What are the signs of complex PTSD?

Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) symptoms go beyond standard PTSD, including difficulties with emotion regulation, self-perception, and relationships, alongside trauma responses like flashbacks, hypervigilance, and avoidance, stemming from prolonged or repeated trauma, often in childhood. Key signs involve deep shame, chronic anxiety, feeling detached (dissociation), intense anger, hopelessness, and trouble trusting others, making connection difficult.

What are the 17 symptoms of complex PTSD?

While there isn't a universally mandated "17 symptoms" list for Complex PTSD (C-PTSD), many resources group common signs into core areas like difficulty with emotional regulation (anger, depression, mood swings), disturbances in self-perception (worthlessness, shame, dissociation), and relational problems (mistrust, isolation), alongside classic PTSD symptoms such as flashbacks, hypervigilance, and sleep issues, often stemming from prolonged or repeated trauma, especially in childhood.
 

What are the daily struggles of complex PTSD?

Symptoms of complex PTSD

Avoiding anything that reminds you of the trauma (triggers) Feeling distant from others. Experiencing overwhelming negative emotions, such as anger, sadness, depression, and emptiness. Feeling irritable.

What is the difference between PTSD and complex PTSD?

PTSD often stems from a single traumatic event, while Complex PTSD (CPTSD) arises from prolonged, repeated trauma, like abuse or captivity, leading to core PTSD symptoms plus significant issues with emotional regulation, self-perception (worthlessness), and relationships (isolation, distrust). CPTSD involves a deeper disruption of self-identity and functioning beyond just re-experiencing the trauma, reflecting the ongoing nature of the abuse.
 

Does CPTSD ever go away?

Yes, C-PTSD can significantly improve and become manageable, though "going away" looks different for everyone; some may find symptoms almost disappear with therapy, while others learn lifelong skills to manage triggers, allowing for full, functional lives, not necessarily a complete erasure of past trauma's impact. Effective treatments like EMDR, trauma-focused therapies, and self-compassion practices build resilience and tools to process trauma, enabling substantial progress and a return to living fully, even with occasional triggers. 

6 Signs of Complex PTSD | CPTSD

Is CPTSD a serious mental illness?

Some neuroimaging studies show that brain changes are more severe in people with CPTSD compared to people with PTSD.

What not to say to someone with CPTSD?

When supporting someone with Complex PTSD (C-PTSD), avoid invalidating phrases like "get over it," "it's all in your head," or "you're just overreacting," as these minimize their experience; instead, focus on empathetic listening, validating their feelings, respecting boundaries (like personal space or not pushing for details), and offering consistent, non-judgmental support, acknowledging that their trauma is real, deeply impacts them, and healing takes time and isn't linear. 

What are the 4 F's of CPTSD?

With Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or C-PTSD, they can leave a lasting legacy and become a recurrent behaviour. This article explains what Fight, Flight, Freeze, Fawn and flop are. It also explores the link between PTSD and C-PTSD and fawning behaviour in more detail.

What are the 7 areas affected by complex trauma?

A comprehensive review of the litera- ture on complex trauma suggests seven primary domains of impairment ob- served in exposed children: attachment, biology, affect regulation, dissociation (ie, alterations in consciousness), behav- ioral regulation, cognition, and self-con- cept.

What does a CPTSD trigger feel like?

Individuals with complex PTSD may experience a range of emotional symptoms, including intense fear, shame, guilt, anger, sadness, and a diminished sense of self-worth. These emotions can arise in response to trigger situations or even seemingly unrelated events, making them difficult to manage.

What are signs someone's been struggling with complex PTSD for a long time?

The symptoms of complex PTSD are similar to symptoms of PTSD, but may also include:

• feelings of worthlessness, shame and guilt.
• problems controlling your emotions.
• finding it hard to feel connected with other people.
• relationship problems, like having trouble keeping friends and partners.

What medication is used for complex PTSD?

Medications for Complex PTSD (CPTSD) primarily target symptoms like anxiety, depression, sleep issues, and flashbacks, with antidepressants (SSRIs/SNRIs) like Sertraline, Paroxetine, and Venlafaxine being common first-line treatments, alongside anti-anxiety drugs (short-term), and sometimes antipsychotics or Prazosin for nightmares, though therapy (like Trauma-Focused CBT) is crucial alongside meds for lasting relief, as CPTSD involves complex, long-term trauma.
 

What are bad habits from PTSD?

Anger and violent behavior

After trauma, your nervous system may become overly sensitive, and you may feel a lot of anger at times. Your anger may cause you to feel bad about yourself, lose your temper, or do reckless things. You may distance yourself from people who want to help.

What are some unusual signs of C-PTSD?

