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Complex PTSD is more than simply remembering something painful. It can affect the way a person experiences safety, relationships, emotions, self worth, and even their sense of identity. Unlike a single traumatic event, C PTSD is generally associated with prolonged or repeated trauma, especially when escaping the situation was difficult or impossible. The nervous system can remain on alert long after the original danger has passed, making everyday situations feel threatening even when a person is objectively safe. People may experience emotional flashbacks, difficulty regulating emotions, shame, low self worth, feeling disconnected from themselves, difficulty trusting others, or a constant need to stay in control. Healing is not about simply forgetting what happened. It is about helping the brain and body understand that the danger is no longer happening and gradually building a greater sense of safety. With appropriate professional support, trauma focused therapy, and healthy coping strategies, recovery is possible. [complex PTSD, C PTSD, trauma, nervous system, emotional regulation, trauma recovery, psychology, mental health] #MentalHealth #Psychology #ComplexPTSD #TraumaHealing #EmotionalWellbeing
Complex PTSD is more than simply remembering something painful. It can affect the way a person experiences safety, relationships, emotions, self worth, and even their sense of identity. Unlike a single traumatic event, C PTSD is generally associated with prolonged or repeated trauma, especially when escaping the situation was difficult or impossible. The nervous system can remain on alert long after the original danger has passed, making everyday situations feel threatening even when a person is objectively safe. People may experience emotional flashbacks, difficulty regulating emotions, shame, low self worth, feeling disconnected from themselves, difficulty trusting others, or a constant need to stay in control. Healing is not about simply forgetting what happened. It is about helping the brain and body understand that the danger is no longer happening and gradually building a greater sense of safety. With appropriate professional support, trauma focused therapy, and healthy coping strategies, recovery is possible. [complex PTSD, C PTSD, trauma, nervous system, emotional regulation, trauma recovery, psychology, mental health] #MentalHealth #Psychology #ComplexPTSD #TraumaHealing #EmotionalWellbeing
BPD and complex PTSD can look surprisingly similar, but they aren’t the same diagnosis. 🧠 BPD often centers around instability in relationships, self-image, and emotions, with heightened sensitivity to abandonment. Complex PTSD is rooted in prolonged or repeated trauma and adds a persistent sense of threat, negative self-beliefs, shame, avoidance, and difficulty feeling safe or connected. And yes, you can have both. Understanding the root helps us understand the need. One leans toward threats to safety. The other toward threats to stability. If you want psychiatry explained by a psychiatrist, without the jargon, follow along. I got you 🫶🏻 🧠 #BPD #ComplexPTSD #MentalHealth #Psychiatry #Trauma
BPD and complex PTSD can look surprisingly similar, but they aren’t the same diagnosis. 🧠 BPD often centers around instability in relationships, self-image, and emotions, with heightened sensitivity to abandonment. Complex PTSD is rooted in prolonged or repeated trauma and adds a persistent sense of threat, negative self-beliefs, shame, avoidance, and difficulty feeling safe or connected. And yes, you can have both. Understanding the root helps us understand the need. One leans toward threats to safety. The other toward threats to stability. If you want psychiatry explained by a psychiatrist, without the jargon, follow along. I got you 🫶🏻 🧠 #BPD #ComplexPTSD #MentalHealth #Psychiatry #Trauma
The only way I was able to heal my complex PTSD symptoms was by removing emotionally immature people from my life completely. And again, I don’t know if their behaviors are intentional or subconscious, but at the end of the day, that doesn’t change the impact. What matters is what happens consistently. I’m not saying emotionally immature people are bad people, I’m saying that when you consistently experience blame shifting, defensiveness, flipping the script, and reverse victim and offender dynamics, those people can become emotionally unsafe to have in your life. Also, I am not a professional, I have just healed myself enough to know the truth of these dynamics firsthand.
