Have you lost the ability to cry and if so...

In short I have been through 30 years of various forms of abuse from parents, family, lovers, co-workers and in laws. I've been having really bad ptsd the last three years due to a living situation. (I have since left, move in with people and it's bad again) I have found that I can no longer cry. I used to be a crier. I don't know why this has changed. I can only think that when I used to cry I would cry and my cat would come lay next to me and comfort me. I would tell her all my problems. (I no longer have this cat due to life's situations but dream about her once a month, have her pictures out etc.)

Every time I'm upset and feel like crying I just physically can't. This is worrying to me. Is anyone else like this? I feel there is no stress release. I read I should try shaking as it supposedly is a body's natural reaction to releasing stress in stressful situations, but it doesn't work or I can't figure out how to make myself do it right.

When I feel down I find myself looking at sad things online. I look at inspirational or random acts of kindness websites with stories that are sad. I can read a story about a couple that died moments apart and cry for about 10 seconds then I carry on. I wonder if I do this as a stress release without knowing it? Does anyone else finding themselves going to these websites when sad/stressed? I wonder if this is the only way I can cry now, not for myself but for other people?

David Bercelis TRE will get you shaking. You will feel again.

If you cant buy or borrow David's books/cds (public library may buy them if you ask) you can do any gentle psoas stretching yoga.

I caution you to know this Is strong medicine. It Is effective. Go slow. I flipped a physiology with three decades of ptsd and got unstable. It got scary. I also "have ADD" whatwver that may mean. But I really do.

Before Bercelis TRE please listen to Peter Levines audio CDs on trauma. Go.slow. commit to.going slow. Memorize Levine then start tre.

Especially since your current living situation Is unstable go very slow.

What happened to me, so far as i know, Is I began TRE and I got my feelings back. I alept well and woke energétic. I felt invigorsted and alive. I got a healthy dose of serotonina and dropped dopamine to dangerous levwls of recklessnessx heedlessness. It got dangerous. It got to something even I wondered if I was not manic. I think not but I was concerned. Ended up in er a few times and some er docs do know from trauma, but most staff Is not trauma sensitive or informed. Some think they are informed.

You have to consider your safety first. If you aren't in a safe environment you need to be very cautious about becoming volatile.

Try yoga first. Gentle restorative yoga. Then just eensy psoas stretches. Do 90% grounding and soothing and ten percent tre.

Have some respect for chronic ptsd. If you are also female, chances are you've been told you are a hysterical high strung ninny or told it never happened, didnt hurt you if ot did, others had it worse and stop making excuses. We got retraumatised. And discounted . And trivialized. Its DIFFICULT fir us to treat chronic ptsd with respect after decades of secondary wounding and dismissal.

Takeaway point Is read levine. And berceli and go slower than slow, ground and soothe and take chronic ptsd very seriously.

My hospital discharge papers say ptsd Is not life threatening but every one of us I have spoken to has been seriously suicidal. Ptsd Is life threatening. Part of the trivialisation process Is to combine ptsd with "c-ptsd" which Is dramatic borderline who make suicidal gestures and threats. This Is one way to water down the numbers of completed suicides among people dxed "ptsd". No one really wants to face what trauma can do.

Oh no~ When I'm sad, I avoid sadness. I have no interest in crying. It doesn't worry me but it probably should have. One day I figure I'll cry me a river but i'm not looking to make it a habit.

I'm with Parley on this one!

Occasionally I can shed a tear or two, but yes I have looked at sad things on the internet at times when sad or stressed...or listen to music I find sad. But sometimes I don't want to feel it at all and would rather feel numb, and then I sometimes do feel pretty numb for a while and wish I didn't.

Thank you for the comments. I read them originally when they were posted but have been in a funk as far as not replying to posts/answering emails etc. I have checked the online library catalogue for our county and they do not have the TRE books. I found a youtube video with some exercises however and will be exploring that.

I want able top cry for many, many years and just recently started again. Now I can't seem to stop :/ I cry at stupid commercials for Pete's sake! It'll come back eventually. The videos and sad stories may be helping in the short term until you are able to cry. I used to do similar things. I would watch sad stud or read sad stiff top get the emotion out. Whatever (safely) helps in the moment.

I couldnt cry for a long long time....then i started and thought i would never stop - so i "turned it off" shut that part of me down and went back to being numb....but you cant stay that way forever - I found a good T - (sadly passed away from Cancer) and he did all types of therapy wiht me including EFT which islike acupressure and positive words - sounds strange but it helped open my emotions - which then hit me like a hammer....i learned to recognise them and deall wiht them and yes i know how strange it sounds to not recognise an emotion but thats how i was....things change..you go backwards and forwards in the healing journey ...I hope you all are doing well on yours .

P7

what does TRE stand for?

A Skeezyks NEVER cries... ...

I don't cry either. I never really did, even as a kid. I learned early in life that crying gets you nowhere. After so much abuse throughout my life I just shut down. If I'm really, really depressed I can cry a bit because by then I'm overwhelmed. Something would have to be super gut wrenching to make me cry, something like my dog dying. I would cry about that.