Posted by baseball55 on December 21, 2017, at 18:12:22
In reply to PTSD from mostly neglect?, posted by Lamdage22 on December 21, 2017, at 10:44:29
Neglect can cause serious problems - not sure if PTSD is the right term though. There are people who were physically abused as children who, nevertheless, had some sense of being loved and cared for emotionally. But people who were emotionally abused or just ignored and neglected often, as adults, have problems with emotional attachment and regulation. I suffered some physical abuse as a child and complete emotional neglect - and the neglect had a much greater impact psychologically than the abuse. I literally had no idea what I was feeling and repressed all emotions, partly using lots of drugs and alcohol until I was in my late 40s and started to see a therapist. He literally taught me to feel and express emotions - just as if he were a parent teaching a small child how to understand and express their feelings.
The amazing thing for me was that even though I had no idea what was going on with my own emotions, I was a very good mother and taught my daughter to express and talk about her feelings. She turned out to be securely attached, able to form strong and healthy relationships and always processes any conflicts with others.
She was so happy when I started in therapy. She told me she had never really understood me because I didn't understand myself.
poster:baseball55
thread:1096412
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20161002/msgs/1096424.html