HigherMatcha
New Here
Female in her fifties here. Lots of trauma, but I navigated with gratitude (lots of ups and downs, but I persevered) until the last few years. Apparently, my trauma cup overfloweth, and I have new symptoms - severe depression, wanting to self-harm, tourettes, and feeling overwhelmed to the point of shutting down. I am surprised and baffled. I did start IFS a few months ago, but I was struggling before then. Symptoms are mildly alleviated by a good sob and completely alleviated by a good 8-10 hours of sleep. I have severe sleep issues (last 20 years) so a good night of rest comes around every month or so. I have excellent sleep hygiene but wake on full alert throughout the night. This started when I began shift work in my 30's - before that I slept well and hard. Oh! I have this odd thing where if I do not rest well or I get stressed, the right side of my face collapses - I can lift it with smiling, but it looks like bells palsy if I do not make an effort. I have had an MRI and a CT and nothing was noted. I am here to take action and do whatever I can to get through this extremely rough patch. If I can be of service to others, that would be awesome too.