Tahsin Rahman Oshin
At some point of our lives, we all experience some kind of grief or even worse, a traumatic experience. Life is not always rainbows and unicorns only for anyone, and we consider ourselves unlucky to have come across such an appalling event that leaves us shattered from within. The levels of grief are different, and the symptoms, more or less, vary a little according to individuals. But what most of us go through after a dreadful incident is usually Post-traumatic stress disorder, in short, PTSD.
After any shocking experience, it is normal to feel sad, frightened, disconnected and apprehensive. Traumatic experiences can be an accident, death, natural disaster, rape, sexual assault, military combat, being taken hostage, being a prisoner of war, an illness or an assault. We are affected mentally and sometimes even physically, after going through incidents like these. As a result, we might experience numerous volatile effects which are, but not limited to: changing emotions such as shock, numbness, inability to concentrate, recurring memories or nightmares about the event, mood changes such as irritability, nervousness, pessimism, increased consumption of alcohol, extreme sadness or crying, changes in eating and sleeping habits, changing emotions such as shocks and denials, and many more. However, in cases of PTSD, the symptoms may vary from children to adult: re-experiencing the traumatic event, avoiding reminders of the trauma, aches pains with no apparent causes, new phobias and fears not related to the event, etc.
The symptoms of PTSD and its effects on the nervous system can be severe sometimes. It is expected that when your sense of safety is crushed by a horrendous event, the body and mind both experience a shock. The nervous system has three different ways of responding to this:
Immobilization: This occurs when you experience an overwhelming amount of stress and are unable to move on forward with your life. You start feeling like you are stuck and your nervous system is unable to return to its previous state of balance.
Social engagement: You feel unable to interact with others and immediate defensive responses of ‘fight-or-flight’ takes over
Mobilization: This occurs when the social interaction is not right and the ‘fight-or-flight’ response starts occurring at its peak level. You feel the need to defend yourself or escape from any kind of danger. Your blood pressure rises, your muscles tighten and heart pounds faster, increasing your sense of speed and reflex. Once the danger has passed, you slowly calm down and your pressure and heartbeat starts lowering.
Some of the techniques used to overcome PTD have shown tremendous success, while it commonly varies from individual to individual. Exercise is the first step many use to overcome the effects. Any kind of exercise spurts out the adrenaline rush and as you focus on your body, every bit of muscles flexing in your body, the rush of wind on your face, you start to get the grip on your life and feel a positive gush of energy inside you. Rock climbing, trekking, martial arts, swimming, etc type of physical arts make it easier to maintain the focus on body movements and relieve stress. Also, spending time with nature outside and engaging in outdoor activities have sown great improvements. Another thing you can try is self-regulating your nervous system, such as mindful breathing and emotionally reconnecting with your loved ones. For example, going out for a picnic on a sunny morning or other sensory inputs of sight, smells, or noises that help you calm down. If connecting becomes difficult, then you can try out vocal toning- go outside in a quiet place, sit straight, part your lips, close your eyes and make a humming sound from your mouth. As you do, try to focus on that noise. This is similar to mediation performed by monks and helps you find your inner peace and calmness. Last but not the least, you can engage yourself in some kind of community service or volunteering which will help you to meet strangers, and observe the lives of the underprivileged from a closer perspective, gaining a wider sense of understanding that might help you to achieve serenity.
Tahsin Rahman Oshin is a feature writer at the Daily Our Time who has a passion for performing arts and fashion. She is a high school graduate, loves cats and plans to build an animal shelter in future.