Coping with hypervigilance.

[healing14]

Any one have any practical suggestions on coping with hypervigilance? Also, what effect does hypervigilance have on you? I basically try to reassure myself that I am not in danger and that I am safe. For me, the hypervigilance cuts me off from myself. Like I lose who I am entirely and just function on autopilot.

[Peeler5868]

Try this mindfulness mantra: May I be happy, May I be healthy, May I be peaceful, May I be safe. Say this to yourself as you focus on deep breaths in and out. This helps calm me down and brings me back into my body.

[MicheleR Founder]

Safety comes from certainty. While there will always be uncertainty in the world there are also things in our lives that are dependable. A lot of safety comes from being consciously connected to things you can depend on.

Identifying what/who those dependable things are in your world (i.e. the sun will rise every morning, your dog will always love you unconditionally, etc.), and making an effort to engage with/connect to them on a daily basis helps develop a sustainable belief system that grounds you in a foundation of elements that create a sense of safety.

An added practice: developing self-trust, which many of us lose after trauma. The more you trust yourself (to keep you safe, appropriately recognize and respond to real danger, make good decisions, etc.) the more safe you will feel. Check out the tips here for 3 ways to develop self-trust after trauma:

changeyouchoose.com/3-ways-...

All of these suggestions, of course, are DIY processes that can lead to sustainable self-growth and change. Trauma treatment, too, of any variety, can help reduce triggers, rewire the brain's threat detection process and eliminate physiological and emotional hypervigilant responses.

[Poohbear_1 Pioneer in reply to MicheleR]

I just would like to say that i listened to a interview you did on a radio station in America on your site and you spoke about taking the traumatic event that happened and remember it in a positive light and not negative. And i have been practicing this to my own situation and thinking of the accident i had in a more positive way. And things have been getting better for me and not as extreme when doing the things that trigger me like being in a car or out round a lot of people etc. It has seemed to make it have less power over me. I just would like to say thanks Michele as this has helped me to cope more and not feeling so bad and this has given me hope that one day i can beat this and has given me more drive as before i was at such a low ebb and loosing hope and the fight to get better. And the heal my PTSD Forum you created has been such an important resource to me and i have made more progress in two months than what i had in two years. Just to be able to talk about all the stuff that before i felt to ashamed to talk about and hid it from people due to the stigma that comes with mental health conditions and the general lack of understanding that people have of the condition. And to be put in touch with other PTSD survivors that could relate through first hand experience of having the condition and the advice and support i have received has been second to none. I think that the work you are doing is so vital and important and just to say keep up the good work and a big thank you. Best Wishes Poohbear'

[AbideinLove Pioneer in reply to Poohbear_1]

Yes, Poohbear, I feel the same way about our HealMyPTSD forum! You expressed our appreciation and gratitude to Michele eloquently.

It is a big step forward to see what happened to you in a positive light, I am glad that choosing to do this has been so helpful for you.

I am not able to see the multiple traumas I went through in a positive light.

Do you think it depends on the kind of traumatic event? Can all traumas be seen in a "positive light"? Even child molestation and rape? I have been told over and over that forgiveness is key to recovery. I am just not there yet.

[Poohbear_1 Pioneer in reply to AbideinLove]

No i don't think that all can be viewed in a positive light i could not begin to imagine what people go through that have been molested or raped and to even begin to see that in a positive light is beyond my comprehension as they are the worse crimes that can be committed against another human being. And i think that when people are caught for that they should be put in general population in prison and not there own private wing segregated from the other prisoners as then they would have it back on them ten fold and that is what they deserve as to do that to another human being in my opinion they give up any rights they had before and therefore it should be open season on them. But i am sure there is other ways to help people in that situation but the answer is beyond me as i have not been through that and i am new to all of this. Best Wishes Poohbear'

[AbideinLove Pioneer in reply to Poohbear_1]

Thank you for your validation of my feelings, Poohbear.

I HATE child molesters and rapists - all of them - and think they should all be locked up for good in the prison's general population. I have no compassion for them at all; they are sick in the worst kind of way. Can their "illness" be treated and cured? Can I find it in my heart to forgive them? I can only think of what I would like to do if I ever had the chance. Not pleasant thoughts at all.