The only way I was able to heal my complex PTSD symptoms was by removing emotionally immature people from my life completely. And again, I don’t know if their behaviors are intentional or subconscious, but at the end of the day, that doesn’t change the impact. What matters is what happens consistently. I’m not saying emotionally immature people are bad people, I’m saying that when you consistently experience blame shifting, defensiveness, flipping the script, and reverse victim and offender dynamics, those people can become emotionally unsafe to have in your life. Also, I am not a professional, I have just healed myself enough to know the truth of these dynamics firsthand.
“I can’t remember anything...I can’t forget anything” ❤️‍🩹 Complex PTSD can affect far more than memories of trauma. It can shape how a person experiences safety, emotions, relationships, self-worth, and everyday life. After prolonged or repeated trauma, the nervous system may continue responding as though danger is still present, even when a person is safe. This can show up as emotional flashbacks, difficulty regulating emotions, shame, hypervigilance, disconnection, or difficulty trusting others. Healing isn’t about forgetting what happened. It’s about gradually rebuilding a sense of safety and learning that the danger is no longer happening. With appropriate support, recovery is possible. 🫶🏼 Credit: @badomensofficial
“I can’t remember anything...I can’t forget anything” ❤️‍🩹 Complex PTSD can affect far more than memories of trauma. It can shape how a person experiences safety, emotions, relationships, self-worth, and everyday life. After prolonged or repeated trauma, the nervous system may continue responding as though danger is still present, even when a person is safe. This can show up as emotional flashbacks, difficulty regulating emotions, shame, hypervigilance, disconnection, or difficulty trusting others. Healing isn’t about forgetting what happened. It’s about gradually rebuilding a sense of safety and learning that the danger is no longer happening. With appropriate support, recovery is possible. 🫶🏼 Credit: @badomensofficial
As a clinical psychologist, people always ask me “do I have cPTSD or BPD?”👇 Let’s be real- the disorders look very very similar. They both involve difficulty with emotions, relationships, and self-esteem. They both can come from childhood trauma.  💡But according the research, there are important differences: -cPTSD is not included in the DSM, only the ICD 11. -A history of trauma is required for diagnosis of cPTSD. People with BPD often do have a history of trauma, but that isn’t required for diagnosis. -cPTSD shows up as more chronic low mood, emotional numbing, low self esteem, and difficulty with intimacy. -BPD has more big ups and downs in emotions, relationships and sense of self.  Yes, many people can have both fit either diagnosis. No, having one diagnosis isn’t “better” than the other. ‼️Both cPTSD and BPD deserve understanding, validation, and science-backed treatment. There is hope for both!  FYI, this info is based on studies like these: Ford, J. D., & Courtois, C. A. (2021). Complex PTSD and borderline personality disorder. Borderline personality disorder and emotion dysregulation, 8(1), 16.
As a clinical psychologist, people always ask me “do I have cPTSD or BPD?”👇 Let’s be real- the disorders look very very similar. They both involve difficulty with emotions, relationships, and self-esteem. They both can come from childhood trauma.  💡But according the research, there are important differences: -cPTSD is not included in the DSM, only the ICD 11. -A history of trauma is required for diagnosis of cPTSD. People with BPD often do have a history of trauma, but that isn’t required for diagnosis. -cPTSD shows up as more chronic low mood, emotional numbing, low self esteem, and difficulty with intimacy. -BPD has more big ups and downs in emotions, relationships and sense of self.  Yes, many people can have both fit either diagnosis. No, having one diagnosis isn’t “better” than the other. ‼️Both cPTSD and BPD deserve understanding, validation, and science-backed treatment. There is hope for both!  FYI, this info is based on studies like these: Ford, J. D., & Courtois, C. A. (2021). Complex PTSD and borderline personality disorder. Borderline personality disorder and emotion dysregulation, 8(1), 16.
