how do the symptoms of ptsd and cptsd differ?
PTSD and cPTSD have key symptoms and challenges that are present in both.
Each person will be unique in how these look in the persons life and the impact it is having.
It is worth noting that, the symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress in both cases do not always show up immediately after the traumatic event. Particularly with cPTSD , the symptoms may start to develop and become problematic over a period of time, only showing up in sustaining close, personal relationships or when you become overwhelmed and burn out at work.
For each of these symptoms, it is very likely that they will show on a sliding scale of how much they are showing up day to day. It may be present in all areas of your life and incredibly debilitating or they may show up only in certain contexts and with certain relationships with people. Every person is unique.
There are 3 commonalities in the symptoms seen in both PTSD and cPTSD.
These are:
· An going sense of threat or not being safe. You are hypervigilant to what is going on around you. Scanning your environment and picking up on anything that is different or ‘off’, usually before other people will notice. There can be an underlying sense of something being ‘wrong’, or potential for it to go wrong if things appear okay at the moment. Gearing yourself up for when the sh*t hits the fan. You may notice it in your sleep patterns and dreams. Or waking after a nights sleep and still feeling tired. Never quite being able to feel revived and refreshed.
· Avoidance behaviours – distancing yourself from others and situations. Cutting yourself off from friends and family after the event (with cPTSD someone may show up as a more avoidant personality who is quite private and keeps them self to them self).
· Experiencing flashbacks of the event. Most people associate flashbacks in PTSD as visually being transported back and hearing and seeing the traumatic event as if it is happening now. But it can also be more subtle than that. A strong emotional reaction can flair up that seems out of context for the event that is happening now. The emotional reaction, be it anger, terror or despair, is out of proportion. This is an emotional ‘flashback’. It can also be a kinaesthetic flashback; a body felt, visceral reaction which is similar to what was felt at the time of the traumatic experience, but is showing up in the present moment.
As well as these 3 symptoms, cPTSD also impacts in 3 others ways:
Emotional dysregulation (also referred to as Affect Dysregulation). This means that you experience strong emotional reactions to situations (usually when you’ve been triggered) and you struggle to self sooth and calm yourself back down. You can get stuck in a cycle of ruminating, emotional suffering and despair which goes on a downward spiral. It can lead to feeling depressed and hopeless.
Interpersonal difficulties. Past adverse experiences with our caregiver or close relationships can break the trust and bonds we associate with others. It can be harder to let people in or feel safe around them. You may not be used to showing vulnerability or engaging emotionally. Another difficulty that can arise if you haven’t been exposed to nurturing, supportive and inter-dependant relationships is you haven’t got the framework of what healthy relating and relationships look like. Feeling unsafe, someone not being emotionally available to you, not expressing your needs or boundaries feels normal within a relationship to you and can be confused with what love ‘looks and feels like’.
This can show up as having a pattern of turbulent, short-lived or chaotic relationships. This may only be in your close familial or intimate relationships or it may show up in all areas of your life with friendships and within the work environment too.
A negative sense of self. You can struggle with confidence and self-esteem. Trauma can fragment our sense of ‘who we are’. It can lead to being a chameleon who fits in everywhere, wearing a mask and never truly being ‘yourself’. If you became used to not being true to yourself, you can lose your sense of who you are also. You may not really know what it is you want or be able to access what it is you need. This can lead to you not expressing what you would like, or what you need in a situation.
As a therapeutic coach I help my clients to develop strategies which support them in moving forward from each of these challenges.
When you initially look at all the ways in which cPTSD is impacting you and your life, it can seem like a steep climb to find respite from them. But staying where we are at the bottom of the mountain is also hard work and a challenge.
I break down each stage in to manageable chunks, and step-by-step, make headway in climbing the mountain. Doing it with someone beside you, who has walked the route before and will support you on your journey, will help you to make the changes to start taking back control and power in your life.