Today I was feeling nostalgic after watching all the coverage of what happened in Washington DC. When the Capitol was attacked, my Massachusetts blue blood started boiling. I needed to cool off and searched for videos to remind me how this country started. That was when I landed on the video from the musical 1776, The Egg. (see below)
After that and several more, somehow I ended up in a rabbit hole that brought me to videos on 9 11. Thinking that it happened 20 years ago, yet the emotions flooded me with the same intensity as they did during those dark days.
The video from U2 Walk On, gave me hope that we shall rise up and walk on after this attack too!
When traumatic events come into our lives, we have a time to deal with the shock and try to make sense of it. We go through all the questions and emotional roller coaster ride, resting when we need it and crying when we have to. But then, we decide to stay still, or walk on.
If we choose to stay still, then we do not recover the power we have over our own lives. If we choose to walk on, then we have a chance for our lives to get better, heal our wounds as our scars fade away and rise stronger than we thought we could be.
Much like the founding fathers!
Remember, it is your life...get in and drive it!
#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD
Walk On
U2
And love is not the easy thing
The only baggage that you can bring...
And love is not the easy thing
The only baggage you can bring
Is all that you can't leave behind
And if the darkness is to keep us apart
And if the daylight feels like it's a long way off
And if your glass heart should crack
And for a second you turn back
Oh no, be strong
Walk on, walk on
What you got they can't steal it
No, they can't even feel it
Walk on, walk on
Stay safe tonight
You're packing a suitcase for a place none of us has been
A place that has to be believed to be seen
You could have flown away
A singing bird in an open cage
Who will only fly, only fly for freedom
Walk on, walk on
What you've got they can't deny it
Can't sell it, or buy it
Walk on, walk on
Stay safe tonight
And I know it aches
And your heart it breaks
And you can only take so much
Walk on
walk on
Home, hard to know what it is if you've never had one
Home, I can't say where it is but I know I'm going home
America is in shock right now. Now is the time to take back your life before PTSD sets in. If you were in the Capitol on January 6th, you need the understanding and tools to help you heal.
The first step is to accept that you had no power over what others chose to do. You do have the power over what you do afterwards. You are no longer a victim of those hours...but you are a survivor of all of it!
(CNN) "As is the case with many traumatic events, it has taken some time for the reality to sink in. "I was in the crowd and didn't realize how bad it was until a day or two after," reporter Richard Hall of The Independent, a British newspaper, tweeted Saturday."
"Only later did it become clear that lawmakers feared for their lives; that some of the attackers were hunting for congressional leaders; that there could have been a massacre."
Shock will remain for a while as you process what happened. Returning to that building, will turn your stomach. As you come closer to it, it will get stronger. Walking up the steps will feel as if you are carrying a thousand pound weight on your feet. Walking down the halls will bring back haunting images of that day. Entering into the rooms you were in before it happened, will fuel a sense of dread. You will have emotional flashbacks. All of your senses will be taken over from then, so you will not feel anything but the way you felt that day.
Now is the time to take action before PTSD has a chance to take hold of your life.
Today on PTSD Patrol, there will be a special post and video about this.
When you enter this place, images will come back as you look around.
As you look at others you serve with, knowing they supported this, anger will try to overcome your sense of trust. It is one thing to be on political sides, and a much deeper level of division when they supported this. Remember, that you were not the only target, so were they.
The invaders were looking for the Vice President, chanting "Hang Mike Pence" while he was there to uphold his Constitutional duties.
Slowly the building will be repaired. Security will be tightened and you will begin to feel safer there. Those who attacked you, are being found and arrested. Considering the news crews were not the only ones filming them, but they provided their own evidence for convictions, they will begin to suffer the consequences for what they chose to do.
(VOX) Many participants willingly — and quite happily — posed for photos and videos at the scene, or boasted of their exploits on social media and verified livestream accounts during or shortly after the melee, even though many of their actions may well constitute serious crimes. Apparently believing they weren’t doing anything wrong, or that law enforcement wouldn’t go after them for their actions, the Trump supporters paraded in front of cameras wearing distinct (and thus easily recognizable) costumes and, in some cases, even ID badges.
But you will also suffer the consequences for what they chose to do too.
Nightmares, flashbacks, mood swings, paranoia and anger, will invade your days.
It can be difficult to talk to close family or friends after a traumatic event. You may not want to cause them any distress or may simply want some space to process it all. However, it is important to be around other people when you feel able to, as they can help with your recovery and wellbeing. You do not have to talk to them about the experience. If you don’t have anyone close by to talk to, you can contact one of the organisations below, who will be able to offer further help.
Look after yourself
It is important to look after your health and wellbeing. This can include taking a break or some time away to deal with your experience. You should also try and keep a healthy diet and stay away from drugs and alcohol, which can exacerbate the problem.
Do not expect people you know to understand if they were not there. Turn to those who were with you, experienced the same event because they will understand.
