Complex PTSD Trauma Therapy Near Little Elm, TX

When you go to a store and watch the people inside, you can easily spot combat veterans by the way they turn down an aisle. They do not just go around the corner. Instead, they swing wide, which is called “piing,” and they do the same with the doorways. Others, without realizing, always look at their hands to ensure their safety. These habits are fine only when they do not interfere with your life. Sadly, for some of our clients, they do. According to one of our clients, instinct becomes muscle memory, and dark rooms become nightmares.

PTSD is a mental health condition that some people develop after they had either experienced or witnessed a life-threatening event. Those who have PTSD can feel stressed or afraid even when they are not in danger. This is due to flashback, which is a memory of a traumatic event that repeats constantly because of triggers and stressors. Listed on this page are some of the biggest challenges that our clients are facing, while they’re battling against PTSD.

  • Hypervigilance
  • Having a hard time differentiating a real threat from an overreaction
  • Feeling overwhelmed and having difficulty in interacting with others
  • Controlling flashbacks and trusting people
  • Managing anger and frustration; preventing themselves from lashing out at people
  • Nightmares despite them taking the right medication to control their anxiety
  • Difficulty in sleeping resulting in lack of peaceful rest, which complicates everything; some only has an average of four hours of sleep at night
  • Triggers that can be anything and can happen anywhere
  • Night sweats
  • Fatigue
  • Shutting down from others (stoic)

PTSD can also affect one’s health. Some of our clients did not want to eat, and when they do, they usually consume sugary foods that have low nutrition. These bad eating habits worsen their situation and increase the instances of heart palpitations, cold sweats, extreme hypervigilance, and more.

Some people do not understand how those with PTSD can’t control the way they feel sometimes or how hard it is to act normally when something is triggering them. This puts pressure on our patients. PTSD has truly affected the behavior of our clients. One of our clients shared that he was an outgoing and friendly person.  When he is having a bad day due to his triggers and increasing depression, he would find it difficult to socially engage and be tolerant of people. He then became more socially isolated, believing that isolating himself from others is the best way to avoid his triggers. However, isolation made things worse. Instead of letting his depression fester like a bad wound, he decided to get some help and put it to work, making good improvements.

Some of the biggest triggers of our clients are crowds, traffic, time of the year, movies, etc. This is because they remind our clients about traumatic events. When the traffic is bad, or there is a scene in a movie or television show that reminds our potential clients of a traumatic event, they can be triggered, which would then cause their depression and anxiety to increase and eventually result in lower self-esteem.