Complex PTSD survivors, especially those who are high-functioning, can appear completely put together on the outside while carrying a profound loneliness within. It can feel like an all-consuming void—because survival once required them to disconnect from their emotional selves and taught them that their worth came from what they could do for others, rather than simply who they were. Comment “ready” to work with me follow for more insights @djweeks_ #complextrauma #cptsd #lonliness #childhoodtrauma #traumaresponse
Complex PTSD survivors, especially those who are high-functioning, can appear completely put together on the outside while carrying a profound loneliness within. It can feel like an all-consuming void—because survival once required them to disconnect from their emotional selves and taught them that their worth came from what they could do for others, rather than simply who they were. Comment “ready” to work with me follow for more insights @djweeks_ #complextrauma #cptsd #lonliness #childhoodtrauma #traumaresponse
Trying one more time... What it's like to live with Complex PTSD
Trying one more time... What it's like to live with Complex PTSD
LET ME SAY THIS👇 What happened to you was real. The manipulation. The gaslighting. The walking on eggshells. The constant self-doubt. You’re not crazy for struggling after it. Many survivors develop what’s called Complex PTSD (CPTSD). Unlike PTSD, which often comes from a single traumatic event, CPTSD develops from ongoing exposure to fear, control, deception, emotional abuse, and chronic stress over time. In simple terms: Your nervous system learned to live in survival mode. Even after the relationship ends, your body often doesn’t realize the danger is gone. Here are 6 signs: 1. You’re Hypervigilant You constantly scan for danger. You overanalyze texts. Read into people’s tone. Expect the worst. Your brain learned that safety could disappear at any moment. 2. You Struggle To Trust Yourself You second-guess your decisions. You ask others for reassurance. After being told your reality wasn’t real for years, self-trust becomes difficult. 3. You Feel Guilty For Having Boundaries Saying “no” feels wrong. Protecting your peace feels selfish. Healthy boundaries trigger guilt because you were conditioned to prioritize someone else’s emotions over your own. 4. Your Emotions Feel Bigger Than The Situation A small disagreement feels overwhelming. A minor rejection feels devastating. That’s not weakness. That’s a nervous system that has been trained to expect abandonment, punishment, or conflict. 5. You Feel Disconnected From Yourself You don’t fully know what you want anymore. You’ve spent so long adapting to someone else’s needs that you’ve lost touch with your own. 6. You Crave Peace But Struggle To Relax Even when life is calm, your body stays tense. You feel like something bad is about to happen. Because survival became your normal. The good news? Healing is absolutely possible. I’ve lived it. Jesus restores what trauma tries to steal. You can heal and recover. You don’t have to spend the rest of your life surviving. You can learn to live again. Comment “BIBLE” if you’d like my help recovering from narcissistic abuse and rebuilding your life through faith, truth, and healing.
LET ME SAY THIS👇 What happened to you was real. The manipulation. The gaslighting. The walking on eggshells. The constant self-doubt. You’re not crazy for struggling after it. Many survivors develop what’s called Complex PTSD (CPTSD). Unlike PTSD, which often comes from a single traumatic event, CPTSD develops from ongoing exposure to fear, control, deception, emotional abuse, and chronic stress over time. In simple terms: Your nervous system learned to live in survival mode. Even after the relationship ends, your body often doesn’t realize the danger is gone. Here are 6 signs: 1. You’re Hypervigilant You constantly scan for danger. You overanalyze texts. Read into people’s tone. Expect the worst. Your brain learned that safety could disappear at any moment. 2. You Struggle To Trust Yourself You second-guess your decisions. You ask others for reassurance. After being told your reality wasn’t real for years, self-trust becomes difficult. 3. You Feel Guilty For Having Boundaries Saying “no” feels wrong. Protecting your peace feels selfish. Healthy boundaries trigger guilt because you were conditioned to prioritize someone else’s emotions over your own. 4. Your Emotions Feel Bigger Than The Situation A small disagreement feels overwhelming. A minor rejection feels devastating. That’s not weakness. That’s a nervous system that has been trained to expect abandonment, punishment, or conflict. 5. You Feel Disconnected From Yourself You don’t fully know what you want anymore. You’ve spent so long adapting to someone else’s needs that you’ve lost touch with your own. 6. You Crave Peace But Struggle To Relax Even when life is calm, your body stays tense. You feel like something bad is about to happen. Because survival became your normal. The good news? Healing is absolutely possible. I’ve lived it. Jesus restores what trauma tries to steal. You can heal and recover. You don’t have to spend the rest of your life surviving. You can learn to live again. Comment “BIBLE” if you’d like my help recovering from narcissistic abuse and rebuilding your life through faith, truth, and healing.
