I took it to mean that there would be aspects of the trauma that would always be with me ( new perspectives as well as symptoms). These things could be dealt with in a way that would be unique to my own personality - I would be "myself" and not deny my own self in how I coped with things. This, of course, is given that a lot of healing is and has taken place at the same time.
Wow, this is really hard to explain - I think I've felt this on an intuitive level - I'm really having to think!
For example - I've never been comfortable letting anyone know that I'm mad about anything. At this point I need to learn how to do this because it's obvious that suppression of my anger over the trauma is a big deal - emotionally, physically, and in the treatment of my PTSD. It's not possible for me to get better and still keep it all inside.
So, how do I work with my personality - one that likes to please others, etc - to keep what are the good and true parts of ME that I don't want to lose and still find a way to communicate my anger? A way that fits me, deals with the (sometimes overblown) emotion and preserves my relationships all at the same time? Figuring this out would be an example of dealing with what PTSD has left me with in a way that is integrated with my personality.
Actually what I think he really meant, now that I think about it, was: "This is going to hurt like hell, I'm going to twist you around like a pretzel until you crumble into little bits and you are going to be really pissed off but someday you'll thank me." LOL! (oh yeah: "and I'll do it so gently you'll be willing to go along with it").
My therapist is great by the way, just in case someone took that the wrong way. Hope that explains it a little?
