Anxiety post home invasion

[sunflowergirl27]

In march 2019 mine and my partners home was invaded whilst I was home alone. It happened at 2am, there was 4 men inside and I was on the phone to 000, my partner is defence and therefore was away for work (goes away very often). It took the police 25 minutes to arrive at my house although I live 5 minutes from the police station. I had a man walking up and down my hallway continuously whilst the rest of them destroyed our home. I was holding my door handle locked. They stole our car as they left. The police arrived 5 minutes later. They only caught one person responsible for the crime and he said to police that he was not sorry and that if they hadn't of known police were on the way they would have come for me next. He admitted to the police about them watching the house for a week prior. the police investigation is still in court and I still to this day do not know what they look like, however they know what I look like, they are also free to walk on the streets and we live in a small town so very easily I could pass by them. They entered the property by removing my side doors from the rollers, its also presumed it was the same people who came back about a month ago and broke in through our garage roller door however they fled when I opened the door to the garage yelling that I was on the phone to police and I was armed with a weapon. Since all of this I cannot sleep, whenever I am home alone and this is often. I recently spent an entire month sleeping on couches of friends whilst my partner worked away. I was offered 3 counselling sessions when the original break in happened. I accepted however the counsellor didn't at all seem interested and he left our sitting early and then did not show for our next, since then I feel although its hopeless to see a councillor. I have moved furniture around in the house, I have now got security cameras that record motion, I ensure all glass doors are locked and windows are closed with curtains also drawn. I take my handbag and keys to bed. I still cannot sleep, I find myself dozing however my heart continues to race and it feels like I can't swallow. we have tried to move house but the only houses available to us through defence are in the same suburb which is being hit with bad crime and they will not allow us to move elsewhere. I feel even more trapped and my partner is due to leave for another month very soon. pls someone help me.

[Sophie_M]

Hi sunflowergirl27,

Welcome to the forums, and thank you for sharing your story. We are so sorry to hear about what you have gone through, it sounds like this must have been such an overwhelming experience. It's something that no one should have to go through- everyone deserves to feel safe in their own home. We are really sorry that this is still affecting your wellbeing and feeling of safety, and that your experience with counselling was not what you'd hoped. We think you are such a strong person to have been through so much and we are really grateful that you have been brave enough to reach out to the forums this evening as we know this can be difficult to do for the first time.

It's great to hear that you've had some support from your friends, but understand that it must still bring a lot of anxiety when at home by yourself. If you feel that it would be beneficial to you to talk through your feelings and experiences, please know that you can always contact the Beyond Blue Support Service anytime on 1300 22 4636 or get in touch with us on Webchat 3pm-12am AEST here: www.beyondblue.org.au/getsupport One of the friendly counsellors can offer you some support and advice to help you through this. We know that your last experience with a counsellor was underwhelming, but we hope that you might consider reaching out again.

We hope you'll find some comfort here in our community, and find it to be a safe, non-judgmental and supportive place.
 
 

[Nurse_Jenn]

Hi sunflowergirl27,

It is great to see you reaching out here on the forum. I don't always post on the forum from a lived experience perspective but in this instance I can. I was also home invaded in 2010 where three people broke into the house while me and my partner were sleeping at 5am. It was so scary. They ran out and stole my hand bag and other things while I called 000. The police came pretty quick but never caught the perpetrators. They left some pieces of evidence but they were never caught to my knowledge.

I can definitely relate to the symptoms you describe. After the incident, every noise outside I would jerk awake (though I never really fell asleep and would just lay there) and was hyper-vigilant checking all the doors and windows and even had a heavy object next to my bed. I experienced these symptoms for some time and it was truly exhausting. I am so so sorry you are going through this.

Trauma like this is so hard to process on your own. The mind goes into overdrive and stays alert and on guard even though the threat has essentially passed. I am also sorry to hear that you did not receive a good service from the counsellor you met with. I would recommend that you persist and find another health professional if you are able. A good place to start would be your GP. There is also a course you could try at the MindSpot Online Clinic for people with symptoms resulting from a trauma. It is free and can ben access primarily on line with some phone contact. You can have a read of this here. https://mindspot.org.au/ptsd-course

I can now sleep alone and not be afraid or fearful and only think of the incident once in a while but those first months were so very hard. Please know that you can get through this and can feel normal again and you will be able to sleep again. Talking about it really helped me as well as learning more about what to expect after a traumatic incident.

As Sophie M mentioned, sometimes a chat to a support line can help even in that moment. You could try the Beyond Blue Support Line on 1300 22 4636 but please continue post here if it helps.

You are not alone.

Sending you strength (and sleep),

Nurse Jenn

[sunflowergirl27]

Thankyou, I will try the live chat

[sunflowergirl27]

Thankyou for this, I’m very sorry you also went through this experience. I will go to the link you have suggested. I appreciate this