Lived Experience Forum

[Skyehigh911]

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to the forum. I'm here because I have accepted that I need help for my complex ptsd and I know this will help me.

[amber22]

Hey there @Skyehigh911 

Welcome to the forums! I am so glad that you have taken this step for yourself, and reached out online here. 

I am a Peer Support Worker here at SANE, and you may see my name floating around a bit during the week on the forums. 

If you wanted to post about a specific event/ situation that you need help with so that other members can comment some advice or similar experiences/ things that helped them, or you're welcome to reply here whenever you're ready to talk. 

Once again, welcome to this lovely community and I hope you get the help that you would like to 🙂 

Kind regards,

Amber22❤️

[Skyehigh911]

I guess I should tell my story. I was adopted as a baby and my adoptive parents are sociopaths.  I was sexually abuse by my father and my mother is just outright evil. She left my father when I was 6 and moved us in with her new husband who was a alcoholic and very violent. He would stand my brother and I in front of him and throw humiliating comments at us for hours for his own entertainment. They were both school teachers...we had no hope of being rescued ..no body ever believed me. I left home at 14 and jumped from partner to partner to survive living costs but being so young I walked straight into the hands of more sociopaths who found delight in triggering me into ptsd attacks...I'm now 51 and I have cornered myself into bearly coping at all. I've pushed away everyone I know just to protect myself from my triggers. I used to be able to pull myself through a ptsd attack in a few day but recent events with my neighbours has me in a on going ptsd cycle that I can't get out of. I'm determined to fight this as I can't see any other option. This forum will be a good place for me to know that I'm not alone, that I have something to look forward to. I enjoy everyone's posts and thankyou for reading this

[Sunshineandsea]

Hey @Skyehigh911 

Sorry to hear your story, that is long and traumatic. As a fellow PTSD sufferer I know it can be very hard to break the cycle. Like you, I have tended to try and escape, but always find myself facing triggers and/or making unhealthy connections. Thus, limited connection is a protective measure but not so helpful in other areas of your life.

Sounds like you’re having difficulty escaping this one. My last one went for what seemed like an eternity, and the only way I could escape was to make some very big life changes. It was a trade-off, though, I had to lose a lot to gain a little bit of reprieve from the PTSD. Sometimes the PTSD cycle can be debilitating. 

Any which way you look at it, PTSD is very hard to live with, and a sequence of protection strategies, trade-offs and ways to escape its consequences does become a cycle. 

Is there something particular about your neighbours that have triggered this cycle for you?

Hopefully, on here, you can find some safe friendships and support networks. 

Sunshineandsea xx

[Skyehigh911]

Hi@sunshineandsea

Thanks for your message. My ptsd usually lasts a few days but this one has been tough. My immune system was so worn out from it that I caught a bad virus and shingles. I moved into a homeswest unit a year ago but the units are a high traffic drug hangout and the neighbours have been running the place for years so I've been relentlessly harassed.. I'm in the process of getting a transfer and this is how I've come to face up to the fact that I have Ptsd and that no I can't do it alone anymore..

[Skyehigh911]

I've just been told by the doctor that the welts on my neck and back is shingles.. I caught it air borne because the last Ptsd attack slaughtered my amune system. I'm scared

[underthebee]

Hi @Skyehigh911 

So sorry to hear about this news, and how it's affecting you. It's really tricky with mental health conditions and stress, they really do take a toll on our immune systems. 

I'm wondering if your doctor has spoken to you at all about next steps that might put your mind at ease at all? Maybe it's too overwhelming to think about at the moment, and that's all right too. For times like these, is there anything you find helpful for making that fear feel a bit more manageable?

I'm sitting with you, and sending support your way 💙

[Skyehigh911]

My first counselling app is today but I have to cancell it because the shingles hurt so much . My medication for it won't be delivered until lunch time. I want to know what the next steps are. It's not too overwhelming.  I'm really ready to fight this. It's going to be hard while I have shingles but I am going to do this