Sequela is a medical term that refers to a condition that is the result of an illness or injury. As my PTSD has been improving, it has been more difficult to identify any sequelae except for memory problems. But not today. When life is in homeostasis it’s easy for someone with PTSD to forget that … Continue readingPTSD Sequelae Linger
I’m in graduate school to become a licensed clinical mental health counselor. As a Vassar graduate, the work is relatively easy. (Vassar was rated the second-most difficult school to graduate in a survey by US News and World Report back in the 1990s.) But if I don’t have tools in place to accommodate my poor … Continue readingWhat failing working memory looks like
The Americans with Disabilities Acts recognizes dogs as service animals because they can be trained to do specific tasks and they are not limited from traveling like hooved animals are. Pigs are smart and can be trained, but they can’t exactly curl up at their handlers’ feet on an airplane. Maybe one day pigs will … Continue readingBuild Acceptance of Service Animals
This morning I went to the farmers market to get some greens. When I looked around at what was available, I saw a stand that I bought something from just two days prior. I had bought greens that day, and they were still in the refrigerator. In that moment upon remembering, I realized how much … Continue readingAccepting Memory Limitations
Yesterday was the first 9/11 I didn’t feel angry or depressed since that fateful day. I’m still having trouble sleeping without Penny right next to me. Each night I try letting her sleep by herself, but eventually call her over. And I realize I still have a hard time concentrating on one writing task for … Continue reading9/11 in 2018
The one positive aspect of PTSD’s hypervigilance is the ability to turn the energy into something positive. I think many people who have faced trauma involving a threat to life become activists. I certainly have, and I want to encourage more people to become activists. This does not necessarily mean attending rallies or marching in … Continue readingYou Can Fight for Disability Justice Too
On one airline’s website, which I checked before booking a flight, the text differentiates between emotional support animals, “psychiatric service” animals, and service animals for more obvious needs such as sight and hearing assistance. The webpage grouped emotional support and psychiatric service animals together. This troubled me, because according to the ADA, there is no … Continue readingThe Difference Between Emotional Support and Service Animals
Ten days prior to today felt glorious, like I was 30-something again, able to be productive, an over-achiever, work full-time plus, and enjoy it. Today I feel like I’ve hit a wall. I’m not foggy, but my brain seems to have an impasse. I left my phone at home without realizing until a half mile … Continue readingImpasse on a Mental Capacity Rollercoaster
As I type this text, I feel tears of bittersweet relief welling up, because what seemed impossible only a few years ago now seems like a possibility. My panic attacks have been gone for three years; they used to be on the verge of uncontrollable overwhelm on a daily basis with hyperventilation as its precursor. … Continue readingHealing from Chronic PTSD is Possible
Being a New Yorker, one learns to be direct in conversation and say what one thinks without concern. With hypervigilance, this directness has an added emotional element. BUT to a person with PTSD this element of emotion may not feel loaded with emotion. In fact, the person with PTSD may not even realize emotion is … Continue readingHypervigilance and Why Motorcycles