How Do I Stop Dwelling?

[Purple Fish]

Happy New Year to you all!

I want to start this year off with optimism and positivity! I`ve been doing everything I can to help myself with PTSD and it`s so hard. I regulary see my GP and I take Fluoxetine but I just want to be how I was before all this.
It`s like I want to erase what happened so I don`t think about it anymore.
There are people out there who have been through alot worse and they seem so strong. All I had was an op to remove an ovarian cyst, although it didn`t really go to plan and I had to stay in hospital longer than expected cos I bled internally and had to have a blood transfusion. I suppose it`s just messed me up as I worry about my health more now too!

Any one got any suggestions how I stop this constant `looking back and remembering?`

Tanya x

[nomorepanic]

Hi there

I recently had some counselling following my illness last year/this year and a stay in hospital for 8 weeks that really traumatised me.

The counsellor said that I will never forget what I went through but I have to move on from it and put it in the past. I can't change the past and what happened has been and gone.

So I am trying to do that - just accept that I had a terrible time and stop keep looking back and getting upset over it.

I can also see some positives out of the whole experience so I focus on those.

You could ask the doctor for a referral for counselling - I am not sure it really helped me but you could try it. I think I had all the answers in my head anyway I just needed to talk to someone about them.


Not sure this helps but I can understand what you are going through.

[Purple Fish]

Hi

My doctor has never suggested me seeing a counsellor but has said that I can talk to him whenever I want as he specialises in PTSD. I haven`t been to see him for a while so maybe I need to make an appointment.
I always feel on a high once I`ve spoken about what`s on my mind.

Take care xx

[alihud]

Fishyyyyyyyy Fooooooooooo!!!Long time no see me darlin!!
Anyway another idea for you,i had recently bought a book on Mindfullness which is an excellent way to stop you dwelling,i am also learning meditiation and relaxtion and it does work Tanya it really does.It teaches you how to stop your thoughts going round and round your head,it takes time but is well worth the effort trust me.
The book i have is called The mindful way through depression by Mark Williams and John Teasdale and comes with a meditation cd and the dvd i have is called Yoga for stress relief which you can get both from Amazon.
I really hope this helps you hun cos it has helped me.
Ali xxxxxxx

[maddie]

Purple Fish, your doc may have a special interest in PTSD but there are very few doctors in the UK specifically trained to deal with it. If I were you I would ask him for councelling or referral to a PTSD unit.

[Purple Fish]

Hey Ali!!!!!!!

And all of you thanks for the replies and suggestions! I`m feeling a lot better since I posted and guess what? I`m coming up for that time of the month again!

Take care ali xx

[joannap]

i think the way forward is to not worry whether you are dwelling if that makes sense. the more you tell yourself not to think about something - the more you do. if you do anything - incl mindfullness with a view to consciously "stopping" yourself from thinking about it then it will persist but if you give yourself permission to really go over it and spend as much time as you want to think about it - that is when you find your mind will wander onto other things and start to heal.

i experienced a form of ptsd after watching my grandma die last year - i had wanted to be with her at the end after spending 5 yrs helping to care for her and i was - just me and one of her carers at the home but for weeks afterwards everytime i closed my eyes to go to sleep - my mind would replay everything in technicolour detail. i am very good at accepting (borne from 14 yrs of anxiety!) and so i recognised that it was my minds way of dealing and processing the situation and it was not just my grandma dying that my mind was coming to terms with but also my own fear/beliefs about death etc. your mind is actually doing something totally natural so as with anything anxiety based - let it do its own thing and you will be fine xx:hugs:

[NoPoet]

Hi, dwelling is one symptom of the "mental illness" spectrum, the one that sort of keeps you locked into the cycle of unhappiness. As it gradually becomes a habit, the whole thing snowballs over time until you can end up with a major problem.

I find that learning to accept that you can live safely and happily without having to keep thinking distressing thoughts is the first step to getting better. Nothing bad will happen if you spend some time doing or thinking about something else. It's ok to be happy. Near-misses, traumatic incidents from the past, it's OK to spend time without riding their shockwave.

This took me months to learn and it helped so much. Start now. Honestly, it can work.