if you’ve lived through a lifetime of abuse, neglect, instability, or trauma, I don’t think you get nearly enough credit for what healing actually asks of you. because sometimes we’re learning things in adulthood that other people got to learn through safety. how to trust. how to rest. how to have boundaries without drowning in guilt. how to recognize healthy love. how to stop anticipating everyone’s moods. how to feel safe inside our own bodies. how to experience peace without immediately wondering when something bad is going to happen. there is so much unlearning. and so much relearning. for years, many of the things i thought were simply “who i am” were actually ways i had learned to survive. hypervigilance. people pleasing. overexplaining. self-abandonment. numbing. always being prepared for the other shoe to drop. and healing hasn’t meant becoming someone who is never triggered, never struggles, or somehow erases what happened. it’s been learning how to listen to myself. trust myself. stay with myself. and slowly discover who i am when survival doesn’t have to run the entire show. millions of people live with Complex PTSD, and yet so many survivors still don’t have language for what they’re experiencing. that’s why awareness matters. because when we bring CPTSD into the light, more survivors have an opportunity to feel seen, heard, understood, and supported. September is CPTSD Awareness Month, and we’re kicking it off together LIVE on the @healing.and.cptsd Instagram page tomorrow September 2 at 10AM MST / 12PM EST. and throughout September, i’ll be sharing more of my own lived experience alongside the @healing.and.cptsd community. if you’re somewhere on this wild healing journey too, i hope this month reminds you: you are so much more than what happened to you. and you don’t have to figure out who you’re becoming alone. 🕊️ Learn more at ComplexPTSD.org. #CPTSDAwarenessMonth #ComplexPTSD #CPTSDRecovery #TraumaHealing #ChildhoodTraumaHealing
if you’ve lived through a lifetime of abuse, neglect, instability, or trauma, I don’t think you get nearly enough credit for what healing actually asks of you. because sometimes we’re learning things in adulthood that other people got to learn through safety. how to trust. how to rest. how to have boundaries without drowning in guilt. how to recognize healthy love. how to stop anticipating everyone’s moods. how to feel safe inside our own bodies. how to experience peace without immediately wondering when something bad is going to happen. there is so much unlearning. and so much relearning. for years, many of the things i thought were simply “who i am” were actually ways i had learned to survive. hypervigilance. people pleasing. overexplaining. self-abandonment. numbing. always being prepared for the other shoe to drop. and healing hasn’t meant becoming someone who is never triggered, never struggles, or somehow erases what happened. it’s been learning how to listen to myself. trust myself. stay with myself. and slowly discover who i am when survival doesn’t have to run the entire show. millions of people live with Complex PTSD, and yet so many survivors still don’t have language for what they’re experiencing. that’s why awareness matters. because when we bring CPTSD into the light, more survivors have an opportunity to feel seen, heard, understood, and supported. September is CPTSD Awareness Month, and we’re kicking it off together LIVE on the @healing.and.cptsd Instagram page tomorrow September 2 at 10AM MST / 12PM EST. and throughout September, i’ll be sharing more of my own lived experience alongside the @healing.and.cptsd community. if you’re somewhere on this wild healing journey too, i hope this month reminds you: you are so much more than what happened to you. and you don’t have to figure out who you’re becoming alone. 🕊️ Learn more at ComplexPTSD.org. #CPTSDAwarenessMonth #ComplexPTSD #CPTSDRecovery #TraumaHealing #ChildhoodTraumaHealing
