Crying and Freeze States

[Abstract]

Ever since I have been more self aware and my PTSD spilled over into demanding more attention I have this reaction. One tear and I freeze or go into the shake freeze state. Any random thoughts? This is still an area I am less self aware as have not been able to speak about issues like this in therapy since and have even struggled on places like this. Thank you!

 

[Teasel]

Certain situations put me in the freeze response too and I think it was @shimmerz I read talking about this and saying that sometimes being able to move just your little finger can help you begin to unfreeze.

I've managed to remember that sometimes and it helped.

 

[Friday]

Assuming that you’d actually be one of those people who enjoy crying...

1. Anything in your trauma history around not crying? Like the whole “I’ll give you something to cry about,” thing, or other consequences of crying?

2. Do you freeze in response to any other kind of big emotion? Anger, fear, joy, excitement, etc.?

 

[Abstract]

Thank you @berlinda. I do find it helps if I can break the freeze with movement.

Thank you @Friday Hmm. Not one who likes vulnerability(aka weakness) in myself (don't perceive it like this for others) and crying is vulnerable but...
1.this isn't linked to judgement about crying as its more immediate and .. visceral. Also not talking about sobbing crying here as it happens at the most invisible sign of a tear. Answer is that I don't know for sure. Lot of missing information and cognitive dissonance. Wasn't a cryer on the whole. Know that. Have always been an under responder externally speaking. So it wouldn't be an I'll give you something to cry about situation.
2. At one point freezing was happening a lot so hard to tell all but can say definitely not in response to internal anger, joy, excitement etc. Used to happen if I received a text or phone call from someone who was a so called loved one. Not even sure if it could sometimes be a type of emotional flashback and the crying is a response rather than what sets it off. In these situations that is. In fact I think that is definitely something that happens at least some of these times.

Wonder what other judgments thoughts experiences can be linked to crying. Happened the other day and it was in response to someone doing something that caused pain

 

[Abstract]

Wondering if there is a trigger in there somewhere but still am very ignorant on how to prise apart a lot of trigger stuff.

 

[EveHarrington]

For me, I can figure out my triggers based on my reaction. A reaction that doesn’t fit the situation? Chances are it’s based on the past and not the present.

 

[Abstract]

Thank you.
Hmm... Its definitely an over reaction and a bit weird on top of that. There is another emotion there, Guess I need to figure out what.

 

[Abstract]

Is it possible for am actual emotion to be a trigger at times?

 

[joeylittle]

Is it possible for am actual emotion to be a trigger at times?

Well, there's the concept of primary and secondary emotion.

Primary emotions are the ones we identify as the feeling we are having. Secondary emotions are the feelings we have surrounding that initial emotion. AKA, "feelings about our feelings".

When I'm angry, I often immediately feel afraid. The combination of those two leads to feeling overwhelmed, and then secondarily ashamed. Generally, I'll end up crying. That's an example of primary and secondary emotions chaining together to create responses that can seem oddly disconnected from the initial feeling (the primary emotion) that sparked the whole thing.

People experience secondary emotions in all sorts of ways, and I often suspect that PTSD/CPTSD folk confuse secondary emotions for being triggers. I'm not saying you do this, BTW - it's just something I've wondered about. It's easy to miss the secondary emotion unless one stops and notices it.

When someone experiences joy and then weeps, it can be the primary emotion joy, and the secondary emotion, relief. The tears might be more rooted in the relief than the joy itself.

And for anyone who struggles with emotional regulation as a result of their diagnosis - the intensity of the primary emotional response, coupled with the intensity of the secondary emotion that is generated, can result in the state we call 'flooding', which could then lead to freezing.

The advantage in understanding and identifying secondary emotions is that one can then work with them. Simply slowing down enough to clock the feelings we have about our own feelings can truly result in a better understanding of how to manage them, how to shift them, how to connect the dots between those feelings and the distorted thoughts or (negative) core beliefs that inspire them.

 

[InsertCoinsHere]

Are you within your window of tolerance? I know when I begin to shake/tremor (shock/fear) I’m probably at the edge of my tolerance.. same with crying, If I begin to get easily upset then I need to take a step back and increase my self care strategies.

All this trauma healing can be so confusing, I often find myself at a loss of what is going on.. It’s sometimes only a few days later that I suddenly realise that my body and mind have been processing, I often know I’ve been processing as long forgotten memories/random facts return into my awareness out of nowhere.

 

[Justmehere]

The numbing out and the crying could both be symptoms of the same underlying matter. Your brain feels to overwhelmed to cry, so it copes by numbing out. Sometimes, I find that the better I’m coping, the less I will numb, and the more that I will cry.

 

[MyWillow]

Thank you.
Hmm... Its definitely an over reaction and a bit weird on top of that. There is another emotion there, Guess I need to figure out what.

Just picking up on this. When I use language like “over reaction” my psydoc asks me to rephrase it. Because it’s NOT an over reaction or weird given my history. She emphasises how important this self talk is. The body is doing its best.

My psydoc calls these freeze responses body memories and we just work on reassuring the body that it is safe now and I am listening.