Trauma and Addiction: Crash Course Psychology #31

I was sexually and emotionally abused by a family member who was our landlord. I grew up with a self harm addiction and thought I was stupid because I had emotional problems and would get panic attacks when in large crowds where people who be rubbing against me. It's sad how in school we "need" to learn advanced math and every single part of a cell, but anything to do with mental illness is totally ignored.

I had one classmate who has ptsd. I never knew this until one day he told me this when I asked him why whenever I thought I was alone in a classroom/lecture hall/ lab and I sing, he purposefully come into the room and sit in the corner and close his eyes. Though flattering that he said that I had a beautiful voice; he claimed that it helps him remain calm whenever he felt like he was going to panic or was feeling distressed. I was surprised when he told me that not only did it help calm him but it was something to look forward to during the day whenever he didn't feel like he could go to class. I bring this up because I find it interesting that music can be helpful in treating someone with ptsd.

One source of PTSD often overlooked: bullying.  I personnaly endured almost daily harassment, threats, fear for my physical safety and a good beating once in a while, around the complascent look of teachers who thought it was just kids playing.   I recognize myself in many aspects of PTSD, mainly with anxiety, withdrawal, paranoia and skewed views of the world.   I wish we were more open to talk about and recognize the terrible consequences of letting kids harassing each other.  

When I was 7, my parents got divorced and my mom started dating a new guy. My moms boyfriend sexually and physically abused me for 4 years. It happened for me ages to 7-11. I became a very angry child. At age 11, I started self harming. A few years later I was addicted to self harm and I was doing drugs often. I’ve been through so much therapy and was diagnosed with PTSD and Bipolar Disorder I’m a psych hospital. Now I’m 15 and recovering. I have a long way till I get better but I’m still proud of myself.

its so important to stress and highlight the link between trauma and addiction. no, not all traumatised people use substances to cope and not all traumatised people who use substances are addicted, but among addicts you'll find numerous stories of childhood abuse, sexual trauma, mental illness, etc. Thinking "drugs are bad so the people who do them are bad and dont deserve sympathy cause they willingly ingest bad substances" is the worst kind of moralistc argument that not just ignores the complexities and complications that there are to drug use and abuse, but also entirely disregard that soo many addicts are addicts because they have been hurt, traumatised, neglected nad marginalized often their entire lives with no healthier means to cope.

Anybody else think that they need to add psychology in highschool.

I have PTSD and I have been improving, it is not easy. Yet each day I don't relapse is a victory.

Young people suffering from PTSD are often neglected and undermined.

I was diagnosed last year with PTSD. When I tell people that they always confusedly ask me if I was once in the military...I wasn't. The first 22 years of my life I was severely abused and neglected, it was so bad that I was unable to take care of myself once I got out of that situation. It's been 13 years since I got away and I sadly used alcohol to self-medicate myself those first 10 years. I've been working on myself in the last year and a half but it always makes me so angry when people make PTSD out to be a condition that soldiers get. I've been told by people that I can't have PTSD since I wasn't in/was in the military. It always seems to me that every time someone talks about this condition they always talk about it effecting soldiers. It's just so damn frustrating.

I have PTSD from childhood abuse and it actually caused my body to physically react and develop fibromyalgia. As someone who suffered from childhood/spousal abuse(which PTSD is more diagnosed in than Veterans) it's actually EXTREMELY frustrating to have the conversation of PTSD be focused on war and not on spouses and children being abused. Especially when spousal/child abuse is so so common in not just America but all over the world. Veterans are given special programs to specifically deal with their PTSD but when it comes time to help spouses and children who are suffering, social programs come up short. (let alone the conversation being even directed to these victims) I'd like to see more conversations on PTSD be for victims of abuse. Especially for children who have known no other situation but their life with their abuser. I'd like to see PTSD dogs being sanctioned to spouses/children of abuse. I'd like to see media looking into these victims of PTSD. Not just veterans.

I wish everyone understood some addicts really have gone through some shit, and it's easy to blame them, but sit through an AA or NA meeting a couple times, and you might "get it".

One can never "go back" - whether an individual is traumatized or not. the real question is 'how to move forward' when one feels rooted by the events of the trauma(s).

Going to point out that PTSD is not the only trauma disorder out there, merely the most well understood. I was diagnosed with something called 'van der Kolk syndrome', more commonly known as Developmental Trauma Disorder, a largely unknown disorder but one both related to and distinct from PTSD. Whereas PTSD arises from relatively short, very acute trauma, DTD comes about from chronic, low levels of trauma that aren't usually seen to be traumatic (social isolation is a very good example of such an instance), but does have a very pervasive, insidious influence on one's self (indeed, it's 'developmental' trauma because it badly and continually damages how that person develops over time). It's important to be aware that one can suffer trauma and not be aware of the seriousness of the damage done. Those single, parsed instances of pain that we try to construct our emotional narrative out of might appear trite if we haven't suffered war or rape or an abusive parent, but that doesn't change that pain can still exist, and can be debilitating. Worse still, not recognising pain as pain means it is never treated, and support is never received. Sometimes, no matter how petty the trigger, it really isn't whining. 

The little crying brain who was being petted at the end was so cute and heartbreaking.  I wanted to give him a big hug.  I'm going through some tough times now.  It's always comforting to hear that we are resilient creatures. :)

Came for the batman thumbnail - stayed for the content well played Hank... Well played.

I didn't see one shitheaded comment in the comment section when I scrolled down! This is some sort of a wonder for sure!

We are so good at noticing trauma and PTSD of men who served in the army. But it's still hard for us as a society to see the ways women suffer PTSD after rapes, domestic violence, selling their bodies to men.

Thank you for explaining this so deeply. I was diagnosed with PTSD a year ago. My psychiatrist said, "I'm glad you have coping techniques such as your writing and art and being around positive people. Most my patients your age don't have coping techniques. Keep it up, cause I can see that it's working for you. I can't wait to read your novels about how you went through all that abuse. You are a very strong woman." PTSD doesn't go away over night, it takes years.

Hank knows what he's Tolkien about:3

I have C-PTSD from years of abuse from both of my parents. After I escaped the situation, I experienced nightmares about the abuse/horrible things every single night for over a year, I still get the nightmares but I am so thankful that they aren't EVERY night like before. I also have flashbacks, which also aren't as bad as they used to be, but I still get them. I also have almost-constant anxiety, floating anxiety, sometimes it is worse sometimes it's mild. I still wake up 3-4 times each night. And of course, I had the irritability especially for the first several months after I escaped the abuse. I feel like I'm starting to heal, slowly. Time and being in a good environment really does help.