Is any of this "alternative" therapy effective?

I think the entire debate is indicative of one of my key points - mental illness stigmatization is rampant. I admit feeling very relieved to hear PTSD, it seemed a "lesser" diagnosis.

Injury vs illness - a semantic debate which really does diddly squat in the real world. No one should have to feel ashamed or afraid because of a mental health situation. That is where the system has failed us as patients and consumers of their services.

CBT. DBT. EMDR. Etc. Maybe I am just too cynical. All sounds like something Oprah would have gushed over back in the day when she was reinventing herself as America's new age spiritual cheerleader.

Does any of this stuff actually work? Because I am getting sick of throwing time and money down the rabbit hole?

If something can fix me to the point I can be relatively happy on a day by day basis I will do it.

But if it my destiny to walk around unhappy plagued by constant bad memories, dark thoughts, fears, fine, time to accept that and roll with it.

I am like Teacake - coming up on the time of year where anniversary dates of "what happened" really bother me - they certainly did last year.

Two years of struggle upon the heels of a lifetime of struggle - all set in motion before I was ever conceived- perpetual punishment for a crime I didn't even commit.

I am sick of the struggle. Happy or sad, I just want peace and closure. I just want to live in an "ordinary world" that doesn't revolve around doctors and therapists and psychotropic drugs and support or lack thereof and yada yada yada.

Is there any realistic way to achieve that? Are there success stories out there who just don't share their wisdom here very much? People who look back and think "wow, glad I am all done with that!"

The other month, I read something about combat vets, using nudism to treat PTSD.

I haven't read much into it, wouldn't of thought there would be much on it.
I don't know if would actually work or whether legit.
I don't know would work for C-PTSD

What I DO know though is about facing things, i've done it my whole life as to avoid becoming afraid, or being seen as weak so as to not be try to control or able to be.

As you know I have always gone against what people say, believe and thought my own stuff figuring it out, and now I see the World differently. Make up and fashion I see (or at least belief) how much of a problem they actually are and cause. I know about parenting and that they teach you to not be yourself and be nice, even if lie, I knew about personal growth and did, before I realised all of this stuff, I fixed my mind, my beliefs, like how I feel towards people, I learnt to understand, once you understand, you can accept, I haven' thated my mother in years, and it's how I can still see her, even though She still brings me down with her own stuff, but I don't let it become me.

Knowing and experiencing what I have, and how I see the World for what it really is, and how, because all I used was logic, reason, analysis etc, and emotions so supressed, I am that rare type of individual who could handle making decisions that would affect millions of lives, not many at all can handle that pressure.

Realising i've lived with anxiety whole life only past year say, speaking to Psychiatrist, having to fight against her, with her BS, finally got to point where she said, drugs aren't the treatment for anxiety, (won' tgo into the fact that it is actually her no me who has a problem with medication), she said, going out there and doing it is the treatment.

Ofc knowing this already, and biting my tongue, and then having to repeat myself 3 times, yes but I need help to get me to that place to be able to, exposure therapy,

YES I KNOW WHAT IT IS YOU STUPID *****, I'VE BEEN DOING IT MY WHOLE LIFE... I said to myself.

I know it works, and reading about the nudism and c-ptsd and the many components, I can speak my mind and not be afraid, because I have my integrity.

Wearing different clothes changes how you feel, most people know this, what most people don't realise is it's still a form of covering yourself up, hiding, trying to blend in etc

Our bodies are what most personal to us.

and when I read about that vet with PTSD and nudism, it actually made perfect sense.



Worth an entertaining thought any way Johnny, doing things which don't seem to actually work or take forever, it's time we start trying things which are different from what we've tried, and even if it doesn't work, you start being comfortable with exploring new exciting things and working through problems becomes a lot less, well everything negative experienced with dealing with them especially over a long period.

You want your life to not be about doctors and psychiatrist and problems, well they don't have to be, that's just what the World wants you to be, to never be strong to never be yourself and do it your way, because everyone else is afraid of the same thing.

I don' t know your entire story Johnny, but I know what it's like when people fail you.

All of you must be SO sick of me ... I am Broken record - I was writing the same things a year ago.

"Finally the thing I'll add that helped me the most, was just making up my mind to let it go." -SplitImage

How do you actually DO that? Believe me, I don't LIKE thinking about all of this stuff 24/7, it just "pops into my mind" against my will.

Prozac can be helpful with ptsd intrusive thoughts

DBT and CBT are skill sets most of us learned at home. We called the. "thinking it through" and "being sensible". They are skill sets taught at low cost as "treatment" for people with borderline disorder, which is one way way to hide some of the great need for adequate ono on one trauma therapy

Teacake, have you done DBT? Some of it is as you describe, but a hefty portion is focused on weathering mental storms and holding on to the moment as it is. Stuff that people with PTSD could use help with.

When my PTSD was real bad a low dose of risperdal was added to my medications. It was extraordinarily helpful.

Unfortunately I think seeing PTSD as a 'lesser' diagnoses can actually be dangerous. I mean it is actually a severe issue, due to my PTSD I've had times where I freak out over a flashback or something that reminds me of something but doesn't quite cause a flashback just more panic...and that could be dangerous to me and anyone else in the room when that happens. To me PTSD is a severe mental health issue, and so I don't have the choice to not manage it....every day I have to consider where my stress level is at, if I already feel very hypervigalent and on edge that day and then figuring out what I am able to do that day otherwise I risk getting overloaded and freaking out. So I guess my point is it does need to be taken seriously as a potentially dangerous health concern regardless of if one would want to see it as illness, injury, disorder or any other term that's used.

I guess sometimes I get the feeling people try to sugar coat PTSD, or make it seem a we bit more 'fluffy' than I see it as...mine was also untreated, still technically untreated. Perhaps maybe some have found the right therapist and treatment and are coping better than me so to them they don't see it as such a threatening horrible thing anymore...but I just don't have that experience.