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Sufferer Hi - I'm New To Dealing With All Of This

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Crystal Rose

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Hi there. I'm happy to have found this forum as I have had a hard time just being alive the past few weeks.

I'm a risk taker. I push myself to every edge and I pushed myself too far a few times.

A few years ago I found myself in a physically and mentally abusive relationship with a filmmaker that I ultimately was supporting. Later he told me he had cheated on me constantly. It was a slow descent and I am glad that I got out of it and found guided and mindful meditation practices, a great talk therapist, acupuncture, etc. I was on a self care roll!

I don't want to get too deep into my childhood but there's a lot of addiction and history of abuse and I didn't grow up with many boundaries, in a pretty Jesus-hippy dichotomy. I was sexually abused by someone that my parents took in. They took in a lot of strays. He went to jail. I said something right away and was glad I knew that much. I was always very anti-authoritarian and a high achiever and went to Christian school and a Christian college that I didn't fit into. Long story short I worked in music and then in film in Hollywood. I dated a porn star. I felt like I could have written a book about all it.

Fast forward to a couple years ago, I was happy alone and felt healed and was looking to get out of my stressful career and I met someone who was kind and sweet and wanted to date long distance even! He jarred me out of wanting to be alone and I moved halfway across the country as he had a business investment opportunity.

We moved into an old train station with no real bathroom and lived in harmony with bats. I survived a brutal winter and we would fight and that's when the flashbacks started. He was avoidant and non communicative and I had no idea what was happening. He wanted to live separately to work things out and he called me when I was in New Orleans with a friend to tell me. I was having a pregnancy scare at the time that he didn't know about. I caught him (at the very least emotionally) cheating and became hypervigilant. I fought desperately for my needs and didn't know my overwhelming emotions would cause him to leave. The icing on the cake was smoking weed (which I did a lot of with a medical card for my anxiety in CA) and having a mental break and completely disassociating, not remembering how I got into my new apartment and I had to rehash the cheating part and this was too much for my ex to handle. I had a friend come from Chicago just to talk to me and help me remember recent events. I can't believe that I chose someone who said they had chosen me and were committed to me. I definitely wouldn't have taken this leap had I suspected any of this would happen. A man my age, 32...who could just abandon me and contribute to my triggers in this way and not own up to his role or part in this.

I have been suicidal, away from my support system but I bought the DBT workbook and finally started EMDR recently (hard in a very small town to find and get into any places. I had given up a few months prior to the disassociation because I was so discouraged that no one was taking on new patients) but I am so drained physically and have very little hope for my future. I actually was so desperate I started on generic Zoloft but I had so many bad side effects including anorexia and it woke me up enough to realize that I need to get back on my Chinese medicine train. I still feel like I'm in love with this person so I'm ruminating in the pain. I thought that I would get better. I am hardly working. I am so tired and depressed and it just gets worse. I need this forum. I need more support. I think I might need an inpatient program but I'm scared.

Winter is very motivating but I would be going back to Oregon where my very dysfunctional extended family is on a compound. I don't think I need to make any rash decisions. I feel a lot of pressure to fit within a timeframe before winter and it's brutal darkness hit me.
 
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Hi. I'm new too. To this site, not to the disorders & pain. The avoidant man part of your recent life - just reading it - is a trigger to me. I feel for you & with you.
Ouch. I think the healthiest person can be deeply hurt by an avoidant. I painfully learned the difference is that a healthy person would not have reacted/responded to an avoidant like I did. My avoidant was really a narcissist - NOT capable of investment, intimacy or empathy. The 3 cycles took place in that relationship: Elevate/Love Bomb; Devalue/Smear; Discard/Reject & Abandon. I was a mess. Withdrawal was hell. Wanted to mention this - just in case it might fit your experience. I wish you peace. I wish all of us peace & healing.
 
Hi. I'm new too. To this site, not to the disorders & pain. The avoidant man part of your recent l...
Thank you so much for your reply. I am really struggling with him because he wants to be friends and support me, but he says that he worries that he's not emotionally equipped or empathetic enough to be there for me, and he's right. I'm just in a constant state of shock that I trusted him and it's come to this. He was neglected growing up and before I got into this round of therapy I finally learned about attachment styles and object relations. I feel like I embody everything he's afraid of re: a future with someone and I never pressured him in that way. I just didn't like him shaming other people for having kids so my pregnancy scare was obviously not a good time for us. I just wish he were willing to get into therapy himself. He's really diminished and devalued the time we've spent together and I have to tell myself that's HIS coping mechanism and not reality. I really really really really relate to everything you just mentioned and I'm worried that I will become avoidant and I don't want to trust anyone. I don't need that extra helping on my plate I guess!! Again I really appreciate your reply and I hope for peace in our hearts.
 
Thank you so much for your reply. I am really struggling with him because he wants to be friends a...
If he is telling you he's not good for you he's not good for you. Let him go. It's not worth the extra stress to hold onto somebody that not only hurt you but is dangling in front of you that you still care about. Make sense?
 
I can rationalize this of course, but I'm having really intense physical reactions to all of this. I'm trying to not contact him because it causes me physical pain to constantly have him flake and devalue me. It doesn't mean that it's easy or that I haven't thought about letting him go. It's overwhelming physical pain that I want him to fix. I know it isn't rational but it doesn't make it hurt less.
 
Warm welcome Crystal.. trauma aside- that is a difinitively, amazing life story... readers' digest version I realize.

I can empathize with the toll exacted on your spirit/freedom? from the stress and damages, but it's great you're on here able to share and engage with others in similar boats.
 
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Warm welcome Crystal.. trauma aside- that is a difinitively, amazing life story... readers' digest ver...
Thanks for the welcome! I guess my goal is to definitely regain my spirit and keep it as intact as possible. You sound like you really know what you are talking about and I appreciate your insightful perspective. It's nice to e-meet you.
 
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