Prioritizing And Planning

[Ancient trees]

I can't do this for some reason. Hopefully, not yet. I know next to nothing about time management and it scares me to try and learn. Can anyone identify?

 

[WithAndWithOutWingz]

Yea, I sometimes wonder if I plan something will everything go right? Then the anxiety about the event itself and the people attending start to make me panic. Organizing can be a challenge when I'm depressed or anxious even...Prioritizing is like trying to ask me to think about anything more than taking my meds and breathing right!

 

[treble.maker]

Ancient trees, I can totally relate! I think that because we are already so stressed out, and basically just scattered from all the stress our brain has to deal with regularly, that actually planning for the future can be a lot more difficult for us with PTSD.

For me, I always try to plan things out for the next day or the next week when I am having a low-stress moment in my day, so that I don't have to try to worry about it later. That seems to be working pretty well so far; maybe it could help you? :-)

 

[JustBe]

Not only can't I deal with the stress of organizing anything beyond a walk with the dogs, I can't attend anything. Just thinking about it gives me chills and head rushes.

 

[angel2write]

I suppose you have to start with figuring out WHY planning is hard for you.

Bad experience in the past? Fuzzy head from meds or lack of sleep? Does it make you feel depressed or frightened to think about the future? Do you have problems you just can't see your way around, so planning seems pointless?

Maybe if you can figure out why it's hard, you can try to solve that problem first.

 

[maddog]

I think Angel's advice is good, though in my case, I'm not having a lot of luck in figuring out why. As someone who used to be incredibly analytical and very "cerebral", for want of a better term, I am often horrified at my lack of mastery of some of those basic but critical higher order cognitive processes, such as planning, problem solving, time management, task prioritisation, etc. I become easily overwhelmed by too much information, too many choices or options, or too many steps involved in a process that would lead to a simple straightforward course of action.

I think that PTSD in itself causes a degree of overload in the brain that can act to limit or partially shut down some of those processes. No, that's not based on science, but merely on personal observation and an attempt at interpretation of what goes on for me.

I also think that other key symptoms such as sleep disturbance, hypervigilance and general high levels of stress and anxiety have the same limiting effect.

In the end, trying to understand, trying to limit stress, trying to put in place as many little cognitive aids and supports as possible, and, importantly, trying not to beat ourselves up about it, are the best weapons.

Maddog

 

[JustBe]

Maddog, my Tdoc said just the same thing yesterday. It is the PTSD.

 

[treble.maker]

Yeah, that makes sense maddog.

Another thing I have noticed, Is that I cannot for the life of me make small decisions on my own anymore! I really function best when someone I know (and like) tells me what to do, but only when I ask them to.

I don't know if that's related, but as someone who was also very "cerebral" and very decisive in the past, it is frustrating for me too.

 

[angel2write]

I think even knowing it's "just" the PTSD helps. I've noticed some of the same problems with decision-making. I've had to have more help from my husband making decisions, especially emotion-laden ones.

And I need so many brain aids. I have lists and white boards all over my house. And I still lose and drop things I'm supposed to remember all the time.

But some of the fog got better when I got off Paxil and started getting real sleep, too. So it's worth taking the time to think about things like medication and sleep, etc.