1. Anxiety Disorders Constant fear, criticism, uncertainty, and emotional instability can overwhelm the nervous system. 2. Depression Long-term emotional abuse can gradually lead to hopelessness, sadness, emotional numbness, and despair. 3. Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) Chronic psychological trauma can result in hypervigilance, emotional flashbacks, trust issues, and persistent fear. 4. Panic Disorder Years of emotional stress can trigger panic attacks and an ongoing sense of danger. 5. Insomnia and Sleep Disorders The mind often struggles to rest when it has been conditioned to expect conflict, chaos, or emotional harm. 6. Health Anxiety Prolonged stress can cause a person to become excessively focused on physical symptoms and health concerns. 7. Physical Symptoms of Chronic Stress Including fatigue, headaches, digestive issues, muscle tension, hair loss, and unexplained physical pain. #NarcissisticAbuse #EmotionalAbuse #PsychologicalAbuse #Gaslighting TraumaRecovery ComplexPTSD #MentalHealthAwareness AnxietyRecovery
1. Anxiety Disorders Constant fear, criticism, uncertainty, and emotional instability can overwhelm the nervous system. 2. Depression Long-term emotional abuse can gradually lead to hopelessness, sadness, emotional numbness, and despair. 3. Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) Chronic psychological trauma can result in hypervigilance, emotional flashbacks, trust issues, and persistent fear. 4. Panic Disorder Years of emotional stress can trigger panic attacks and an ongoing sense of danger. 5. Insomnia and Sleep Disorders The mind often struggles to rest when it has been conditioned to expect conflict, chaos, or emotional harm. 6. Health Anxiety Prolonged stress can cause a person to become excessively focused on physical symptoms and health concerns. 7. Physical Symptoms of Chronic Stress Including fatigue, headaches, digestive issues, muscle tension, hair loss, and unexplained physical pain. #NarcissisticAbuse #EmotionalAbuse #PsychologicalAbuse #Gaslighting TraumaRecovery ComplexPTSD #MentalHealthAwareness AnxietyRecovery
Soul Friend, 🥹🌿✨🤍🕊️, in December 2025, I came across this podcast between Dr. Ramani and Patrick Teahan, and after over 53 years of living and dying and struggling with complex PTSD Patrick’s response and his quote literally changed the trajectory of my life and from this one video I have created an entire ecosystem on what it feels like to have complex PTSD and what is necessary for healing complex PTSD. This one conversation helped me to encapsulate the feeling in my chest and in my soul and explain my behavior of constant fawning which I now call The Love Loop and I wrote a guide called Ending the Love Loop, and from that I have written a flagship book, entitled, Loving People Who Hurt You, which will be published and available soon, world wide. I also created a healing workbook, entitled Where the Healing Begins, and that is available in my Stan Store. This year I will also publish my Memoir, From the Left Side of My Bed and I’m doing a Ted Talk! I have been a licensed clinical social worker and trauma therapist for over 32 years and I am a 58-year-old woman, therapist, wife, mother, rescue animal, mom, and a sister and a daughter and a friend who has been seeking safety in a body that has been hijacked with hypervigilance from decades of stored trauma. My entire life is dedicated to helping people heal from complex PTSD. I wake up every day and dedicate myself to you into this work. I do offer individual sessions and CPTSD Clarity Calls if you want to work with me directly. Thank you for following me and supporting me as I do my best every day to help you make sense of complex PTSD and give you language to help make sense of your life, your story and your trauma and healing! ❤️‍🩹 Healing IS possible! With love and light and radical healing, Andrea 🥹🙏🏻❤️‍🩹✨🌿🤍🕊️ #soulsurgery #cptsd #healing #cptsdhealing #traumahealing
Soul Friend, 🥹🌿✨🤍🕊️, in December 2025, I came across this podcast between Dr. Ramani and Patrick Teahan, and after over 53 years of living and dying and struggling with complex PTSD Patrick’s response and his quote literally changed the trajectory of my life and from this one video I have created an entire ecosystem on what it feels like to have complex PTSD and what is necessary for healing complex PTSD. This one conversation helped me to encapsulate the feeling in my chest and in my soul and explain my behavior of constant fawning which I now call The Love Loop and I wrote a guide called Ending the Love Loop, and from that I have written a flagship book, entitled, Loving People Who Hurt You, which will be published and available soon, world wide. I also created a healing workbook, entitled Where