Traumatic childhood ruined my life?

Hi. What a dreadful time you must have had. You have already made the connection between what happened in childhood and your circumstances of today. Added to that are your own medical needs. However, you mention going to work, and that indicates you are holding on to things quite well.

After I qualified as a therapist some years ago, I worked in a small psychotherapuetic unit which specialised in the treatment of adults who had had a traumatic childhood. Oe of the worst responses I heard from a relative of one of the clients was ' he is an adult now and should get on with his life'. Needlesstosay, I was shocked at such a lack of empathy or even basic understanding of the lasting effects of childhood trauma. At the core of the treatment was a range of therapies - one size does not fit all. And therapy is my advice in your situation. Your physical needs will be attended to with no problem, but it is sometimes more difficult to get help with psychological or emotional illness.

You might ask your doctor about being referred to a therapist - I say therapist, and not psychiatrist, deliberately. I find that psychiatrists, who are medical doctors with specialist training, can sometimes focus too much on the medical side of things in terms of just reaching for medication as a response to difficult emotional situations. Others might disagree with that - but that is my experience. I hope that you get the help you need and willl be able to overcome your difficulties.

Karl

Hi Tidalepine

As a lifelong sufferer of anxiety,panic,worry,fearfulness(I am now 66)I believe a traumatic childhood-one of prolonged stress,leads to a form of post-traumatic stress.

I believe this needs therapy with a person who really understands this form of PTSD & has been trained specifically.We have to protect ourselves from more trauma & stress from well-meaning caring professionals who may re-traumatise us.

If you are lucky enough to live in a town that has the anonymous self-help group"Adult Children of Alcoholics"(ACA or ACoA)I can highly recommend it.These groups are for any adult of any age,still suffering the effects of a traumatic childhood-not just due to alcohol & other drugs.

I have attending many of these meetings over the years & being in a group where the other members are fellow-travellers(there are no professional facilitators)aged 18 -80 is a deeply healing,enpowering experience.

Alanon & Families Anon have also been very helpful to me on my journey.(My father was an alcoholic)