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Yes, it makes tremendous sense. It has been documented, for example, that children who have a parent commit suicide are more likely to choose suicide themselves. I know you don't want that for your son. Besides, how do you KNOW life isn't going to get better? I mean, that's why we throw in the...

There are many other things you could do, by the way, to help yourself feel safe. For example, once upon a time I pushed my bed into a corner of the room, so only one side was exposed, and put a kiddie guard rail on the exposed side. I hung Christmas lights in my bedroom and let them run all...

Many professionals strongly suggest the establishment of a Safe Place. If you need to justify it to your husband, I'm sure you could find something online.

By the way, in response to your initial question: When is It time to give up? It is never time to commit suicide. There are times when it it is appropriate to go inpatient, but I don't think of that as 'giving up'. If you decide to go inpatient, I strongly suggest a Colin Ross associated...

Yes, please do make it both official and special. Try to spend some time there every day, whether you think you need to or not.

Yes, exactly! Both painful and crazy-making.

I used to have terrible and frequent affective flashbacks. It helped me, when experiencing any extreme (maybe not even so extreme) unpleasant emotion, to ask myself, "Does this emotion BELONG to this time and place?" So, for instance, if I were in an ice cream parlor surrounded by happy people...

Have you established a Safe Place at home? This could be a whole room, a curtained -off corner of a room, or even a walk-in closet. In this Safe Place, you put things that help you self-soothe: pillows, a favorite blankie, children's books, stuffies...whatever you want. You could even put a...

Traumatic memories often first appear in dream form. This means your brain is trying to process the memory. This is not anything to worry about. It is, however, prime material for discussion in therapy.

Yes, it's called an affective flashback. While some flashbacks are complete (visual plus auditory plus affect) others are not. Sometimes the visual, auditory, tactile, and affective components of the memory are stored separately; when that happens, a partial flashback occurs. You are having...

What are you grateful for, may I ask? Stating it will help you feel better.

These particular symptoms sound like Major Depression. Been there, done that! This is the time to put anti-depression schemes into place. Yes, you can. - Thought stoppage (Google it up. I've written about it here a number of times) is highly effective in your sort of case. You can make some...

Perhaps you are taking this news as a sign that your life is over, that there's nothing left? Not true. Many of us have gone on permanent disability only to improve and go back to work or college. Disability is not the end of your world but rather the beginning of your healing process. Now you...

Stabilization and the development of strong coping skills is top priority. These necessarily precede trauma work. DBT would be a fine place to start.

I'm sure you are.

Well, I suppose the answer might depend on what you are trying to recover from, and the severity of your symptoms. Personally, I found it helpful, to some degree , to 'force ' recovery. When I didn't, I wallowed in my pain and memories; this made everything worse. When I 'forced recovery' by...

Yes, she probably did believe in the technique at that time. Even if she knows better now, though, she might not be willing to face the concept lest she experience pain and remorse. My parents once put me in my crib at 8PM and let me scream uninterrupted for hours. They did not understand that...

Well, I wasn't physically abused at Christmas but Christmas has always brought memories of my abusive family. What I do now is focus on all the happy thoughts I have about Christmas, blow off my abusive family, and engage in only the Christmas festivities that bring me great joy. Every time a...

Why not put significant distance between your mother and yourself? You don't need to listen to her pontificate about the abuse.

Your entire post screams sexual abuse. Please make an appointment with a therapist. I suggest you print your initial post and give it to her at your first meeting.

1. Give him all your meds. Only keep on hand exactly what you need to make it until you see him next. If you have a gun or other weapon, give him that, too. 2. Arrange to sleep over at a friend's home until the immediate crisis has passed. Tell your friend about your suicidal ideation and ask...

Even if the DES treatments did cause her eventual leukemia, you are still not at fault. If she hadn't become pregnant with you, she would have become pregnant with another child and, most likely, suffered the same result. In any case, you are clearly not to blame.

Your mother practiced neglect to the point of abuse. I am so sorry. There is, strangely enough, a 'positive' side to this story. Most abusers refuse to admit to their crimes; this leaves therapists and survivors to make their 'best guess' as to what went wrong in childhood. Your mother, on the...

That's quite a burden you're carrying. I cannot think of anything a six y/o can do (or be, for that matter) to cause a parent's death. Even if a child were to be violent at that age, she is not truly responsible for her actions. At that age, children do not fully comprehend the consequences of...

I spent one week at a Collin Ross treatment center (Del Amo). It was impressive. I think the one in Texas (?) - whichever one is physically close to Dr. Ross - is the best facility. Of course, this was years ago. I can't speak to their current effectiveness.