Treating PTSD: What Are Your Resources?

Now that Invisible Illness Awareness Week is over it’s back to our regular posting schedule, which means BRIDGE THE GAP (BTG) healing workshop posts on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

When we left off our last BTG post we were in the middle of a series about the importance of setting healing goals and how to do that. Moving forward today, the question is: What resources do you have?

Healing will not be bestowed upon you like a medal just because you ask for it. Nope, like a medal, you will have to earn recovery. Any athlete training for an event makes an inventory of his resources before he begins. Does he have the right gear, clothing, shoes, equipment, coach, mindset?

All of you at some point have had goals that you achieved. I bet if you think back to those other times you will notice you, too, took an inventory of resources. If you wanted to take a vacation you made a list of what you had in terms of: how much money, how many companions, luggage, clothing, guidebooks, maps, hotels, reservations, etc.

Healing is no different than any other goal. It’s time to assess what resources you have, which ones you need to add and who’s responsible for them. If you’re going on vacation and maps are one of your resources, and your companion is responsible for them … what happens if your friend forgets to pack the maps? You get into the middle of nowhere and realize you’re lost and don’t know which way to go.

PTSD healing cannot allow any resources to be left in the hands of someone else. All the resources you need must be within your own self and driven by your own desire to heal. It’s time to identify what you have, get what you need and pool it all together.

A sample checklist of resources:

• desire to heal
• willingness to do whatever it takes
• curiosity to learn what to do
• commitment to follow through
• intention to achieve the goal
• knowledge of important PTSD facts
• connection to support system
• communication skills to express what you need
• ability to talk about trauma

If any of the resources you need are dependent on another person (for example, if you rely on someone else to do your PTSD research) then there’s a flaw in the plan. Achieving a goal means the resources must all be under your control.

Think of healing PTSD as a journey across a desert and then up over a frozen moutain range. What would you put in your backpack?

BRIDGE THE GAP Exercise:

Take a quick inventory of your resources. What do you need in order to progress your healing? Make a list.

If anything on the list depends on the actions of someone other than you: You must revamp that resource. Turn it into something that you yourself hold the power to effect.

If anything shows up on the list that you don’t yet have… well then, it’s time to make it a priority and go get it!

(Photo: OldManTravels)

Tags: healing, ptsd, Setting Healing Goals