How To Overcome Traumatic Memories

[Fractality]

Keep serotonin low...engage in novel experiences regularly, expose yourself to bright sun, fresh air, meditation (with a focus on overexposure to the memories or with a focus on stillness of mind?)

 

[ReSTART]

Antihistamines have shown promise on this.
However, I don't condone diving directly into drugs even if they're relatively safe.

 

[RedStaR]

Ketamine obviously.

 

[johnsmith]

What about Neuro-linguistic programming. Richard Bandlers work. I know this forum mostly deals with the biological aspect of things, but surely the subjective plays a role in this topic as well.

 

[Thoushant]

Do you recall the experience?
If you do, you could tape yourself going over the experience, and do some sort of EMDR
What is EMDR? | EMDR Institute – EYE MOVEMENT DESENSITIZATION AND REPROCESSING THERAPY
basicly relax and engage in rapid eye movement while you relisten to the tape, just let your eyes shift freely.
it enhances info processing, so you would benefit from reinterpreting the significance and value of the event while you do.
stuff like how much does it bother me? why does it? A scenario where it doesn't etc. basically neutralize the significance of the traumatic experience.

There was another therapy, which engage in whole body "rapid movement". You see animals shake when they flee danger. We can too, we just don't do it, and the experience is set in our fascia/connective tissue. I forgot the name though.
You could do a smilair session. I have done by breathing in to a point where I'm about full, keep at it and you'll start shaking. When shaking starts, it's fairly easy to maintain. Then just let it naturally take it course, move it up down the body, where you feel something is "stuck" tension is.

 

[Makrosky]

Antihistamines have shown promise on this.
However, I don't condone diving directly into drugs even if they're relatively safe.

Do you have more info on this ? Besides what Peat says about serotonin/acetylcholine/histamine etc.

 

[denise]

Somatic Experiencing is an amazing tool for trauma. Highly recommended.

There's an excellent 3-part video series by Irene Lyon about trauma you can watch right now (they're lead-ins to a 12-wk course she does about healing trauma). Check them out here. She has lots of videos on YT that are quite good too.

 

[Evgenius]

Look into TRE ( Trauma release exercises). It releases both physical and emotional trauma with simple physical exercises, no need for talk therapy and very effective.

 

[Amazoniac]

Rayzord mentioned that when you're energized the brain neglects the negative memories in favor of the positive ones. So, if you're not energized enough for that and they keep bothering you, putting effort to do other activities as a way to overcome traumatic memories is avoidance behavior, trying to escape them won't work. Humor is a temporary fix until you get to a proper state but you can't take it light, you have to ridicularize them to the point where the memory no longer carries the same weight.

Most comedians crash because they become very efficient stress relievers but using that ability only to entertain others while avoiding their own stuff.
I always used humor and, believe it or not, most of it is turned inwards.

 

[Amazoniac]

To exemplify what I mean, if you pay attention to most sitcoms, they're funny because you're outside. If you were in their position (character) it would stop being funny, quite the opposite. You can reason traumatic memories the same way until you get energized enough to simply neglect them because they have no use anymore. Thinking without overthinking about their purpose is interesting.

Meditation is hard because you have to evade those kind of thoughts as they keep coming when you're not busy.
The busy bee has no time for sorrow. | Ray Peat Forum

 

[Amazoniac]

R is for Resiliency

Recently, I have studied the link between humor and resiliency. Humor actually demonstrates intelligence through creativity. As Albert Einstein said, “creativity is intelligence having fun.” [burtlan, are you nodding your head here?] “Initial evidence comes from anecdotal or case report studies that have documented the use of humour to cope with the extremely traumatic events typically encountered by emergency personnel, such as police, firefighters, and those in medical settings. Workers in these highly stressful occupations often employ cynical humor or “gallows humor” to relieve tension, vent their feelings, and cope with stress in settings such as the emergency room (Rowe & Regehr, 2010; Van Wormer & Boes, 1997) or as HIV service providers (Kosenko & Rintamaki, 2010). It has been suggested that humour is used adaptively in these adverse situations to help detach or distance the sense and also foster group cohesion and social support, in order to ensure that personnel can act effectively under these traumatic circumstances.” Further longitudinal studies show some of these service workers who show greater levels of humour were actually “at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, greater body mass and smoking (Kerkkanen, Kuiper & Martin, 2004). This may be because other uses of humor may be maladaptive in that it inappropriately masks emotions or pain and the cynical and dark sense of humor may alienate them (Kosenko & Rintamaki, 2010).

Pseudo-optimism, humor-as-therapy, has a certain value, but a deeper optimism involves a willingness to assimilate new information and to change plans accordingly.” – Dr Ray Peat, PhD​

Same for the use of all other "addictive" substances, if you numb your senses, you won't experience things as intense as they are, but it doesn't mean that they're not hurting.

He mentioned how adolescence is the first traumatic period common to most people. It is exactly when people start abusing substances to get by the delicate phase.

I suspect that reproductive maturity appears... | Ray Peat Forum

 

[xiaohua]

I second the EMDR recommendation. It has a high success rate with PTSD, which is normally considered very difficult to treat.

 

[Xisca]

Somatic Experiencing is an amazing tool for trauma. Highly recommended.

There's an excellent 3-part video series by Irene Lyon about trauma you can watch right now (they're lead-ins to a 12-wk course she does about healing trauma). Check them out here. She has lots of videos on YT that are quite good too.

It is the top one for ptsd actually...

 

[Xisca]

Keep serotonin low...

Do you have more info on this ? Besides what Peat says about serotonin/acetylcholine/histamine etc.

People have problems to quit, I would not mess with anti-histamine. And lower serotonine only if too high! If it is low, why lower it?
I am looking at this sort of issues because I had dermographism as a child, thus indicating a problem with histamine. In my case coming from ethanol. How do you know if your serotonine is too low or not?

 

[Makrosky]

People have problems to quit, I would not mess with anti-histamine. And lower serotonine only if too high! If it is low, why lower it?
I am looking at this sort of issues because I had dermographism as a child, thus indicating a problem with histamine. In my case coming from ethanol. How do you know if your serotonine is too low or not?

Easy : you take an antiserotonin drug and you see how you feel.

 

[Peatogenic]

I second the EMDR recommendation. It has a high success rate with PTSD, which is normally considered very difficult to treat.

It also has many horror stories.

 

[Momado965]

Cypro + lisuride. Pansterone + dht + thyroid is what worked for me. Ample rest and new experiences + being well fed.

 

[Peatogenic]

Cypro + lisuride. Pansterone + dht + thyroid is what worked for me. Ample rest and new experiences + being well fed.

Did you have a trauma disorder, by any chance? I've found great alteration from pansterone, vit a and d, and androsterone. But the cypro is intriguing to me. I've wondered if excess serotonin can build up....like you may not see the effect right away.

 

[GreekDemiGod]

Forget you ever had it. Revise your entire history and replace it with positive memories. Drop the old state and assume the new state. Never give them any more energy.
This whole need for trauma healing is only reinforcing it

 

[Peatogenic]

Forget you ever had it. Revise your entire history and replace it with positive memories. Drop the old state and assume the new state. Never give them any more energy.
This whole need for trauma healing is only reinforcing it

Trauma disorders like PTSD and CPTSD don't work like that. They completely dysregulate endocrine system and can alter brain structure. Whether you're focused on a memory or not. It's well known and not controversial at all. What's controversial is treatment models.