Navigating Solutions and Darkness

In circles she goes, running out the clock of her life. Why me why me why me why me why why why *whining continues endlessly* 

The threat of further violence - the threat of death as a punishment - is very clearly an effective deterrent when it comes to women reporting rape as a crime in India.

Photo by  Alejo Reinoso  on  Unsplash We were having a discussion recently about having a dude beaten up (he more than deserves it.) This is the sort of thing we (I) regularly discuss as half a joke but I came to a couple of conclusions last night:  That inflicting violence, however well justified, would impact the perpetrator as well as the victim. How even if it doesn't affect such monsters and even if they get pleasure out of it, we aren't like that because if we were we'd already be out there inflicting violence. That our empathetic nature would be affected by the pain we ourselves inflict. That there would be no going back from something like that, and you might irrevocably become someone else. It puts the prospect of revenge in a clearer light - I have been very consumed by the idea for a while, and I cannot honestly say I have completely given up on it even now. Something needs to be done about such people... but should that something come at the furt...

"Some of these factors (that affect recovery) you cannot change. For example, you cannot control whether you have experienced more than one traumatic event."* While many mental health professionals may have their hearts in the right place, be sympathetic in their approach, and even have experienced the same kinds of trauma, there is still a flaw in the above approach. It's true, you cannot control whether you have experienced more than one traumatic event. But you also cannot control whether you will experience more trauma  in the future. Now, that may not sound very actualized (I'm still processing and working out all of this) but how exactly does trauma therapy account for the fact that if are a marginalized identity - women, lgbt, poc, dalits etc - then you are highly likely to experience not one, but multiple traumatic events? That it is practically inevitable? How do you process trauma when you're on tenterhooks, waiting for the next axe to fall? ...

Photo by  Liz Sanchez-Vegas  on  Unsplash Coping mechanisms are varied, and may have adverse or positive long term impacts on mental and physical health. The best way to think about these coping mechanisms is through the lens of whether they are helpful, or unhelpful.  Unfortunately, experiencing traumatic events can lead to an increase in maladaptive coping mechanisms - aka the unhelpful ones. PTSD - Discussed here Acute Stress Disorder  - Shows many PTSD symptoms for a period of several weeks after the stressor. - Not a prolonged reaction - Usually resolves on its own, especially with a good support system Grief Reactions  -  Extreme sadness - Difficulty maintaining a routine - Difficulty concentrating - Problems with guilt and anger - Can happen after the sudden, unexpected death of a loved one - Associated with sudden illness or injury Depression  -  Common consequence of trauma - Depends on the type of trau...

This post is based on the book Overcoming Trauma and PTSD: A Workbook Integrating Skills from ACT, DBT and CBT by Sheela Raja and Susan M. Orsillo. Images are from the same book. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a common reaction to experiencing something traumatic. Reactions to traumatic events usually involves intense fear, helplessness or horror. In addition, after the trauma, you experience one or more of these other types of symptoms: Re-experiencing Bad dreams Distressing memories  Feeling that the trauma is happening over and over again.  Avoidance Going to great lengths to avoid any reminders. Avoid certain places or people that remind you of the incident. Unable to remember important aspects of the traumatic event. Lack interest in life - disconnecting from people Emotionally numb Feeling constantly anxious or on edge Difficulty sleeping and concentrating  Difficulty managing anger  Feeling irritable Being "on guard" , always scanning your ...

"I've got anxiety worming its way through my body..."

Originally written, August 17, 2015. Crossposted from here . Title:  Stray Author:  Rachel Vincent Year of Publication:  2007 Series: Shifters #:   1 Goodreads Rating (Avg.):  3.81 Goodreads Rating (Mine): 2 I find this cover disturbing rather than alluring. If you have a strong female protagonist, the least you can do is show her face. SPOILERS Plot Description: Faythe Sanders is a female werecat and a rebel. Her happy go lucky days at college come to an end when it becomes known that there's a rogue werecat out there kidnapping tabbies - female werecats. Faythe's family bring her home to keep her safe, but she ends up running into the kidnappers anyway, leaving it up to her to save herself and her cousin. Despite my Goodreads rating of 2/5, this will not be a Negative Review. There will, however, be a lot of ranting. Brace yourselves, please. Stray  had me extremely conflicted. I think it had something to do with the combination of...