PTSD and trauma

A space for discussing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), domestic abuse, sexual abuse and other trauma. Please note some content may be distressing.

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A_Tech PTSD for Medical and First Responders
  • replies: 276

Hi, Well obviously this my situation. I was hoping to find others here that might have a similar background to chat with, it can be so hard to talk about this stuff with non-med people (and I mean no disrespect, it's just often graffic or upsetting t... View more

Hi, Well obviously this my situation. I was hoping to find others here that might have a similar background to chat with, it can be so hard to talk about this stuff with non-med people (and I mean no disrespect, it's just often graffic or upsetting to others). Im a 40 year old female that has spent the last 10years in the State Trauma Hospital as an Anaesthetic Technician. My PTSD was brought about after years of exposure to shocking traumas, deaths, and no support from management. I would love to hear from anyone that has a similar story, or just wants to chat. Cheers

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Nix Seeking Advice
  • replies: 4

Hi all, I am currently seeking advice on if I should reply to my past abuser (who is also my older sister), who reached out to me today.I've been having pretty bad nightmare about her since I found out other family members are back in contact to "Giv... View more

Hi all, I am currently seeking advice on if I should reply to my past abuser (who is also my older sister), who reached out to me today.I've been having pretty bad nightmare about her since I found out other family members are back in contact to "Give her a second chance". For her to suddenly message me when we haven't spoken in many years has thrown me in a loop.My question is, is it worth the closure to hear what she has to say?Thank you for your time.

Gothamfan I’m worried about my friend.
  • replies: 3

Hi everyone, I haven’t been on here in so long but I need to talk about my friend. I was at a small party just with my close friends and the topic of sexual harassment came up, and my friend and I were drunk and she mentioned how her family member ha... View more

Hi everyone, I haven’t been on here in so long but I need to talk about my friend. I was at a small party just with my close friends and the topic of sexual harassment came up, and my friend and I were drunk and she mentioned how her family member had tried to assault her. I asked her what happened and she described it to me, I asked if he had assaulted her or tried to, she described the situation and said she has blanks in her memories, but from what she said it sounds like he did. She also said that she went to her mother and she didn’t believe her. After this I was talking to her about it alone and she broke down and told me another incident with different family member. She broke down and kept saying it didn’t happen over and over and I don’t know what to do so I just kept saying I believe you and hugging her. She just went out after that and acted like nothing happened. Im so worried about her and I don’t know what to do, she says she can’t talk to her family and she can’t see a therapist so I just don’t know how to help her. I would appreciate any advice on how to talk to her or what to say, or how to deal with the situation, I seriously do not know what to do, I know I can’t fix her or anything but I want to support her best I can.

Rao Sexual Abuse
  • replies: 3

Hi All, I’m posting it 1st time and trigger to post this is , a movie I watched is Addicted. I’m a male and I see myself having addiction like Zoe. I have always thought of sex outside of marriage. Now I'm wondering after watching this movie, I feel ... View more

Hi All, I’m posting it 1st time and trigger to post this is , a movie I watched is Addicted. I’m a male and I see myself having addiction like Zoe. I have always thought of sex outside of marriage. Now I'm wondering after watching this movie, I feel it is an addiction possibly due to my past?. In my past, my neighbor lured me for biscuits and sex with me. I had such encounters few times a week ,but never enjoyed it . Fast forward we moved away. I forgot about this whole thing till I had a girlfriend. I loved our time , companionship, she was beautiful and we kissed all the time we met. But one day when my girlfriend got nude I was scared, confronted and confused and lost interest , never proceeded further. I never had sex with my girlfriend. I was scared to get married due to my experience with my girlfriend but I read a book before my wedding night about intamacy within relationships. Fast forward I’m married and happy with my wife , kids. But for last few years I’ve fantasized having affairs outside marriage and it’s not happened as working , travel or with kids.But after watching this movie I felt my thoughts/cravings which often occur and disappear due to busy work just to resurface. Just curious if this is a symptom of addiction caused by my past. I would appreciate any advice to get better

l-jc Bad dreams, ptsd, abusive relationship.
  • replies: 3

Hi everyone. Last year I finally got out of an abusive relationship that went on for over 3 years. he was my first ever partner. he was mentally and physically abusive. since then i've had trouble with sleeping and my dreams. In day time I am fine, b... View more

