the first thing I do is I throw out foot long words like integration and think in small steps because all integration means is remembering what happened and that happens naturally. so for the moment forget that word.

then when I have a flashback like the taste ones and man they can be disgusting can't they. first I figure out what the taste is that is driving me nuts so to speak. We all know what an obvious one could be to survivors so Im not going to go there. Lets go simple. out of no where last year around this time I would get this taste flashback So here I was in between panic attacks and visits to my mental safe place la la land I was going around my house putting things in my mouth trying to match that taste. besides trying to match the taste that I am flashing back on I was also paying attention to the things I was putting in my mouth. Finally I hit on the flashback taste - pumpkin paste in a can. but through out this whole process I have tried vinigar, and a whole lot of other foods and non food items and one stood out as enjoyable pickled beets ridged slices. So now I found the flashback and I found out accidentally that I like pickled beets. Those beets have been in my cupboard for ages from a food box when I visited the local food pantry when I was low on food. so when I had this flashback I would go into a panic and bring myself back out of it by eating a slice of beet. thinking of the texture, sourness and so on of that beet instead of the flashback. LOL When I am not in the heat of the flashback I think about why I dont like pumkin. Finally I ask my mom if I ever liked pimkin. She laughed and told me I did until one day she's pealing pumkin for pies and theres 12 children in my family and for the whatever-eth time someone asks her whatcha making. I came along and said it at the wrong time and so her answer being funny and sarcastic was "babyshit pie" and from that day on I could not get pumkin in my mouth without gagging. LOL being thanksgiving that flashback usually comes every year. this year when it started hapening I knew what that taste goes to so I didn't get triggered into being afraid of it and didn't run off to my mental safe place. I instead opened a soda and felt the fizz and bubbles tickle my tongue and taste buds and went on with my day thinking "you don't scare me I might even be daring and buy a "babyshit pie" and see if I can eat it now. That is how paying attention to my senses and things around me help me during a flashback and guess what -

What I did is also the process of that foot long word integration. I remembered and matched the taste flashback (pumkin) + situation (mom calling pumkin pie babyshit pie) + trigger (thanksgiving) = whole picture (I gagged on pumkin pie every thanksgiving holiday because of what my mother said)