Don't know what this is but it's awful.

I have had this happen a lot in my life and know it is connected to the SA I went through. I can't seem to stop it.

I am now thinking it may be a flashback. Can flashbacks last for days on end? I am having more thoughts and visions associated with it that are horrible.

I have had flashbacks before but this seems to be a different kind for some reason.

Lucy,

During times I've had emotional flashbacks and felt extremely vulnerable and unprotected and scared, my t has had me visualize something to help me feel safe...such as imagining a big strong dog there with me who will protect me and fight off anybody who gets too close or would try to hurt me.

Another thing she has had me visualize in moments like that is standing in the middle of a circle, and the circle around me is made of up people I know who love or at least care deeply about me. Those people can form a protective shield around you while you are feeling scared and vulnerable. They will not let anything inside the circle to harm you.

Would either one of these visualizations work for you? I know it's hard when you have to imagine something, rather than it being real. But our minds are powerful, and our bodies will react to things we put into our mind.

Remember too that these flashbacks won't last forever. I don't know if a flashback can last for days, but I do know that I have gotten triggered before and the awful anxious feelings have sometimes stayed with me for 2-3 days or more. During that time, I have felt vulnerable and scared, not like myself, all of that time. So I'm guessing that those experiences count as emotional flashbacks.

I often get the panic and fear, but don't get the corresponding memory or story that goes with it. For me, that can be even scarier because you can't pinpoint where the fear comes from. What I have had to do is just focus on helping myself feel safe in the present until the emotional flashback passes.

I hope this scary period will end soon.

Peaches

I understand what you are feeling, Lucy. It seems very logical to feel that after SA. I'm sorry it happened to you. Just trust your feelings and your own body and try to feel love and healing for yourself. I hope it passes one day and you can feel whole.

I share in having PTSD, but not in that same exact way as you. Hugs.

Thanks, I appreciate those suggestions very much! Yes, I can use them. I don't know if I know enough people who care about me to form a circle, though, so I'll go with the big dog. I have a dog and love dogs and know how protective they are. Last night I was trying to put myself in the present fully (even though I didn't exactly call it that at the time) and doing that helped me relax more so that is right that trying to be in the present helps a lot.

Thank you, it really helps to know someone understands. Yes, feeling whole would be a good thing.