My therapist and I have been talking for awhile about coping skills and how to decrease the affect of the nightmares and flashbacks I'm having. However, I'm finding myself very critical and pessimistic about the ability of these skills to do so which is hindering me from even practicing them.

For example, I have bad nightmares and one thing that my therapist has been suggesting is that I write down the dream and change the ending... *blank stare of disbelief* Yes! Of course, why didn't I think of that.... ok let's try this: the little girl is stuck in a terrible situation in the middle of a thunderstorm, but then suddenly the sun comes up and she's able to live happily ever after!! Or maybe this is better: same start, little girl, bad place, bad people, bad weather, but (wait for it) dun da da da in comes someone good, it could be grown up me, it could be my therapist and swoops to the bed, unties the girl, beats up the bad guys and then they all live happily ever after!!!

I feel patronized, as though this is made to be such a simple fix for a deep and difficult struggle. Doing this, rewriting the dream changes nothing! It doesn't change the fact that that girl never got off the bed, that no matter how long she stared and waited and wished no one walked through that door to help. Rewriting this story for my dreams doesn't change or help anything and I'm tired of hearing it. Sorry.