Hi

[TealRibbon]

Hi

I’m new here. I posted in the PTSD & Trauma thread. I’m lost and confused and hope to find people who understand.

[TealRibbon]

Hi Amanda

it is great that grounding and breathing helps you with flashbacks and nightmares. I can do it a little bit, but I have to take meds to be able to sleep and some other meds to keep me more stable throughout the day.

I needed to go to hospital a few times and I think the extra support helps when things get rough. That’s where I started art therapy. I’m not an artist I only started painting and drawing and sometimes working with clay since I had art therapy in a hospital. It gives my mind a break, not sure if that makes sense but it does. I often don’t know what I will do and just start and see what happens. It’s stuff for me, and sometimes my therapist, and not for an art collection. How did you start sketching? I can’t really draw anything three dimensional or use shading often my art doesn’t look like anything.

I might actually go and do some art now. I haven’t done anything in a while, it’s not even that I don’t feel like it at times, it’s more like I forget it even exists - similar to all self care that I know.

Take care

[Ggrand]

Hello TealRibbon,

I hope you are doing ok, I'm just checking in to see how you are doing.

Its good that you can do art as a therapy, I tried art, I have pencils charcoal, different shade of skin tones etc...all used a few times...you should see my stick figures. or my trees I think a 3 year could do better...

II picked up a few cheap sketching and drawing books, a few years ago, if I use my eraser and heaps of tries my fruit can look not to bad...I think on the internet now, there are learn to draw pages, some free ones.

Teal, there is a thread here on grounding, I have a thread called...... "Grounding what is it and how do you do it"" if you just search it in the search bar you're sure to find it... it's has a lot of information that I hope you can benifit from.

I hope your day today is a good day..

kind and caring thoughts,

Grandy..

[TealRibbon]

Good morning Grandy

thank you for checking in. How are you?

I’m low today, not sleeping well and generally upset and confused. I’ve had some changes to my daily plan and I don’t deal well with changes 😞

I will have a look at your thread now, grounding is definitely something I need to practice more.

Take care x

[Guest8901]

Hi Teal,

Thanks for your reply. Yes the breathing and grounding exercises do help, but it takes persistence. I am also on ADs, plus a medication to help specifically with nightmares and sleep issues. Nonetheless there are still times I feel as though nothing helps. But we must persist, because I know life can get better.

Your art therapy sounds good. I wish I had that here. But I'm in a rural / regional area and there isnt much around like that on offer. I started sketching after a relative gave me an art book on sketching. So I read it and started to try to put the different techniques into practice. This was about a year ago now. So far I have done some plants, still life, portraits, etc. I must say that I am by no means an artist! But it doesnt really matter, I enjoy it and I find it calming, and thats what counts. So did you get to do any of your art yesterday as planned?

Sorry you're feeling low today. I'm with you actually, no sleep, very upset and confused about something last night, and generally highly anxious and feeling unwell today. So I might join you with a read through that grounding thread of Karens. May bump into you there. Thanks Karen for providing the name for Teal.

Amanda 💜