Treating PTSD: Who Could You Be?

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When was the last time you felt yourself genuinely smile?

When was the last time you heard yourself belly laugh?

When was the last time you saw yourself as someone who is safe, secure and free?

Of course, these are not the usual states of mind when you’re caught in the PTSD loop. But they could be things that describe you. Someone could say, “You have a fabulous smile!”. Someone could beg you to stop laughing because your laugh is infectious and now he can’t stop. Someone could turn to you as her rock because you’re the most steady person she knows.

Part of healing PTSD is discovering who you want to be - having desires, making choices and developing yourself in a particular way. Another part of healing is becoming more of who you could be. Meaning, you have innate traits, good qualities you’re born with that you could access if you wanted to. Things you don’t need to actually develop but rather let come more to the surface because they already reside inside you.

A smile is like this. Anywhere you go in the world a smile transcends language, race and custom. You smile in the U.S. or in Liberia everyone knows how to interpret that because a smile is an innate trait.

The fact that you don’t smile much in PTSD doesn’t mean that you can’t, it only means you don’t — which means you could.

Your post-trauma identity challenge today: Imagine who you could be.

Let’s bring all of this self-creation down to the most simple level. Based on your daily routine – if it wasn’t interrupted by PTSD symptoms – what kind of a person/who could you be? A person who says hello to strangers in the coffee shop each morning? A person who goes for a bike ride and shrieks out, Wah-hoo! in the wind. A person who appreciates the beauty of a drop of rain glistening in the sun?

It’s time to become aware of your daily processes and where you and PTSD are stopping yourself from being the person you could be. 

Move a little closer to healing. Inhabit who you naturally are. Your full self is waiting to emerge.

BRIDGE THE GAP Exercise

Your mission today, should you choose to accept it: Notice all of your actions and all of the times they could be different in ways that would produce positive outcomes for you and the people with whom you interact.

See where you could be nicer or more patient or more optimistic.

Hear when your tone of voice could be more enthusiastic or less angry.

Feel how much better and different a moment might be if you reacted opposite the way you do.

Take some notes. Jot down the things you notice you could do differently. Save these ideas so we can use them later.

(Photo: scottamus)

Tags: Constructing Post-Trauma Identity, healing, ptsd, symptoms, treat