Oct 27 2012
Note that there is a more developed version of this graphic here. This graphic depicts many different characteristics of what could be referred to as “Big T” trauma. I consider “Big T” trauma to refer to one impactful event or a time period of extreme stress with a clear beginning and end. The items listed …
Oct 23 2012
I had the chance to talk with a member of our military today at Starbucks and this article expresses what I wish I said to him… While I was waiting at Starbucks for my car to be serviced, I was working on my notes and sketches for this blog when someone said, “My wife takes …
Oct 23 2012
In the two previous blog posts I discussed flash rage and rageaholism. Flash rages occur due to anger that is like residue trapped within the nervous system from a highly impactful traumatic event, information that has yet to be processed successfully by the nervous system. It can come out suddenly because the nervous system is …
Oct 21 2012
The definition of rageaholic is, “a person who gets excited by expressing rage; a person prone to extreme anger with little or no provocation” (Dictionary.com). This is a rather underdeveloped definition. On the Wikipedia page there are more details, mainly focusing on developing self-control and anger management skills. But what is going on underneath? Eliminating …
Oct 15 2012
This is an illustration of the key components of a diagnosis of PTSD. I think PTSD can arise from an actual, threatened or witnessed event. The PTSD may not last as long but there are definitely cases of PTSD that arise from being a witness to a horrific event that occurred to someone else, especially …
Oct 14 2012
I read the book Waking the Tiger by Peter Levine back in 2009 and then from October 2010 until December 2011 had sessions with an excellent Somatic Experiencing therapist to address symptoms of PTSD (Somatic Experiencing is the somatic therapy developed by Peter Levine). A central component of Somatic Experiencing is the “felt sense.” The …
Oct 14 2012
Comments: During our experience of PTSD we may find that we scan the environment constantly trying to get as much information out of it as fast as possible. This is called being hypervigilant. We may not notice, but underneath this habit of watching our surroundings is a kind of wild, scared feeling of searching for …
Oct 08 2012
What is anger? How can those recovering from trauma use anger proactively as part of the healing process? How can we distinguish between anger related to developmental challenges (for example anger due to abandonment as a child), versus anger lodged in the nervous system after an impactful traumatic event (“fight response”, “flash rage”), versus anger …
