Other Witness/survivor Of Violent Crime

[j.l.seagull]

Well hey! Where to begin?! I am a Grad student, finishing classes this semester and working on my thesis all summer/fall and graduating in December. In 2007 my (now ex) husband and I were driving when he upset the wrong person who subsequently shot him twice in the back; he was instantly paralyzed and he ended up crashing the car.

I won't go into great detail about the whole crash/experience but here I am, 5 years later and experiencing what I THINK is PTSD, though I have never been formally diagnosed. I began experiencing symptoms in 2010, 3 years post incident. I have never had extreme flashbacks or nightmares but I have suffered from anxiety since then. In fact, I am writing my thesis about it! :)

Anyway, I had some psychosomatic symptoms that were becoming intolerable so I signed up with a counselor - best decision ever! We started with a form of CBT called ACT and I've been able to get my anxiety mostly under control. Now we are doing EMDR to release my trauma.

My big thing is, as time goes on and I keep "digging," more and more trauma, symptoms, etc... come to the surface. It's rather disconcerting. I've often thought I was going crazy or experiencing some sort of psychotic episode.

I'm pretty sure I have some repressed childhood trauma as well, which I plan to deal with in the near future.

I try to stay positive about the whole situation and studying Buddhism/meditation has helped immensely. I also have really amazing social support.

I am here to find some sort of framework for what I am experiencing. I have found that knowing one is not alone in ones experiences aids in recovery. I am confident that I will get past this and regain what has been lost. I don't seek to be the same as I was pre-incident - I plan on being better than that. :)

Thanks guys!

 

[KP the nut]

Welcome to the forum

When I first joined the forum, my greatest relief was that I was no longer alone. Folk here 'got it'. Well done on writing your introduction, I know it is a big step to take.

Please take your time looking around, the information on the home page with the red pins is particularly helpful. There is aslo a lot of support and friendship to be found.

Wishing you peace
KP

 

[Deleted member 12723]

Hi and welcome to this site. You sure have a positive attitude and you have been through so much. I wish you the best. This is a good place, I have gotten alot of help and support here. Take good care of you.

 

[reallydown]

Welcome to the forum. You're right; this may or may not be PTSD so it's best to be diagnosed by a qualified professional. I think it's normal that more things surface as you get into it more. It probably means you are ready to start working on it. Coming here was definitely a good step. Take care.

 

[nammajamma]

I am really sorry to hear about the experience you and your ex husband had. The man who shot him is truly a coward. As a survivor of violent crime I understand how fear, bad feelings and memories can creep into your life years later. Thank you for sharing your story.

 

[Whitneys story]

Hi and Welcome to the Forum. I wish you success on your journey. Have you read Illusions by Richard Bach?

 

[Shellbell]

Hi there and welcome to the PTSD Forum :)

 

[Sara1999]

I am doing EMDR, and my counselor asked at the first session if there were other traumas in my life, because she assured me that they will come up at some point with the EMDR and it is better to be prepared.