Types Of Trauma, Type 1 And Type 2

[rainy_daze]

I am in the middle of processing the infomration of being told I have type 1 and type 2 trauma.

The funny thing is, this was said to me at my initial appointment with the psychologist 4 years ago. Then I waited for therapy, and now I've started it's like my mind is opening up. It is beyond horrible. I realise this is what is supposed to happen, in order to really deal with my past instead of saying I will deal with it but not having the skills to do so. It is painful regardless.

I was posting here earlier, and then I went away for a bit, and the type 1 and type 2 trauma popped into my mind. I had no clue what it meant. I have found one article explaining it, and I am half way through reading and I am reacting to it badly but calmly at the same time. Polar extremes is my middle name.

In all seriousness, I am finally realising what my diagnosis of PTSD actually means. I am now understanding that I have always had it. I know now that I disassociate, and I have been in denial about that because I never understood what it was I was doing when my eyes glaze over. I do it so often. No wonder it can take me hours to do certain things. I have so much work to do, it is overwhelming. Yet I am at the stage where I feel a little calm, because I feel different from this time last year. Maybe not better, but stronger. I can cope if I put the work in but also if I am kind to myself.

So it looks like I actually had PTSD in childhood. It is confirmed there. It was something I already knew, and yet I am only admitting it now, if that makes any sense. I feel really sad. The description in the article is eerily me, and I long for it not to be. I thought type 1 and type 2 was another way of saying I had PTSD, I didn't realise at the time how relevant it is for me to actually know that. To accept what they both mean. It is scary to read.

So, the purpose of this thread, apart from me figuring this out and taking the learning I can from it to hopefully heal, is to discuss type 1 and type 2 trauma. If you have ever been told about them in therapy or you have had similar reactions like what I am experiencing because of major past-related eye openers, feel free to share.

 

[Deleted member 1860]

This is news to me. I assume this is not connected in any way with the DSM?

 

[who am i kim]

Never heard of it but would like to know about it? :)

 

[Pencil]

Type 1 refers to single event trauma - most closely related to PTSD. Type trauma is more commonly described as complex trauma. These are simply other terms for it.

Rainy-daze, it might help to look at articles on complex trauma - especially by people like Christine Courtois. Here's a link to a good one:

www.dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/DSAMH/files/si10_1396_article1.pdf

And just to complicate matters nicely, there is of course Type 3 trauma as well: Complex cumulative trauma ;)

 

[saffy]

Hi

I have never been told about stages of trauma but I do relate to your awakening.

After 40 years of self doubt and hatred I finally found the link between what I was experiencing and PTSD.

It all started to make sense. I opened up a lot of cans and gave me a lot of things to think about. But it also clarified a lot of things that had so far never been able to be explained or understood.

With this knowledge, the confusion and searching slowed down and I could start to digest and separate my thoughts to what was true and what was based on negative inner dialogue.

I could also start to recognise that some of my behaviour was totally based on fear and self loathing and for most parts was irrational and untrue.

I suppose it has helped me understand why I think and do what I do more clearly so that I can work on growth and improvement.

Best wishes
Saffy :)

 

[rainy_daze]

Thank you all for replying so quickly. Your responses are really appreciated.

This is news to me. I assume this is not connected in any way with the DSM?

I don't think it is connected with the diagnostic criteria for PTSD, and it wasn't given to me as a label as part of any diagnosis. I recall her saying it to me, but it wasn't made a big deal of, other than I had asked her if she had worked with people who had PTSD and then I think she spoke a while about her interest in trauma work. It was a long time ago now.

From a quick glance through the article Pencil posted, type 1 and type 2 (I haven't found these in the article), or type 3 which is referred to as complex PTSD, seem to be terms that someone has came up with, but they have not been added in to the DSM, they act more as a construct for research purposes, by the looks of it. I think there is also an argument that they have conceptualised a different type of PTSD, and wish for it to be included in the DSM, but it hasn't, from what I gather.

