I’ve been getting a lot of questions about what protest related trauma trauma symptoms look like so I wanted to do a thread. Having these experiences normalized is important. There’s a lot here so buckle up, wanted to be thorough. #seattleprotests #seatleprotest

Disclaimer: I am not listing the diagnostic criteria for PTSD although many of these will fall in line with that. This is to give you an idea of how trauma may be affecting your daily life. Many of these will overlap with other mental health issues. Here we go:

Sleep: Nightmares related to the traumatic event or just a kick up of nightmares in general. Difficulty falling asleep, waking often, sleeping for much longer periods of time than usual. Night terrors- sometimes waking up in a panic or screaming. Waking up disoriented.

Mood: feeling fearful, anxious often, ongoing sadness, tearfulness, irritability, feeling withdrawn or wanting to isolate, anger and rage, survivors guilt, more reactive than usual or feeling raw or very sensitive.

Thoughts: dark in nature or fear based. May be revenge focused. In survival mode, many things/ people feeling like a threat. Not that this isn’t justified but can occur at a rate that can become emotionally paralyzing. Difficulty concentrating, memory issues, trouble focusing.

Body: increased startle response- loud sounds making you jump, shaking, feeling lethargic, jittery, on edge in your body, heart racing, lots of tension, headaches and stomach issues, feeling tired/ wired, not wanting to be touched or needing much more physical reassurance.

Interpersonal: difficulty connecting with others. Withdrawing, isolating, and feeling disconnected. Trouble communicating feelings or needs, being more argumentative or reactive in interactions. Feeling suspicious. Dishonest about how you’re feeling or minimizing

Reckless behavior: engaging in higher risk taking than usual, this could look like intentionally putting yourself in dangerous situations and not caring if you get hurt. Caring less about your safety and the safety of others.

Random: taking excessive precautions to feel safe to the point where it’s difficult to go out or function. Dissociation- checking out significantly, feeling disconnected from your body- floating above it, feeling like things aren’t real, notable memory issues

Flashbacks: feeling like you’re reliving the event vividly. The sounds, smells, images, etc can feel so real that it’s hard to tell what’s real and what’s not.