My mother is coming to visit. She arrives tomorrow, and the next day she is going to come to therapy with me (unless I change my mind).
One of the things that I want to try to communicate to her is that trauma is a very profound disruption of life. I really think she's mostly thought I just wasn't trying hard enough to be "normal." Or she thinks I should get over it, think happy thoughts, and move on. I realize, by the way, that she's far from the only person who thinks that way.
I think she might understand more if I could find a good way to compare PTSD to other things, or to point out in specific biological ways how it can change people. I might mention how trauma can change dna. I am not being specific about my own trauma, but I hope that you still have some ideas about how I might offer my mother a framework to view trauma in general.
One of the things that I want to try to communicate to her is that trauma is a very profound disruption of life. I really think she's mostly thought I just wasn't trying hard enough to be "normal." Or she thinks I should get over it, think happy thoughts, and move on. I realize, by the way, that she's far from the only person who thinks that way.
I think she might understand more if I could find a good way to compare PTSD to other things, or to point out in specific biological ways how it can change people. I might mention how trauma can change dna. I am not being specific about my own trauma, but I hope that you still have some ideas about how I might offer my mother a framework to view trauma in general.