the Healing Begins, and that is available in my Stan Store. This year I will also publish my Memoir, From the Left Side of My Bed and I’m doing a Ted Talk! I have been a licensed clinical social worker and trauma therapist for over 32 years and I am a 58-year-old woman, therapist, wife, mother, rescue animal, mom, and a sister and a daughter and a friend who has been seeking safety in a body that has been hijacked with hypervigilance from decades of stored trauma. My entire life is dedicated to helping people heal from complex PTSD. I wake up every day and dedicate myself to you into this work. I do offer individual sessions and CPTSD Clarity Calls if you want to work with me directly. Thank you for following me and supporting me as I do my best every day to help you make sense of complex PTSD and give you language to help make sense of your life, your story and your trauma and healing! ❤️‍🩹 Healing IS possible! With love and light and radical healing, Andrea 🥹🙏🏻❤️‍🩹✨🌿🤍🕊️ #soulsurgery #cptsd #healing #cptsdhealing #traumahealing
September is CPTSD Awareness Month. And we’re talking about it. A lot. 👏🏼 Complex PTSD can develop in the context of prolonged or repeated traumatic experiences, particularly experiences that were difficult to escape from. And sometimes the effects don’t immediately look like what people imagine when they hear the word *trauma*. They can look like: ⬇️ 🤨Being really good at reading the room. 😣Feeling responsible for other people’s emotions. 😥Overexplaining yourself. 🤯Struggling to know what you actually want. 🫢Feeling guilty after setting a perfectly reasonable boundary. Being incredibly independent…and incredibly uncomfortable needing 🫠anyone. 🫩Knowing you’re safe, but still waiting for something to go wrong. When patterns have been there for years, they can become so familiar that you stop experiencing them as symptoms. They just feel like you. That’s what I want to spend this month talking about. The lived experience of complex trauma. The patterns it can create. What happens in relationships. The protective responses that make a lot more sense when we understand where they came from. And, of course, how we work with all of this in EMDR therapy. 🧠 One important piece of awareness: CPTSD is recognized as its own diagnosis in the ICD-11, but it still does not have a separate diagnosis in the DSM-5-TR used widely by clinicians in the United States. If you’d like to be a part of changing this and getting CPTSD recognized, head to the link in my bio to sign the petition ✍🏼 && be sure to follow @theemdrhealingpractice for more all September long 🫶🏻✨ • • • #cptsd #awareness #petition #emdrtherapy #traumahealing
September is CPTSD Awareness Month. And we’re talking about it. A lot. 👏🏼 Complex PTSD can develop in the context of prolonged or repeated traumatic experiences, particularly experiences that were difficult to escape from. And sometimes the effects don’t immediately look like what people imagine when they hear the word *trauma*. They can look like: ⬇️ 🤨Being really good at reading the room. 😣Feeling responsible for other people’s emotions. 😥Overexplaining yourself. 🤯Struggling to know what you actually want. 🫢Feeling guilty after setting a perfectly reasonable boundary. Being incredibly independent…and incredibly uncomfortable needing 🫠anyone. 🫩Knowing you’re safe, but still waiting for something to go wrong. When patterns have been there for years, they can become so familiar that you stop experiencing them as symptoms. They just feel like you. That’s what I want to spend this month talking about. The lived experience of complex trauma. The patterns it can create. What happens in relationships. The protective responses that make a lot more sense when we understand where they came from. And, of course, how we work with all of this in EMDR therapy. 🧠 One important piece of awareness: CPTSD is recognized as its own diagnosis in the ICD-11, but it still does not have a separate diagnosis in the DSM-5-TR used widely by clinicians in the United States. If you’d like to be a part of changing this and getting CPTSD recognized, head to the link in my bio to sign the petition ✍🏼 && be sure to follow @theemdrhealingpractice for more all September long 🫶🏻✨ • • • #cptsd #awareness #petition #emdrtherapy #traumahealing
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