The c-PTSD is something I am sure I have read about on this forum before, and if I recall correctly, Anthony has mentioned that it isn't part of a diagnosis; it's the diagnosis of "you have PTSD, or you don't", and then along with PTSD you might have other disorders (I see some people have DID, which I don't know a lot about, or some people suffer from depression as well, which I do). There are different levels of severity (i.e. how well you cope or severity of symptoms) and not everyone experiences the same symptoms or to the same degree with PTSD. Maybe the type 1 or 2 or 3 confuses a PTSD criteria diagnosis even more?

Never heard of it but would like to know about it? :)

I am hopeful that during counselling I will remember to bring up this type 1 and type 2 and ask more about it. I will then come back and clarify why she used it, or how she uses it or understands it now that it's 2013. Maybe it was her phrase back in 2009; I can't think of it being said since then.

If I really think about why I found it so difficult, reading about type 1 and type 2, is that I am concerned I may have had PTSD longer than I had realised; something I need to talk about in therapy. For example, does it matter when PTSD started? Should it matter to me? If I was never given a diagnosis, I know I wouldn't have survived this long. In all honesty, of course I cannot predict what would have happened, but I was on a very dangerous and self-destructive. If I was ill for so long, why did no one notice? Why did I not speak up? Of course, I know the answers to these questions, and would like to resolve the feelings they have brought up in me.

I probably should not have looked it up, as this served me little benefit at the time, so in future if something like this crops up I might write it down and save it for a time when I can bring it up in counselling or post about it when I know more.

It all started to make sense. I opened up a lot of cans and gave me a lot of things to think about. But it also clarified a lot of things that had so far never been able to be explained or understood.

With this knowledge, the confusion and searching slowed down and I could start to digest and separate my thoughts to what was true and what was based on negative inner dialogue.

I could also start to recognise that some of my behaviour was totally based on fear and self loathing and for most parts was irrational and untrue.

Thank you Saffy, for sharing this, your post resonates with me. I feel glad that someone can relate. The more I think, I know it isn't about the labels, it's about the past and how it has shaped me. I need to start acknowledging it all, facing it, and moving on. I can't change it, but I can change what my life is like now. I feel overly aware, but your post gives me hope. I am sending you healing vibes through the internet Saffy - or a hug if you prefer.

 

[saffy]

I am sending you healing vibes through the internet Saffy - or a hug if you prefer.

I like both thank you Rainy and I hope you accept my return hugs and healing thoughts :)

I am glad you feel hopeful and I promise that things will start to feel more at peace as you start coming to terms with things. I found with my new understanding of how the past has affected me, as you say, it has allowed me to accept certain things and put them to sleep, if that makes sense. I was wasting so much energy on the wrong thoughts and paths to avoid certain emotions which were based on past conditioning.

Now I feel more free to focus on my life and self improvement. I figured no one else would be able to do that for me. Not because I did not deserve it or that someone would not understand properly But I realized it would have to be a more personal journey to happiness. It helped to refocus my thoughts onto myself in a more positive way rather than focusing on negative perceptions of myself and what was going on around me.

It helped understanding that I was manipulated victim to their behaviour and attitudes, I did not make them do it, their actions started and finished with them. So why should I hate myself because of their actions. Actually if I think rationally about myself I have a lot of good qualities which makes me a likeable person. So I should like myself and everyone else I chose to like or know should treat me well, if not I have the power to maturely decline them or walk away.

I have also learned that I had every right to protect myself against manipulations and abuse because I could now recognise that I do not actually deserve to be treated negatively by anyone and it is their personality not mine that is irrational.

I look for behaviours and personalities in others to set my standards against rather than flailing around not really knowing what to do. But to do that I had to know myself better and not be scared to set high standards and boundaries in case of rejection or abandonment.

I realised that the people who did this were not actually the type of person I wanted to know anyway in the end. So I am glad they did, it also emerged that a lot of the time I feared rejecting and abandoning them because I did not want to hurt them.

Actually what I was doing was projecting my feelings onto them. It made me think they also would be devastated to be rejected and thought I would be a hypocrite to reject them if I hated being rejected myself.

So I put up with crap only to get rejected then hating myself for it. It is not me they are rejecting it is their differences in opinion and needs. I felt more confident and powerful knowing that.

Sorry I am waffling off subject. But hey, it is all part of our personal growth and individual path to peace and happiness. :)

Best wishes Rainy and I hope your day is going well. :)
Saffy :)