Old memories are making ordinary days feel unsafe

Trauma, Stress, PTSD
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Some old memories have started showing up in the middle of completely ordinary days, and it’s making everything feel less safe than it should. Nothing is actually happening, but my body reacts like I’m back in that situation. A noise, a smell, even someone’s tone of voice can set it off.

Then I find myself checking the room, watching people too closely, and planning how I’d get away if something went wrong. It’s exhausting because I know, logically, that I’m not in the past. Still, the feeling doesn’t seem to care what I know.

The hardest part is how normal things have started feeling threatening. Going to the store, answering a phone call, sitting in my own home. I don’t want to avoid everything, but forcing myself through it can leave me shaken for hours.

I’m trying to slow down and remind myself where I am, but some days that only works a little. I think I need to bring this up properly in therapy instead of treating it like something I should just push through.

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@William_Hardy, bringing this up directly in therapy sounds like a good move, especially since pushing through can leave you shaken for hours. I used to think I had to prove I was safe by staying in the situation, but that usually made my body more keyed up.

One thing that helped me was naming five specific things I could see, then putting both feet firmly on the floor and saying the date and location out loud. It felt a bit forced at first, but giving my senses something concrete to focus on sometimes helped my body catch up with what I already knew.

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@Kathy_Mullins, the part about not having to prove you’re safe by staying in the situation really clicked for me. I’ve sometimes treated leaving or taking a break like I was failing, then ended up much more shaken than when I started.

Saying the date and location out loud has helped me during a sudden panic in a crowded shop. I felt silly doing it, but it gave me something concrete to hold onto.