[healing14 in reply to AbideinLove]

From what I understand, seeing your past in a "positive light" is a part of the healing process. It's the last part of the process which is supposed to be spiritual growth. The only positive that I can really grasp from my repeated trauma is the ability to have compassion for the suffering of others, particularly children, as I've suffered greatly myself.

[AbideinLove Pioneer in reply to healing14]

Thank you for sharing this wisdom. It is so very true.

[alamagoosa Pioneer in reply to AbideinLove]

Forgive yourself for not wanting to forgive your abusers. Or being able to. it doesn't mean you're a bad person. You are normal to hate, if you do, the people who hurt you. I can't spend all my energy trying to deny how much anger i have towards my dad just because it says so in the bible. remember, Even Jesus got angry.

[healing14 in reply to alamagoosa]

I don't speak with my abuser, my mother, at all. I don't let her see my child. Not only because of the hurt from the past but because she can't be trusted in the present or in the future. It makes me sad that this is part of my reality. On some days I just feel so much sadness and grief about it - for my past and for my present. I am a practicing Christian and I believe that God put me in this role on Earth for a reason. Maybe it's to be a much better parent to my children than my parents have been to me and end the miserable legacy. Maybe it's to help children who experience abuse and neglect as part of my career and better their lives in that way. That's putting a positive spin on it. I agree, though, it's very very hard to look at it from a positive angle. Some one robs you of your childhood and makes adulthood an extreme challenge to live in, apart from the normal wear and tear that everyone experiences.

[alamagoosa Pioneer in reply to healing14]

How about forgive the sinner but hate the sinful act? Does that work?

[healing14 in reply to alamagoosa]

Whether you forgive the abuser/perpetrator can only be your decision. For me, I wasn't, and am not, really focused on forgiving her or not. I am just not really concerned about her. I am concerned about myself though. I don't see forgiveness of her as a necessity for me to live my life as a normal functioning adult. I also don't see it as a requirement to wholly worshiping God.

[healing14 in reply to MicheleR]

Thanks so much, Michelle. I, too, have read many of your blog posts and can relate deeply. I'm glad to have read about the self-trust component of healing from trauma. I've been telling myself that "I can handle it" and that's made life someone easier.

More of a challenge for me though, from the complex PTSD, is the persistent feeling of being "edgy". Like, reading a book, or even writing this post, and I can't help but thinking that some thing bad is going to happen. Apart from the childhood trauma, I've also experienced war as a teenager. I think that this "edgy" feeling may come from that experience.

[AbideinLove Pioneer]

If my PTSD mind gets triggered and says "Danger! Flee!" when my life is no longer in danger,

I have been taught in therapy to:

1. STOP and FOCUS on your BREATHING

2. TUNE INTO what you are FEELING

3. GIVE the emotion(s) a NAME

4. FIND out the way you are experiencing the emotions in your body.

5. NOTICE what thoughts accompany the emotions and take whatever useful information you gain from them.

6. LET GO of the thoughts and feelings while experiencing the feelings in your body as sadness, anger, anxiety, etc. Focus on your breathing and letting go of your physical tension.

healing14, I can easily "lose who I am entirely and just function on autopilot" too.

So I am learning to STOP & BREATHE - then reassess the situation.

Not easy, but possible. Hope this helps.

[Hidden in reply to AbideinLove]

Hi there, I am also learning to focus lots on the feelings in my body that I get when I focus on the good things in my life. My cat purring in my ear, the sun warming my skin etc. this forges new neural pathways in the positive way in our brain and weakens the negative ones the more we do it. I'm studying Sophrology which was developed by Prof Caycedo in Spain in the 1950's because he couldn't believe that electric shock treatments and chemicals were the best option for WWII veterans. I came to it after years of anxiety attacks and physical pain and wish I had discovered it sooner.

What we create in our mind the body lives even if it is not real, but we can turn it around.

[AbideinLove Pioneer in reply to Hidden]

What a great idea. "...the feelings in my body..." What does my body feel when I focus on the good things in my life? I will try this!

