (Re-experiencing)

Avoidance

Negative Changes in Thinking and Mood

Shifts in Physical and Emotional Responses (Heightened Arousal and Reactivity)

 

Why PTSD Awareness Month is Critically Important

Dedicating a month to PTSD awareness serves several vital purposes that contribute to building a more compassionate and informed society:

Reducing Stigma

Avoidance

Encouraging Help-Seeking

Educating the Public

Supporting Individuals and Families

Highlighting Treatment Options and Hope

Promoting Early Intervention

Advocating for Research and Resources