re: For anyone who has suffered serious trauma.. do you ever get to “normal” again?

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I don't see "death of a child" on that chart

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I think that one breaks the needle. Especially now.

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Does it ever get better?

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Yes...I wrote a book about

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However, I always try to keep a positive outlook on my life. One, I know as much as I might 'struggle' at times, There are so many people who have it harder than me. Two, I have tried to poke fun at myself and my differences. When I was a kid, I would buzz my hearing aid and told my friends that I could listen to faraway radio stations. They believed me. Three, I never considered myself as handicapped. When I see todays kid whining about about their lives, well, I don't have much respect for them at all. But that's a whole different subject.

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This part pertains as much as the rest of the thread combined.

With my chronic pancreatitis causing pretty much monthly ER and a week or so in-patient every month for the last year, I still KNOW there are many in even worse shape than I.

I spent a decade working in a big hospital. Used to go portable x-ray one in particular, a 21 year old male. His entire body, from the top of head to his ankles, fit on 1 chest x-ray plate. Spine twisted, and shaped like a cursive capital letter "S" or the '&' nearly. 21 years old and never walked a single step in his life, not even able to sit upright. Then the terminal cancer patients where the nerves themselves become tumor-like or "infested" with painful tumors.

So no feeling sorry for myself and my conditions. Someone will always be worse off than I as long as THEY draw breath. But I do still occasionally have issues with collars and stuff from where I was robbed and assaulted with a knife to my throat and 1 of the 3 really wanted to kill me, with only 1 of the other 2 willing to take a stand against killing me. Luckily that was the Summer after freshman year of college so I had 3 years+ to desensitize enough for business apparel. (had to change majors and sat out a couple quarters while deciding path toward diploma which really is about the piece of paper that could just as easily read: completed a 4 year program displaying goal orientation and delayed gratification successfully, i.e., employers be advised this guy has patience and determination to see projects through to completion.)

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For anyone who has suffered serious trauma.. do you ever get to “normal” again?
Does it ever get better?

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In ways, yes. But the flashbacks will still come back, you’ll still think about it if it’s tied to a specific place or places. I’ve shared my story on here before about my elderly boss being assaulted by his son and the psychological damage the whole deal and his eventual death had on me. It still hurts. You have to try to put it in a place that can’t hurt you. I’ve had a ton of really screwed up shite happen in my life. Both that I’ve witnessed and other things that I’ve had to deal with the turmoil from. Get out in nature. Go alone if you can, and ground yourself. It’s about to be the most beautiful time of the year. Go to the Ozarks. Climb Sugar Loaf Mountain in Heber Springs. Just get it all out in whatever way you have to. I have screamed, cried, let out a blood curdling yell just to get that pain out from within me. You have to learn to heal. You deserve to heal. We all do. Healing is never easy. I don’t know what you’re going through, but you have my prayers.

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Get out in nature. Go alone if you can, and ground yourself. It’s about to be the most beautiful time of the year. Go to the Ozarks. Climb Sugar Loaf Mountain in Heber Springs. Just get it all out in whatever way you have to. I have screamed, cried, let out a blood curdling yell just to get that pain out from within me. You have to learn to heal. You deserve to heal. We all do. Healing is never easy.

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This is excellent advice. Go on a vision quest and just accept what comes and what lessons you learn.

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This is excellent advice. Go on a vision quest and just accept what comes and what lessons you learn.

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Yup. That’s what I did and had a ton of success. Google pics of Bridal Veil Falls, Heber Springs, Arkansas and Collins Creek along with Sugar Loaf Mountain. The first day I drove up their with my buddies who had just gotten married and unknowingly had their first baby girl on the way, we climbed sugar loaf mt, climbed all the rock trails and jumped off the bluffs at Greer’s Ferry lake. It was during a time in my life that I was healing, which is what it sounds like OP needs to do. I highly recommend it. The history behind the town is EXTREMELY cool too!

A wise friend once told me a wound hurts and a scar doesn't. You can always point to the scar and tell the story of what happened but it no longer causes acute pain. That helped me feel like I was "better or normal" after a traumatic event in my life.

I usually just find some new trauma to subject myself to. Maybe it's not for everyone but it works for me.

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Sign me up. My wife and I’s 9 month old daughter just died. Our only child and due to how sick my wife got during her pregnancy,

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I'm so sorry to see this about your sweet little girl. I was following your updates on her on the Money Board.

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likely our last

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I hope this is not the case for you and your wife. I can't imagine what she (and you) are going through.

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My wife and I’s 9 month old daughter just died. Our only child and due to how sick my wife got during her pregnancy, likely our last. Our baby was born premature and got very sick. People said we’d need to talk to someone after she’d pass but my wife and I thought we were strong enough support for each other and doubted it. It’s still relatively fresh as it only happened several weeks ago but I’d say we’re both suffering pretty badly from PTSD. We agree we need to talk to someone and we are looking into it. Been tough to find the motivation to do anything. Does this do anything for that type of trauma? A relative of mine that’s a dr. had brought it up and it was the first time I had ever heard of it.

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I am so sorry about the loss of your daughter. I lost 2 children in 2021. A 20 year old son to cancer and a 26 year old daughter to a drug overdose. It will be one year since they passed in June.
I don't think you ever get over it or even past it. There are plenty of days that it takes everything that I have to get out of bed. Luckily I am blessed with 2 other children, a granddaughter, an awesome family and group of friends.
For anyone that has suffered a severe traumatic event I believe you just have to live your life day to day. Give yourself things to look forward to and stay busy. Being alone with your thoughts and not keeping your mind occupied is really rough.