Sophrology? Hmmm.... I will look into into it.... sophrologycenteronline.com

Hope you don't mind me quoting you in "Our Favorite Forum Quotes".

Your input is very helpful, hopeful and encouraging. Thank you so much! (:

[Hidden in reply to AbideinLove]

Absolutely, Sophrology Centeronline is where I am doing my Diploma! Dorna is an inspiration! You might also find Bruce Lipton's work interesting. ;0)

X

[AbideinLove Pioneer in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for your support, Rainbowdream. I will take a look.

With Love & Gratitude,

AbideinLove

[Hidden in reply to AbideinLove]

youtu.be/zwOvg1rJfcM(Not working as expected?)

[AbideinLove Pioneer in reply to Hidden]

Inspiring video! Thanks!

[healing14 in reply to AbideinLove]

Thanks so much for the "formula". I've been needing some practical advice other than telling myself that I am not in danger and having compassion for myself. The former has helped immensely to get me where I am now but I feel that it's getting worn out.

[AbideinLove Pioneer in reply to healing14]

Hope it helps.

[alamagoosa Pioneer in reply to AbideinLove]

Read about GABA a natural calming chemical in the brain. You can buy it in a chewable version.

[healing14 in reply to alamagoosa]

Checking it out. Thanks.

[Leckey]

I agree with ChiliDawg. Part of it is practice ike he says, because your brain is screaming "THREAT!" So changing the "threat" definition is possible. It takes time. Hypervigilance though, is a symptom. I use meditation and TRE because they serve two functions. Meditation makes you aware of your thoughts quicker. A great tool for that is Headspace. I also use TRE to release the stress and trauma that are the root of the hypervigilance.

I still have a bit of my own, particularly around the ex. I have noticed however, a lesser degree of it overall.

ATTENTION! The following is best taken up with a doctor if possible, and is only my course of action, not to be taken as a recommendation. This raises questions for me (I'm an EMT), about blood pressure, because it's part of my set of symptoms, and I know in many ways, I am not unique in this solar system. I use Carditone to control mine, and I use Ashwaganda (sp) with it. The two do a lot to knock the hyper down to a reasonable level. I went to the doc and got my health baseline: BP, cholesterol, all that sort of stuff. I use supplements instead of medicine partly because meds have side effects I couldn't work with as an EMT (one med suppressed the fight/flight response essentially), or effects I didn't want to live with, like constant coughing. Patients didn't like that!

And I walk 20 minutes a day. Or get on a machine for 20, just to keeping up the pace of a brisk walk. I prefer I walking into and around town. Ten minutes out, ten back. Gets the body moving, which it likes.

Hang in there. One thing I know - everything is impermanent. This will change, and if you work on it, for the better.

[healing14 in reply to Leckey]

I hear you re the blood pressure. Mine became a problem when I was pregnant with my daughter. That's when I started uncovering all the trauma that I was carrying around for the last 30 years. I'm thinking about a second pregnancy and getting the consistently down again is now an issue again. I am curious - what supplements do you use to control yours? I will look into TRE. Thanks so much!

[alamagoosa Pioneer]

The thing that works for me and gets me grounded is music. I have some I listen to all the time. They are downloads from amazon.com. David Arkenstone Chronicles. Thunder Over Shasta Mountain. Deuter Hands of Light. David Arkenstone also has some Christmas music. Diane Ulicsni. Look up meditation or PTSD on Amazon Digital music. Good luck.

[AbideinLove Pioneer in reply to alamagoosa]

Listening to David Arkenstone Chronicles on Spotify right now.

Very uplifting! Enthralling! Captivating! Beautiful music!

Thanks for sharing your favorite music! Will listen to the others too, after this album.

[healing14]

Practice feeling safe. I agree - I think that's key in dealing with PTSD issues. Sometime I wonder if I am making any overall progress with the dis-ease even when repeatedly assuring myself that I am safe. I guess it's the baby steps that matter. Thanks for the recommendation, ChilliDawg.

[healing14]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions. It feels better to know that there are others coping with this dis-ease and that they are making progress, as it appears that you are. Blessings to you all.