Hello,
I don't know if anyone has suffered from the above or experienced nausea from pretty bad anxiety, but I wondered if someone could help.
I've been out of an abusive relationship for a year now, but the past year has been horrific too as I've had to go to court, and relive what happened. Much of my life has been statements, solicitors, interviews... The cases are still ongoing and my ex is still harassing me believe it or not.
I was diagnosed with PTSD back in the summer. It was a relief as I was suffering frightening symptoms - flashbacks, panic attacks, and certain sounds and sights and smells would trigger me feeling extremely scared like a frightened child, cowering in a corner.
Anyway, in my worst episodes, or when I'm feeling particularly afraid or very stressed by the current cases and what I have to do, I get very bad nausea.
Now I know on here we talk at length about the difference between real and anxious nausea, which I think I'm right when I say we know the difference when we think about it rationally, but when we are anxious it's hard to tell. But this nausea, I actually find myself wrenching sometimes. My stomach churns and it feels heavy. I salivate more. All the physical symptoms you get before v* I actually have. It's probably only willpower that has stopped me actually being s*. You hear of people v* from shock, like when someone passes away, or if they see something very gruesome like a body. I believe the nausea I am experiencing is the same, triggered by trauma but not the product of physical illness. So for me the chance of v* feels very real, sometimes daily when I'm having bad spells with PTSD.
I don't know what to do to stop it when it happens, I feel I have to ride it out. I try to keep busy with work, I have a great support network of friends and family who I talk to, I have a psychiatrist I see, I take medication like diazepam... But ultimately, whilst I am afraid of my ex I will always feel myself returning to a very heightened sense of panic and feeling of danger which results in the physical n*.
Has anyone any practical suggestions? Can I really keep using willpower to not be s*?
Any help or kind words would be very much appreciated. It's 2.40am here in the UK and my stomach is feeling heavy and sickly from intense stress.