Moving on with life?

Question

I have suffered a terrible trauma. As a result of this trauma I am uneasy in thunderstorms. Is this normal? Is there anything I can do to help me get over this and move on with my life?

Answer 1

I too suffer from fear of thunderstorms. I has something frightening happen to me as a kid and ever since then I was terrified of storms. I can tell you two things that I know about this. 1) For me at least as I've grown older I do seem to be less inclined to panic during a storm.
and 2) I find that when I am concentrating on something else during a storm I don't get as on edge over it. Sometimes that concentrating may be comforting our family dog who if anything is worse than I am about storms, or comforting my own children (it's hard to hide my own fears or anxieties from them but I don't want them to believe that they should be afraid of storms-just careful of course but not afraid). If my children are asleep and don't get awakened by the storm then I find myself starting to worry and obsess over whether or not that particular sound of the wind is something more than just wind, or if the rumble of thunder is ever going to stop or is it going to go on and on, then I take myself through a series of mental exercises in an effort to redirect myself from my fearful thoughts. I start out by telling myself a story, I visualize as much of it as I can in my mind, filling it with more and more detail until my whole mind is focused on this effort rather than my anxieties. Sometimes I'll spend so much time designing the "set" and characters of my story I'll either fall asleep or outlast the storm before I even get to the story itself.
(I almost always purposefully set my stories on a clear sunny day)
If for some reason this doesn't work then I go to the next phase of my distraction game, I get out a deck of cards and play solitaire. Not on the computer, too dangerous in a storm of course, but with real cards. I try to set up the more difficult versions to play as they require a bit more concentration.

One last way I try to help myself not be so worried or focused on the storm is to make sure that my windows are well covered (curtains closed all the way) to prevent or cut down on the amount of lightning I can see. I find that if I can see the lightning too often combined with the shadows and reflections of the window of the trees moving in the wind and the rain on the window tends to distract me from my distraction techniques. You can't ignore the thunder as easily but for some reason not seeing the lightning helps me.

Another helpful thing is to have a safe place in your home that if you feel totally overwhelmed with the storm you can go to and feel as if you're protected. Set it up with comfy blankets and pillows. For me as a kid this was on my family's living room floor. I felt better as I wasn't upstairs and I was closer to the basement in case of emergency and closer to my parents for the implied protection.

Talk to someone about how you're feeling. If they say something like "get over it" then find someone else who will listen and take your fears seriously. If necessary talk to your doctor about it who may be able to recommend a therapist for you.

As time goes by hopefully it will get easier for you. But don't be afraid or ashamed to ask for help from someone. There is nothing wrong with what you're feeling and it is normal. But if you want to get a handle on it you'll probably need some outside help. The techniques I've described above are what work for me, a therapist might be able to help you to figure out what will work for you.

Answer 2

You don't say in your question if the thunderstorm was direct cause of the trauma you suffered. Nor do you say just what kind of trauma you suffered. But reading between the lines here may help me answer your question. Please don't get me wrong here but I am going to give you four or five suggestions that may help you.

1. Talk to a pyschologist or psychiatrist:
Please don't take it as I am trying to indicate that you are crazy. It is just that sometimes these doctors can provide a sympathetic ear. Many of them do not judge.

2. Talk to a friend or family member:
This may help in the fact that the friend or family member may be familiar with what happened to you and tell you how you can better manage your reactions to thunderstorms.

3. Talk to your pastor:
Your pastor may also be familiar with the events that caused the trauma that you suffered. He could lead you in prayer and ask God to heal you.

4. Pray
On your own take the time to ask God to heal you and take away your trauma. He can be a great source of strength even in the toughest of times.

Answer 3

If you are simply "uneasy" then it sounds like the problem is not really affecting you much, which is good.

But you can still seek some professional counseling if you want to work on this problem.

It's normal to have some mental side affects from serious trauma, and there's nothing wrong with getting some help with it if you think it needs attention.

Answer 4

Something that happened during a thunderstorm created an abnormal memory to be retained in your mind. Find out what occurred and get on work with that.

Answer 5

curl up with someone special to you, with a blanket! You'll get over it soon enough. I had the same problem! It's ok to not like thunderstorms! Don't let it get you down! Everything will be just fine!!! :)

Answer 6

This is going to sound odd, but sleep to a Sounds of the Storm CD. This will help desensitize you more quickly, if you can stand it. It will make all thunder seem like just background noise because you will get used to it being there.

Answer 7

First off, life moves on whether you want it to or not, so don't worry about moving on, you have no choice in the matter. Anything that traumatizes us can make us uncomfortable there after. It's how you deal with the discomfort that counts.
If you allow it to alter your behaviors in anyway, then get some ptsd therapy.

Answer 8

i think of, the two are actual, life strikes into dying mutually as living and dying strikes into life after one dies. i think of, life and dying are like day and night and you are able to no longer pin factor the place they meet.

Answer 9

dont worry about it. life will take its course.