Honor your feelings, Do not think you are supposed to be stronger or better than "this" because you are only human. If you need to cry, then cry. If you are angry, then scream. Honor whatever you need to, so that you will be ready for healing.
Letting out the bad emotions you are feeling, allows the pain to flow out of you so that healing can enter into you. Understanding and accepting what you were powerless to do, will fuel what you are empowered to do.
This is not a contest. One among you may be suffering at a deeper level. Do not judge them because you will never know what else they have gone through before. Some may seem emotionally stronger than you, but that does not mean you are weaker in any sense. It very well could mean your emotional core is stronger and you felt it more. Just support each other and be there to listen for as long as they need to talk. You do the same for yourself.
As you support one another in healing, you heal together. Human nature dictates that helping is healing to the helper. Ask then for what you need and when you offer help, but they cannot express what they need from you, do what you would need from them.
The building will be restored step by step and so will you!
If the symptoms do not subside within 30 days, you may need more help to heal. Find a mental health expert who specializes in trauma.They are listed by state. It is imperative they understand the difference between trauma and other mental health conditions. They are treated differently because they are different. The only way to have PTSD strike is from trauma hitting you.
This is one of the first videos I did on PTSD for veterans.....
Why be afraid if you're not alone? Life is never easy, the rest is unknown. The song is by Gloria Estefan and the first time I heard it, all I could think about were the Vietnam veterans I spent so much time with including my husband. You are not alone fighting to heal PTSD just as you were not alone during combat.
Today the feature song is Coldplay, Fix You. It is about when you want to help someone who is hurting. The lyrics are beautiful but I have a problem with the "fix you" part.
People tired to "fix me" after I survived multiple times. For a long time, I thought that love would "fix me" and people in my life thought they could. They tried to fix me after my ex-husband tried to kill me. Then I realized, I was the only one who could "fix me" and change.
That is how I knew my husband didn't need fixing. He needed support and for me to stand by him, encourage him and try to find the help he needed to fix his life.
I've seen PTSD from both sides and trust me, when you love someone, you are in the best position possible to help them heal. Love alone cannot do it, but your time, patience, support, encouragement and being willing to fight for them, can give them what they need to start fighting for themselves too.
Those who do, are rewarded knowing that the person they love, is healing, happier and it is because of you!
If you have PTSD, remember, it is your life...get in and drive it! If you love someone with it, then help them do it!
#BreakTheSilence and #TakeBackYourLife from #PTSD
Fix You
Coldplay
When you try your best, but you don't succeed
When you get what you want but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse
And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something, you can't replace
When you love someone, but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?
Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you
And high up above or down below
When you're too in love to let it go
But if you never try, you'll never know
Just what you're worth
Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you
Tears stream down your face
When you lose something, you cannot replace
Tears stream down your face and I
Tears stream down your face
I promise you, I will learn from my mistakes
Tears stream down your face and I
Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Christopher Anthony John Martin / Guy Rupert Berryman / William Champion / Jonathan Mark Buckland
Yesterday we talked about how whatever you believe, will become your truth. If you believe you are stuck suffering, that is what your truth will be, until you decide that you do have the power to change what you want your life to become. You are writing the rest of your story from this moment on. What do you want this changer to be about?
Do you want to go from suffering to healing? Settle for being miserable instead of being happier? That is in your power. You are writing the rest of your life's story.
Today the feature video is Bob Seger Turn The Page. What is going on your next page? Are you going to just settle, or do what you need to so that you make your life better?
You cannot change a damn thing that happened to you. Whatever caused PTSD, is out of your control. Don't let it change what you write now. Use your power and take control.
(Resuming the normal videos today and putting up what I had planned yesterday.)
When you started driving, being behind the wheel instead of being a passenger was a little scary. In control of where the car went, how fast it went, and the safety of the person in the car with you was a lot to deal with. They may have been a little scared too, but they believed you'd do OK...and you did. The thing is, you believed in yourself, or you wouldn't have even tried.
It is the same thing with healing. It is a little scary at first. You learn that you are in control of where you go, how fast you get there and how far you want to go. It helps to have someone with you, teaching you, encouraging you and helping you to learn.
If you believe you will never heal, then that is what your truth will be, because that is what you are willing to settle for. If you believe you as a survivor, you can be happier, be a better person and live a good life, then that is what your truth will eventually be, because you will seek to do it!
Today the feature video is Lena Horne, Believe In Yourself from the movie The Wiz. Just like in the movie the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy had the power within her all along, but she didn't know it. There was a time when you didn't know what power you had. Now, I hope you believe you are in control.
Yesterday I had to explain to someone what my job was. I told her that it is, as the slogan says, "Clearing the way to #TakeBackYourLife" from PTSD.
When traumatic events come into our lives, we have a time to deal with the shock and try to make sense of it. We go through all the questions and emotional roller coaster ride, resting when we need it and crying when we have to. But then, we decide to stay still, or walk on.