Hi everyone. Last year I finally got out of an abusive relationship that went on for over 3 years. he was my first ever partner. he was mentally and physically abusive. since then i've had trouble with sleeping and my dreams. In day time I am fine, but when I go to sleep I either have dreams about my ex attacking me or running after me, or threatening to kill me like he would in real life. or I dream of blackness and I start hyperventilating and sonetimes I silently scream to the point where it hurts and my body aches when I wake up. I sometimes cry a lot in my sleep and wake up in a sweat. is this ptsd? i'm on anti depressants but I still have these dreams. it's really starting to affect me. Should I see a counsellor or is this something a doctor should know about?

Gypsy_Girl Breakup due to alcoholism
  • replies: 1

I’m really struggling. It’s been a month since my partner and I broke up. He is an alcoholic. 3 years together. I still love him but he just flicked a switch and decided he didn’t feel the same way about me. I don’t have many friends, one that lives ... View more

I’m really struggling. It’s been a month since my partner and I broke up. He is an alcoholic. 3 years together. I still love him but he just flicked a switch and decided he didn’t feel the same way about me. I don’t have many friends, one that lives 2 hours away and one that is quite selfish. I have my mum n dad but they’re at a loss. I have 3 kids who are at their dad’s 50/50. So for a whole week I’m alone now. Whereas before I had my partner. We got along so well. He was never violent. He did say some mean things towards the end. He hadn’t dealt with past traumas. Hence the alcoholism. I’ve watched videos on it and learned that he may not have ever loved me the way I loved him. Alcohol really affects the brain. I thought I had found the one. Clearly I was mistaken. My friend says I need to ask myself why I feel unworthy of a healthy relationship. So hard to do when you feel like crap. I want to get past this. But I’m really struggling with my self worth & loneliness. While he’s just walked away and living his life. I’ll be getting an assessment for ADHD in December. I just want to get better. But I don’t know how. He was the first guy I truly loved.

Moving forward happy Really need advice
  • replies: 2

Before I dated my partner he has a pretty bad past, drug addiction, jail time and all that kind of stuff. He has come along way in dealing with this but he recently told me about an incident that happened to him as a child with an older male figure w... View more

Before I dated my partner he has a pretty bad past, drug addiction, jail time and all that kind of stuff. He has come along way in dealing with this but he recently told me about an incident that happened to him as a child with an older male figure who touched him inappropriately on many occasions. While talking about this he became really emotional and I could tell that it brought up a lot of feelings he didn’t want to be feeling. The week that followed was a nightmare, he was gambling excessively and just being out of character, self sabotaging everything. Almost like he was doing things to block out what had been brought up?? Maybe?? Things have settled down again but a few days ago his brother posted something online revealing that the same thing had happened to him. My partner doesn’t know what if anything he should say to his brother, but I feel it would help him to know he isn’t alone in this. I want to help my partner deal with this , because I think it has impacted his life so negatively for his entire life, but I’m unsure what to say or how to handle this or what advice to offer. Does anyone have anything that can help?

Mitty Woman struggling to make friends with other women
  • replies: 5

My history involves alot of issues with trusting men, but unfortunately it also includes women too. Recently I've been really feeling quite lonely and yearning for connection with other women, or people who share a common collective of experiences th... View more

My history involves alot of issues with trusting men, but unfortunately it also includes women too. Recently I've been really feeling quite lonely and yearning for connection with other women, or people who share a common collective of experiences that label us as such. I want to reach out but I feel like I just end up gushing way too much and being super intense and needy. I also find it hard to relate to how other women are. They seem somewhat foreign to me, yet I want to be a part of it all. I don't want to be a 'cool hip contrarian.' I just want a sense of belonging. Do other women here relate to this?

