The symptoms are not merely nightmares and outbursts that are often portrayed on TV.

It can feel like you’re always on edge, irritable, uncomfortable around people, locked inside yourself, unable to just relax and have fun, unable to feel really positive feelings – and if you do, it’s fleeting. All you want is to be yourself, the self you were before this changed you. It becomes difficult to understand how anyone can float through life doing their schoolwork, or focusing on their job, or going out to bars and social events and having fun when there is so much pain and suffering, and that pain and suffering is now a part of you.

PTSD can have a large effect on your personal life. To compensate for feeling on edge you may bottle up your emotions, which can affect your relationships with friends and loved ones. Things you say can come out very dry and almost uninterested, even though that’s not how you actually feel. Some may have disassociation, which can be extremely scary. Slowly your body starts to drift away from yourself, and you start losing control of what you can do. It can be described as an out-of-body experience. This can all lead to deep loneliness.

This isn’t something that you can ‘just get over’ through willpower. It involves reprogramming your brain which takes a lot of hard work! The good news is that it’s possible. Through therapy and medication and determined, consistent effort, you can heal yourself. You can find your voice again. And you can improve your life. We work with you and make sure to individualize your therapy so you can progress at your own pace, in a way that makes YOU feel comfortable.