Mental Magnolia

Special Needs and Normal Development

When you have a child with special needs, it’s easy to only see how different your child is from “normal” children.  While they are young and developing, the usual milestones missed are glaringly obvious.  I have come to realize, though, that there are actually some areas in which our special children follow the norm.  Usually, I find it quite humorous, even when Ry is acting like a stubborn…

We all have points in our lives where we feel down or sad.  It’s part of the human existence.  There’s no getting around it.  True depression, however, is different.  It is a mental health condition that can wreak havoc on the mind and body.  There are many kinds of depression that vary in intensity from mild to severe.  Therapy and medications are usually used to treat them but knowing…

Self-doubt is one of those things that can cripple you to the point of inaction.  Self-doubt can cause you to give up on looking for the good in yourself.  If you read my last post, I’ve Lost Myself, you know that I have hit a pretty hard rock bottom.  I have come to the point where I don’t believe that I am capable of anything; a point where I have honestly believed that I have nothing left…

It has been a while since I’ve sat down to write for this blog.  I’m still trying to deal with and work through everything that has transpired over the past few months.  I’ve tried many tactics to try to keep my sanity in check.  A couple of weeks was spent working on the house with help from family that came to visit.  Then came the crash of all the work being done and there being nothing…

Anger and PTSD are very commonly connected.  Trauma can lead to anger as part of “survival mode.”  In fact, anger falls under the category of Hyper-arousal under PTSD symptoms.  Anger is a fight or flight reaction when one is faced with a traumatic situation and some can’t seem to shut it off.  This is not to say that anger always comes with PTSD, that isn’t the case.  However, most deal…

Flashbacks, Nightmares and PTSD

            Flashbacks and nightmares are some of the most known hallmarks of PTSD.  Again, these are signs that we are shown time and time again in movies or TV shows to demonstrate that a character has PTSD.  Sometimes though the flashbacks and nightmares are not so dramatic as Hollywood would have you believe.  Sometimes they are much more subtle.

That is not to say that flashbacks…

Self-Medication, Self-Destruction and PTSD

        Self-medication is something that happens quite often while struggling with PTSD, but self-medication is only one part of the destructive behavior patterns those with PTSD can exhibit.  Self-destructive behaviors can be the worst part of PTSD because it takes the problem and makes it worse.  There is nothing positive about self-destructive behaviors.

We’ve all heard the stories…

Moral Injury and PTSD

Moral Injury and PTSD have similar symptoms yet at their core are based on completely different types of trauma.  PTSD occurs when a person experiences a traumatic event.  Moral Injury occurs when a traumatic event strikes at the heart of a spiritual, ethical, moral or otherwise deep-rooted belief system.  Where PTSD is a mental wound, Moral Injury is a wound to the very soul. 

Those with…