Fiatlux The Worst DV I can imagine. ***TRIGGER WARNING***
  • replies: 6

Hi everyone, The news broke me yesterday, as I recall having a serious conversation with my husband when my children were little and I begged him to never harm or kill our children to hurt me or spite me or take revenge if I ended out marriage due to... View more

Hi everyone, The news broke me yesterday, as I recall having a serious conversation with my husband when my children were little and I begged him to never harm or kill our children to hurt me or spite me or take revenge if I ended out marriage due to his domestic violence and abuse towards me. As a person who has survived domestic violence and still in a relationship with my violent husband, I had to have this conversation with him.

Guest_65068129 Narcissist mother denying everything
  • replies: 5

My mother abused me physically till I was 16 and the emotional abuse still continues. The physical abuse was to a level where I would have marks on my body, my lips would be broken and each event would leave pain for days. I don't remember a single d... View more

My mother abused me physically till I was 16 and the emotional abuse still continues. The physical abuse was to a level where I would have marks on my body, my lips would be broken and each event would leave pain for days. I don't remember a single day when I was not hit by her till I was 16. Everything in the household was always my fault. I didn't know what was I doing wrong. I only knew everything bad happening to her life or the household was my fault.Today I have chronic pain, PTSD and severe depression to a level I am unable to get out of the house. And now I am a bad person as I don't reciprocate the role of a daughter as per her expectations.The worst thing is she is constantly in my head. My brain keeps generating what she would say in that situation even when she is not there. How do I get her out of my head?

Narelle Sexual abuse, trauma and anxiet
  • replies: 1

Sorry all l did an introduction post and can not seem to be able to edit it. Small mistake in it. Was married to a woman for 20 years and then left me and started a new relationship with a new woman it was meant to have said. OG post below Hi everyon... View more

Sorry all l did an introduction post and can not seem to be able to edit it. Small mistake in it. Was married to a woman for 20 years and then left me and started a new relationship with a new woman it was meant to have said. OG post below Hi everyone my name is Narelle and l believe l have PTSD and Trauma along with anxiety. I am a 54 yr old openly gay woman and from a very young age had encountered many episodes of sexual abuse from siblings, mothers boyfriends for years. I think a lot of my mental health stems from this due to my mother not believing me and accusing me of lying. My mother abandoned me when l was 16 and l had to learn to live life on my own. As life went on l became a mum to my beautiful daughters and went through a relationship break up where l had a breakdown and the father to my children offered to care for the kids for a few weeks to give me a break. Friends of mine overseas bought me a plane ticket and l went to see them to have a break. While l was away the father to my children along with his mother gave the kids to welfare and labelled me as an unfit mother all because l had a breakdown. One of my childhood abusers who is a sister of mine was asked by the welfare to look after the youngest, 3 years old. I did not know where my kids were and l was not allowed to see them. 10 years later l found them and they were still in the system and my partner at the time would impose ultimatums on me about me kids. I became married to this person for 20 years and started a new life with an amazing woman who was my world. The jealous ex wife took it upon themselves to interfere in my new relationship just to be spiteful because they could not accept the fact that l no longer wanted to be with them. Needless to say my new relationship is now over as the ex succeeded in destroying that with stories and lies which l have proven are incorrect. The woman who was my partner is an overthinker and struggles to see the truth and fixates only on negativity. Saddens me to know l will never be believed on anything l say despite knowing l am telling the truth to them. I get triggered by frustration and it comes from my childhood abuse experience of my mother never believing me. I feel like my ex partner has also abandoned me just like my mother did. I have no one in my life who l can bounce off and talk to. My ex partner was my rock and they made me feel safe but they are gone. The ex wife and ex partner message each other a lot about me and my ex wife’s reason is jealousy and is playing games with the ex partner but is making it out that l am the one who is doing it all when l am not.