Sometimes, When I'm Reading, I'm Finding It Hard To Keep Concentration.

[Tei-Saji]

Like, the flashbacks constantly bombard me with unpleasant feelings when I'm trying so hard to concentrate on reading a chapter of my textbook. So I feel like I have to read it again because I couldn't keep my concentration, and that stunts my progress. It's really hard for me; sometimes I feel like that I'm trapped in my memories whenever I'm reading something. Like any word or sentence would bring me into the scenario it's describing, and suddenly I'm just staring at the text instead of reading it. How do people deal with constant dissociation problems? Should I tell my therapist?

 

[joeylittle]

I think telling your therapist is good.

Have you tried reading out loud to make yourself feel more present? As soon as I start getting dissociated, if I talk to myself about what is in my field of vision I can sometimes come back to the full present pretty fast. Just an idea.

 

[NicG]

You should definitely tell your therapist. Sounds like it's severely impacting your life and they might be able to help you work around it.

If you have some music, or a movie that usually calms you down, you could try playing it quietly in the background while you read. It could hep keep you grounded while you're trying to concentrate. And make sure that wherever you're trying to read feels like a safe place for you... if it reminds you of your trauma, you're not going to get anywhere (eg I was abused in the library of my university, so I can't study there, I'd rather go sit on a lawn or in the food court)