Anyone ever have problems with freezing?
Freeze: Anyone ever have problems with freezing? - Heal My PTSD
Freeze
13 Replies
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That's why I would never make it as an EMT. When things get rough or emotional, I have the tendency to freeze. I think it's dissociation.
Actually, not all the time, now that I think about it. When there's a family crisis, I spring into motion to handle things, but won't be emotionally very present. But with some events, it's like my mind will lock up and not knowing what to do, gridlock.
So, I guess I would say, "sometimes."
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I hear you Dan! I am researching it right now.
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Let me know what your research uncovers, if you would. 
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I will!
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I did find this....youtu.be/zI8fFOlVAcU
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Great resource, PoeticOvercomer! Thanks for sharing it - it does explain a lot. A couple of different types of freezing as I heard it, which is really going to make me think. Freezing to stay safe (rabbit not moving), or dissociation right after a traumatic event (battle fatigue). This is such a balanced explanation.
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I don't spring into motion like I did before. I've been in this mode 2 days. I couldn't get anything done today.
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I'm realizing there's a variability in the ability to respond - sometimes I can't, at others, I can. Sounds like you're really in the "can't respond like usual" place. I do get that one, for sure. I'm going to have to think about how I have the variability thing going on at times, and what makes it one or the other.
Yes and its frightening isn't it? One Xmas, I froze for 2 weeks. I was shopping and started to shut down, I left everything and went home and froze. I had two young children to look after and managed to shuffle very slowly when I had to. If I moved a finger, I started to panic. It is because of a traumatic abandonment as a child when my mother died in a car accident when I was five, and it was at Xmas. Are you in this state at the moment? It can help if you have a close a friend who can talk to you (about anything) - just chatting....it can help 'ground' you. I wish you well.
GeminiDancerMajor Contributor
I do. Actually more so recently. I freeze whenever I become overwhelmed. And I seem to become overwhelmed very easily. Sometimes I don't know where time goes because I'm just frozen or paralyzed and fog out in my mind and realize how much time has past and I have done nothing. I've been struggling with life changing decisions recently. This seems to short-circuit my brain and I go into freeze mode.
I do this a lot too, especially if I feel powerless.
Hi all, great to be somewhere where other people get it.
Yes PoeticOvercomer; Freezing up when I feel overwhelmed is my biggest and longest running challenge. The same as GeminiDancer I seem to get paralysed by movement in my life. It's a real pain because as I recover I slowly face the chaos that my life has become, but in trying to face it I freeze up.
I've also noticed that being alone and caring for my kids is enough to for me to seize up. I empathise with Pepper_bg that when I make myself move I feel very scared and panicky. My trauma built up from having a both neglectful but needy and manipulative mother. Freezing makes sense because I could never win no matter what I did. There was no use fighting and I couldn't go anywhere so I had to shutdown. I think my kids relying on me (when I have no get out- like now during school holidays) is enough to trigger me, which is just awful.
Anyone have any thoughts on where the freeze response ends and depression begins? Sometimes I think it's the same thing - just a shutdown mechanism. But as I heal my need to be horrible to myself, I notice that nowadays I can be totally unable to move but the depressive thoughts aren't so tightly tied up with it
