“You are not broken, in need of fixing. Rather, you are deeply hurt, in need of care.”
Dr. Arielle Schwartz
Learning about complex trauma, or C-PTSD, greatly changed my perspective about myself on a deeper level–how I’m feeling and how I’m showing up in the world. When people think about PTSD, they often think about a car accident or other single-incident traumatic event. C-PTSD is more than that.
What the Experts Say About Complex PTSD
“We have learned that trauma is not just an event that took place sometime in the past; it is also the imprint left by that experience on mind, brain, and body. This imprint has ongoing consequences for how the human organism manages to survive in the present. Trauma results in a fundamental reorganization of the way mind and brain manage perceptions. It changes not only how we think and what we think about, but also our very capacity to think.”
Dr. Bessel van der Kolk
“The meaning of the word ‘trauma,’ in its Greek origin is ‘wound. Whether we realize it or not, it is our woundedness, or how we cope with it, that dictates much of our behavior, shapes our social habits, and informs out ways of thinking about the world. It can even determine whether or not we are capable or rational thought at all in matters of the greatest importance to our lives.”
Dr. Gabor Mate
“C-PTSD typically arises as a result of ongoing stress or repeated traumatic events that occur during childhood and is sometimes referred to as Developmental Trauma Disorder.”
Dr. Arielle Schwartz
“The difference between regular PTSD and complex PTSD is that traditional PTSD is often associated with a moment of trauma. Sufferers of complex PTSD have undergone continual abuse—trauma that has occurred over a long period of time, over the course of years.”
Stephanie Foo
“Diagnosis of C-PTSD includes the symptoms of PTSD, but also has three additional categories of symptoms: difficulties with emotion regulation, an impaired sense of self-worth, and interpersonal problems. C-PTSD is associated with intrusive flashbacks, feelings of panic, overwhelming feelings of rage, debilitating feelings of hopelessness, chronic feelings of shame, a harsh and unrelenting ‘inner critic,’ and a lack of trust in other people.”
Dr. Arielle Schwartz
“C-PTSD is a more severe form of Post-traumatic stress disorder. It is delineated from this better known trauma syndrome by five of its most common and troublesome features: emotional flashbacks, toxic shame, self-abandonment, a vicious inner critic and social anxiety.”
Pete Walker
“You might have feelings of shame, unworthiness, or helplessness. Perhaps you feel plagued by anxiety or believe that you don’t belong in this world. These kinds of thoughts and feelings might lead you to withdraw from relationships in order to avoid further rejection or hurt. Or, you might use food, alcohol, or drugs to disconnect from or numb yourself to the pain. If you relate to these symptoms, it is important to know that you are not alone. The painful emotions of complex PTSD are remnants of your past. More importantly, you can heal.”
Dr. Arielle Schwartz
“C-PTSD typically includes an attachment disorder that comes from the absence of a sympathetic caregiver in childhood. When the developing child lacks a supportive parental refuge, she never learns that other people can soothe loneliness and emotional pain. She never learns that real intimacy grows out of sharing all of her experience.”
Pete Walker
Are you beginning to notice symptoms of past trauma? Here are some of my favorite resources to help you further explore trauma and its impact in your present life:
Books about C-PTSD
- Dr. Bessel van der Kolk is the leading expert in trauma research, and his book The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma is a #1 New York Times bestseller. This book transformed our collective understanding of trauma as well as the healing model.
- Pete Walker’s book Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving is also a must-read for anyone affected by C-PTSD.
- Stephanie Foo provides a personal memoir of her C-PTSD healing journey in What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma.
- Dr. Arielle Schwartz has written a number of books about C-PTSD including The Complex PTSD Workbook: A Mind-Body Approach to Regaining Emotional Control and Becoming Whole.
Podcasts about C-PTSD
- Complex Trauma Recovery: CPTSD 101 (2021) 31 minutes
- Being Well: Complex PTSD and Learning to Live with the Past with Stephanie Foo (2023) 60 minutes
- Complex Trauma, the Freeze Response, and Somatic Therapy with Dr. Arielle Schwartz (2021) 47 minutes
- For more podcasts about C-PTSD, please see this page