May 17, 2021
Everyone experiences flashbacks. Most of the time flashbacks are benign when they experience a trigger, such as the smell of fresh-baked bread, and it reminds them of their grandmother.
However, flashbacks are a nightmare for those who have experienced extreme trauma in childhood or as an adult. This piece will concentrate on flashbacks that are part of the lives of those who live in the shadow of complex post-traumatic stress disorder.
What Are Flashbacks?
Flashbacks, in PTSD, are where one relives a traumatic event while awake. Flashbacks are devastating to those who experience them, as they are suddenly and uncontrollably reliving something that happened in their past.
Flashbacks are akin to vomiting when having a stomach virus.
You cannot choose when or where it will happen.
Yet, flashbacks are not like a nightmare, where the person wakes to realize it was only a dream. People experiencing flashbacks become transported back to the traumatic event, reliving it with all its sights, sounds, and fears as if it were happening in the present.
The Differences Between Flashbacks from PTSD and CPTSD
Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD) is a complicated and new diagnosis that has yet to appear in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).
One of the primary differences between PTSD and CPTSD is that post-traumatic stress disorder results from a single event, where complex post-traumatic stress disorder forms in relation to a series of traumatic events.
Normally, PTSD involves experiencing traumatic events such as the following:
- Car Accident
- Tornado or Other Natural Disaster
- Mugging
- Rape
These events, while highly traumatizing, are quickly resolved with emotional support from either friends/family, short-term psychotherapy, or both.
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