Writing A Time Line For Therapy.

[GenerousMoon]

My for week was write a timeline. The more I wrote the more i got pissed off & more my headache increased. This is not a good exercise for to be doing. I even emotionally exploded. Threw everything off my table all over the room. Now, I have to clean my livingroom. Still didnt shed a tear, just pissed the f*** off. I did get to the 5th grade. All this therapy, talking, remembering is not for me. My total body is shaking. Cant do this!

 

[Naoru]

Maybe you're not ready to approach the whole thing at once? and that's totally okay. When I did a timeline, I worked on small pieces at a time, did not go into details, and walked away immediately when I felt myself becoming overwhelmed. I also did not start out in chronological order; I went back to my timeline throughout the day for a few days and just added things here and there. It helped take the pressure off and allowed me to maintain some control. Maybe an approach like this would work for you?

Or maybe it's too soon? It might be a good idea to stop and wait to discuss it further with your t. Don't give up. :hug: if you accept.

 

[Freedomfighter]

My for week was write a timeline. The more I wrote the more i got pissed off & more my headache...

Yeah, I notice that too, because when we write about our trauma all the bottled up anger and disgust comes up again and that is not easy to handle. But sometimes I have found a technique that I saw a long time ago as helpful.

You write down what moves you, what you really want to get across and then you destroy that piece of paper that you wrote that on. It is a little mental trick to help you visualize that you are letting those bottled up emotions out and by destroying the paper you put those nasty emotions behind you. I find it works many times.

 

[Cannottakethis]

I just wrote one of these for my T in my outpatient program. It was very VERY basic, almost an outline, with just the year and a brief bulletpoint of what happened; no details. It was a good start for someone who will only be treating me for a short time, and I felt like it was important for her to know. I will bring this to whatever treatment program I get into (please let it be Sheppard Pratt) to use as a starting point.

I can't imagine doing this in detail. It must have been so emotionally draining @GenerousMoon. Maybe you could do time periods instead? Like age 0-10, 11-16 etc.