PTSD is like being in a very different Maze. Everyone has their own life maze and they begin to learn their way to see obstacles and turns and even pathways that can lead to dead ends. But for people who are stricken with PTSD, the forward motion stops, instead all of a sudden something seems to push them backwards. It is scary because by going backwards, one cannot see and often what happens is the person can be thrust into a hole they had been in before and somehow struggled to get out and continue on the life maze.

The person who has PTSD cannot understand why they cannot seem to move forward like they used to. And everytime they are somehow suddenly forced to go backward, it gets very upsetting and confusing. And when they talk about it no one seems to understand because all they talk about is YES, there are dead ends, scary parts, scary people, difficult parts on their paths too, but that is the life maze, JUST KEEP MOVING AND DEAL WITH IT.

Oh, how frustrating and lonely and confusing it becomes, not being able to somehow move forward, no matter how much one seems to try.

Eventually, if someone is lucky and finds a good therapist, they learn that each time they are pushed back, stuck in a hole or obstacle, calm down, look around, pay attention and talk about it. The therapist reaches out a hand and helps the person struggling to slowly climb out and calm down. In time the therapist explains what it means and that yes, this can happen, your not alone and don't blame yourself every time you are sent backwards. Each person who struggles has different holes and obstacles they can be sent back to, however, it is important that each person understand this in not thier fault and they can learn how to move forward again.

A therapist slowly teaches the sufferer that it doesn't matter if the person cant do the maze like others, they can learn to do the maze their own way, and no, they are not going to do it the same as before, however, they can eventually learn to still do the maze, maybe even better than before.

Patience, time, and support is essential.

Open Eyes