trauma

Like me, a lot of people on this and other forums have experienced endless protracted withdrawals, years on end, that threaten our physical and mental health, our jobs, our relationships, our very existence. Would this be considered "trauma" that rises to the level of something like PTSD?

I think very much so. I call it medical trauma, because it is. Anything that threatens your safety and puts you in a state of fight/flight/freeze is trauma.

Thanks for response. I ask because, though I was not able to continue a two year extreme withdrawal experience and am back on the benzo, every time I experience sleepless nights and the "hit by a truck" next day effects, I am now plunged into the same deep despair and emotional upset that I experienced in full blown withdrawal. I've lost my resilience and ability to ride out the storm calmly. And I wonder if I am re-experiencing the traumatic emotional effects of that nearly fatal withdrawal, which involved long periods with no sleep. I know there is a sentiment that therapy will not help if you are actively on benzos, because it's the drug that's causing your troubles. But I have no place left to turn, ditching the benzo is not currently an option, and I am actively seeking help to regain some semblance of emotional control, if that makes sense. What I am experiencing feels like a post-trauma experience, though I have no serious trauma in my background beyond benzo withdrawal.

 

See my response to someone else about my experience with trauma work. This is on the protracted board, just FYI so if you have access to that it should show up. http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=274673.msg3431682#msg3431682