Relaxation and sleep may become difficult, leading to symptoms such as insomnia or restless sleep. Additionally, hyperarousal can manifest as irritability, anger, aggressive behaviour, and difficulty concentrating due to racing thoughts or distractibility.

How does a person with complex PTSD act?

CPTSD behaviors involve trauma responses like flashbacks, avoidance, emotional dysregulation (anger, numbness), hypervigilance, dissociation (feeling detached), self-harm, substance abuse, and severe relationship difficulties, stemming from prolonged trauma, leading to deep shame, worthlessness, and difficulty trusting others, often manifesting as chronic instability.
 

What are the physical symptoms of C-PTSD?

Complex PTSD (C-PTSD) physical symptoms stem from chronic stress, including muscle tension, fatigue, gastrointestinal issues, headaches, sleep problems, and heightened sensory sensitivity, manifesting as things like racing heart, tremors, dizziness, chest pain, and even poor circulation leading to cold extremities, often without a clear medical cause. These somatic (body-based) symptoms reflect the body's continuous fight-or-flight state, impacting daily functioning and well-being. 

What triggers people with complex PTSD?

CPTSD triggers are internal (thoughts, emotions) or external (sights, sounds, smells, people, situations) stimuli that intensely remind someone of past trauma, causing flashbacks, panic, emotional dysregulation, and physical reactions, often linked to relationship-based or prolonged abuse like neglect, domestic violence, or captivity, leading to intense fear or the urge to flee, according to various sources. Common triggers involve conflict, criticism, betrayal, abandonment, intimacy, specific noises, or people resembling abusers, often activating core wounds of shame, worthlessness, and fear, notes Clearbrook Treatment Centers and Dr. Kim Sage on YouTube. 

What is the best therapy for complex trauma?

The best therapy for complex trauma (CPTSD) often uses a phase-based model, starting with safety and stabilization (DBT, STAIR), then processing trauma (TF-CBT, EMDR, Somatic Experiencing), and finally integration, with options like Trauma-Focused CBT, EMDR, DBT, and Somatic Therapies being highly effective for building skills and addressing deep-seated issues from repeated trauma, alongside medication for co-occurring symptoms. 

How do I know if I suffer from complex trauma?

You might have complex trauma (C-PTSD) if you experience intense emotions, relationship difficulties, negative self-perception (shame, worthlessness), emotional flashbacks, dissociation, distrust, or chronic feelings of hopelessness after long-term or repeated trauma, like childhood abuse or domestic violence. It's a response to prolonged stress, and a professional diagnosis from a mental health expert is needed for confirmation and treatment, but self-assessment involves recognizing these patterns and seeking help if they significantly impact your life. 

What not to do to someone who has complex PTSD?

To support someone with Complex PTSD (C-PTSD), don't minimize their trauma, pressure them to talk, offer unsolicited advice, invalidate their feelings, or dismiss their reactions as "all in their head" or "just stress". Instead, focus on creating safety, respecting boundaries, listening with empathy, and gently encouraging professional help, as C-PTSD involves deep neurological impacts from prolonged trauma, requiring patience and validation, not simple fixes or judgment. 

What is CPTSD confused with?

Yet, a common concern about CPTSD as a distinct diagnostic category is the symptom overlap between CPTSD and borderline personality disorder (BPD) within the areas of affective instability, impulse control, and impaired relationships with others, and some have argued that CPTSD lacks clear discriminant validity from ...

What happens if CPTSD goes untreated?

Untreated CPTSD Can Also Result in Physical Distress

Quite often, this means severe versions of common signs like insomnia, chronic pain, irritability, fatigue, headaches, compromised immunity, and gastrointestinal issues.

What happens when you yell at someone with complex PTSD?

Yelling can serve as a powerful trigger for individuals with PTSD, reigniting their traumatic memories and plunging them into a state of overwhelming distress. The aggressive and forceful nature of yelling can mimic the threatening and dangerous situations that caused their PTSD in the first place.

What does a CPTSD episode look like?

A CPTSD episode looks like an intense, overwhelming surge of trauma-related feelings (terror, shame, helplessness) often triggered by sensory cues, leading to flashbacks, emotional dysregulation (rage, numbness), dissociation (feeling unreal), hypervigilance (constant threat scanning), and severe self-criticism, disrupting daily life and potentially involving self-harm or suicidal thoughts as the person feels trapped reliving the past. 

Do people with CPTSD push people away?

Relationship Difficulties

Due to difficulties with trust and emotional regulation, people with C-PTSD frequently experience problems in their relationships. They may push others away, fearing rejection or betrayal, as discussed in What to Do When Someone with PTSD Pushes You Away?.