Finding Hope Beyond PTSD: How to Start the Healing Process

People who have gone through a traumatic incident in their lives face a difficult time in recovering from it. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is triggered by a terrifying or traumatic event. You might get flashbacks and nightmares. Such traumatic thoughts and feelings can interfere with your daily activities, making it difficult to focus - causing severe anxiety. But, there’s hope to find your inner strength and heal from the traumatic event.

What is PTSD?

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that occurs when a person has experienced a shocking, scary, or dangerous event. However, PTSD goes deeper than merely being stressed while having flashbacks about the event. Let’s understand the condition in a better way.

With every incident, event, or person we encounter, humans have been designed to process the emotional information that each provides. For example, say you’re going to work. You know exactly what the route looks like. You might not even be consciously aware that you’ve reached the office. However, if you happen to see anything unusual on your way - say a horse running by - this may make you look and you are likely to recall this incident over and over again.

Also read: How to Differentiate Between PTSD and Anxiety

This is how PTSD works but in a manner where the event that occurred was not only stressful but also emotionally different from any other situation you come across. Having PTSD causes flashbacks of this particular event. This triggers negative emotions intensely which aggravates the stress. This leaves you unable to deal with such a sudden, shocking, and unusual event, leaving you feeling severely hopeless and distressed.

Symptoms of PTSD

The symptoms of PTSD can often shift in intensity over time for different people. The symptoms may also fluctuate. A person with PTSD might have the following symptoms:

• Recurring thoughts of the event that might make them anxious
• The flashbacks might make them relive the incident
• They might feel extremely distressed when they come across anything that reminds them of the incident. 
• They might even have nightmares

The emotional and physical symptoms can look like this.

One might:

• feel hopeless about the future
• feel numb to pleasures or pain
• have anger outbursts
• have trouble sleeping or concentrating 
• feel on the edge
• lose interest in activities that brought them joy
• constantly have negative thoughts about themselves

Common treatment options for PTSD

PTSD is a highly treatable condition. A trained therapist or psychiatrist can help you with a suitable treatment plan with therapy options like:

• Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
• Exposure therapy
• Cognitive therapy
• How can you manage PTSD symptoms?

Acknowledge the event

To begin the healing process, it is important to first acknowledge what happened. You should accept that the event was traumatic and that it has affected you. It might be very difficult to start with this as you may be overwhelmed with emotions or even may often feel numb. Accepting a situation comes with accepting emotions and allowing yourself to feel them.

Accept your emotions

Overcoming a traumatic event can be extremely difficult. The emotions, thoughts, and scenes from the event might trigger and resurface over and over again. Try to learn ways that suit you best to heal from the situation/incident. Sometimes it might be extremely overwhelming. Don’t force any emotion or thought. Be patient and prepared to deal with sudden difficult feelings without guilt or judgement.

Talk to a therapist or a psychiatrist

PTSD is a severe and complex condition. It requires professional support to work your way through the trauma in a healthy and sustainable manner. A mental health professional can guide you and provide a suitable treatment plan that can reflect on your event. 

Take time for self-care

Self-care is an essential part of healing from a traumatic event. Make sure you take good care of your mind and body. Try to take out time for one activity that makes you feel relaxed. It could be exercising, journaling, or simply spending time with your loved ones. You can also learn ways to relieve stress at the moment by practising breathing exercises, relaxation techniques, or any calming activity. These can be useful to cope with sudden stressful thoughts. 

Recovering from PTSD can be extremely distressing but is possible. Practise ways to find hope and look beyond the incident that occurred. Remember, the way you think and feel is under your control. Use this power to know your worth and live a healthier life.