9 Signs You Are Suffering From Relationship PTSD

Nov 30, 2018 by apost team

Unfortunately, many of us have been through toxic relationships. Partners that are emotionally or physically abusive can take a toll on the lives of the victim for many years after the relationship ends. This trauma that follows the relationship can be defined as PTSD due to the lasting effects, or put more simply post-traumatic relationship syndrome.

This term is now being used to define mental health after toxic relationships. Many people that you know are probably going through this type of PTSD right now, and maybe even you yourself are feeling the effects of a relationship gone wrong.

This type of trauma can be similar to PTSD that people feel after other types of horrible situations, and although it is unfortunate, the term can help the victims of bad relationships feel more valid about their feelings.

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If you were physically or emotionally hurt during a relationship, you may not even know why you’re feeling so blue or stressed afterward. But this term can help you become better in tune with your feelings.

If you’re feeling any of the below 9 symptoms, you may be suffering from post-traumatic relationship syndrome.

Before your toxic relationship, you were a happy individual who never let their insecurities get in the way of life. You trusted and knew yourself fully, and were always confident in your decisions and actions.

After the relationship, you don’t feel worthy of love and your confidence has gone down the drain. Any confidence that you once had was beaten and broken down by your past relationship. Now that you aren’t secure with yourself, it’s easier for you to be manipulated and preyed upon.

Your last relationship totally changed your life. You always used to see the best in people, but now it seems like you only see the worst, or at the very least, you expect and fear it. When you try to predict how a future relationship might end up, you only see the bad parts. You feel cursed in a way because everything you seem to touch turns into a bad situation.

But it is indeed your own pessimism that is inviting these negative situations into your world. You’re creating these situations and willing them to happen due to your negative mindset and past trauma.

Victims who have been physically or emotionally manipulated and abused may suffer from flashbacks of past situations. This is a constant reminder of the pain they’ve gone through and can be very difficult to process and understand. Seeing situations that are similar to the trauma you’ve been through can also trigger you and bring flashbacks. Flashbacks can be extremely vivid, reminding you of that painful point in time with the same senses, such as smell and touch.

You knew that you shouldn’t rush into something new after your last break up. But it’s been a long time now, and you’re still hesitant to accept dates. Even though you’re craving intimacy and commitment, you’re too scared to allow another person in to hurt you again.

You’re terrified of repeating the same mistakes from your last relationship, and you’re worried that love will make you blind again. You were too naive to see all of the red flags and warning signals in your last relationship, and you’re worried to fall into the same patterns again.

You may be aware that dreams often develop from our subconscious thoughts. When you go through traumatic situations, you may repress your feelings so you don’t have to deal with them anymore. This leads to them coming to fruition during your sleep, which may trigger you into developing insomnia since you don’t want to dream about these traumatic incidents. Although you deserve a good night’s rest after all that you’ve been through, your body simply won’t allow it.

Another way for trauma to manifest is through health problems. All of the stress and bad situations you have endured can come to the light through negative health conditions. One easy way to tell if you’re going through post-traumatic relationship disorder is to keep an eye on your weight. Gaining or losing weight rapidly can be a sign. You can also develop hypertension, gastritis, and even ulcers. You may also notice changes in your skin if you’re dealing with trauma.

Now that your toxic situation is over and you’re looking for something new, you might decide to settle for less. Your reality has been greatly distorted by the situations you’ve been through, and now anything that isn’t toxic sounds good to you. Because your last partner was so awful, anything seems better than that.

This means that you might end up in subpar relationships because you’re willing to settle with anyone for the sake of not being alone. But the truth is that you deserve a mutually respectful relationship that satisfies all of your hopes and dreams.

Toxic partners often play the victim, which lead to you always taking the blame for everything that went wrong. Now that the relationship is over, your habit continues. Often those who abuse others like to make the victim feel like it was their fault and they started the issue.

These feelings remain after the relationship and can result in you blaming yourself for everything that goes wrong in your life, whether you had control over the situation or not. You may also have feelings of guilt and blame for not leaving the relationship sooner.

Feelings of anxiety may develop after living through a toxic or abusive situation. You may suffer from racing thoughts, difficulty breathing, sweating of the palms, or even symptoms as severe as chronic panic attacks. Relationship PTSD causes anxiety in most cases, especially if you have a history of anxiety. It will worsen your stress and lead you to panic about every little thing.

Although many people suffer from PTSD after toxic relationships, you don’t have to suffer alone. Talking to a counselor, therapist, or trusted friend can help you get your life back on track. It’s important to remember that your future is bright, and now that you’re out of that bad situation, you don’t need to settle for less than you deserve.

Have you ever been in a toxic relationship? Can you relate to any of these 9 symptoms of post-traumatic relationship disorder? Tell us in the comments below and make sure your friends are aware of this!

Our content is created to the best of our knowledge, yet it is of general nature and cannot in any way substitute an individual consultation by your doctor. Your health is important to us!