Late Nght Thoughts

This blog deals with one person's battle against PTSD from repeated rape. Occasionally sights, sounds and other stuff (known as "triggers") are used to get points across. But never to intentionally hurt other survivors. If this bothers you, stop now. Otherwise, continue and thanks for the comments and support.

Late night thoughts for you. How do you cope with keeping a positive balance when there's so much stress everywhere?

Here are some things that are helping in a way. If these sound basic, excuse me. But it's worth mentioning them from time to time:

Avoid sugar, junk food and caffeine as much as possible.

Make yourself do some type of exercise every day. If you have adrenalin surges, you need to get that energy out in a positive way.

Meditation

Tai chi is helpful also. Other forms (karate, ju-jitsu, etc.) have different techniques and goals. Tai-chi seems to be the best for managing your chi in a balanced way.

Avoid triggers as much as possible. Trust your intuition that no, I don't need to see this.
Try to fine tune your intuition as much as you can. One tip: the less junk you put into your body (in every sense of the word), the sharper it will be. If you don't, it feels like you're picking up everybody's thoughts, feelings and more.

Where it's necessary, cut yourself off from hurtful people/places. It's the old 12 Step Group idea of survival. Because the truth is that at times, it's necessary to do that. You're not responsible for what others do and say. And, if you don't protect yourself, nobody else will. A few people may try to be concerned. But in the end you have to do it.

How do you cope when it feels like you're going to snap? I try to meditate. But sometimes the trauma flooding out is too much. And what do you do then? You fight symptoms all day long (and work and everything else). At the end of the day, what do you do then?

If you have suggestions, please post them.