I have PTSD and toxic shame and some other stuff I'm not going to list, although I have gone through some horrendous events at different points of life, I'm still sweet and loving and still have a sense of innocence.
After I joined here, a few months later I had emotions and feelings I had hidden away for decades, came back. The pain was so unbearable and I didn't know how to lessen them or make them go away, I was really wanting to kill myself. They went away later that month. My friends on here helped me so much. I would cry for hours and they held me in their arms. Virtually.
I'm not sure what I would have done without them.
I used to have nightmares and it was always the same theme. I got sick of always being scared and so I fought back in my dreams, found weapons, and defended myself. I did whatever I had to do to not be scared anymore.
It's called lucid dreaming. If you have bad dreams still, maybe you can fight back somehow and that will help you.
I can always remember my dreams every night.
I don't dream that recurring dream anymore.
I applaud Sprite for her courage and anyone else who shared in this thread.
When I first joined here, I only felt half alive and since then, I feel everything now. Not half alive anymore, not for a long time.