I used to be able to recall things that happened in a "matter of fact" way, without emotion.....but since I've been in therapy, I've learned to be more in touch with some difficult emotions....and now it's SO much more difficult to talk about, because I FEEL the emotions now that were lacking before. I didn't realize how affected I was...because those feelings were never there.

What triggered the emotions, for me, was when I witnessed an inappropriate incident between two 8 year olds in my neighborhood right after I split up with my husband...it triggered all sorts of ugliness that I didn't even recall since high school....

I used to SI when I was a teen and hadn't for years.....until that time, about 3 years ago. I honestly didn't think I was going to live through it....ironic, because I lived through the events taking place - but felt like I was going to die just from remembering it. The key there is that remembering it WITH the emotions is an excruciatingly painful experience while at the time the incidences occurred, I was able to protect myself from those overwhelming feelings by dissociating. Go figure.

There are also times when I have physical symptoms that trigger flashbacks....I'll spare you the details....