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This topic has been moved to Discussion About Illegal Substances.

http://outofthefog.net/C-PTSD/forum/index.php?topic=185.0

Hi Everyone - Just wanted to post a reminder from our guidelines to make sure you break up your posts by using paragraphs. Long blocks of solid text are difficult to read.  Using a break every 4 or 5 sentences or when you change to a new thought can really help others to read your post more easily and make sense of what you have written.

Thanks!   

[IMPORTANT]

IMPORTANT 

For the safety and well-being of all OOTS members, only posts that talk about suicide/self-harm in a very general sense will be permitted in this forum. Sadly there have been an increasingly number of posts about feeling suicidal/wanting to self-harm and as much as members of OOTS may want to help, none of us are trained to do so. Posts which do talk about current intent directly or indirectly will be removed and the poster will be advised to contact a professional ASAP.

One way of helping yourself if you are having thoughts of suicide is to visit Staying Safe from Suicidal Thoughts.  This online help site offers "easy to print / online templates and guidance video tutorials purposefully designed to help people through the process of writing their own Safety Plan to build hope, identify actions and strategies to resist suicidal thoughts and develop positive ways to cope with stress and emotional distress." 

Don't wait though if your thoughts persist, reach out for professional help. Contact your physician or therapist, a local Emergency Room, or one of the following organizations:

• Befrienders Worldwide - provides emotional support worldwide to prevent suicide
• The International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP)  - provides information about where to find help around the world
• Your Life Counts - provides a comprehensive list of crisis hot lines and organizations around the world

If you're feeling like you want to self-harm here's an article that may help - 23 Things to Do If You're Fighting Self-Harm Urges Right Now

As above, don't wait if your thoughts persist we encourage you to reach out to one of the following organizations:

• Cutting and Self-Harm: Self-Injury Help, Support and Treatment

In keeping with our guidelines, please do not include graphic content if/when you do post in this forum. Posts that do contain graphic content will be edited or removed.  If you are concerned about something you have written, please include a trigger warning.

Hi Folks - There has been an uptick in the number of posts talking about having suicidal thoughts and others which contain some very graphic detail about trauma/abuse.  As per our guidelines (http://outofthefog.net/C-PTSD/forum/index.php?topic=1616.msg10035#msg10035), this is not allowed at OOTS. This is for good reason.

If someone is having thoughts about suicide, it is important to reach out to trained professionals in real life. Any posts which talk about wanting to * in the present or future will be edited and the member will be encouraged by PM to seek help as soon as possible. 

With respect to posts which contain overly graphic detail, please try to understand that this can be very difficult for members to read as everyone here is struggling with trauma.  Try to describe the situation in enough detail that members understand but are not triggered.  If you're not sure, please include a trigger warning at the beginning of the post or in the subject line.  If a post is too graphic it will be edited and a PM will be sent to advise the member.

Thanks for respecting our guidelines,

Kizzie

Hi Folks - Just a reminder that it is only Three Roses (who does an excellent job I might add) and myself who manage the site and we are simply not able to read every post. We rely on each of you to let us know about any posts which don't follow the guidelines or are problematic in some manner. 

There's a "Report to Moderator" in the lower right hand side of each post and you just need to click on it.  We check these reports daily and handle them within 24 hours typically.  Please be assured that we do not ever reveal who has made the report to anyone.

Thanks for helping to keep the community as safe and respectful for everyone as possible

This topic has been moved to Welcome to OOTS.

http://outofthefog.net/C-PTSD/forum/index.php?topic=5654.0

I've been trying to locate trauma T's who have training and experience with Complex PTSD and while not having much joy thus far, I did find two new T database resources that are free of charge and can help locating a T. 

The first is Theravive at http://www.theravive.com/ Unfortunately it only lists T's in the US and Canada, but it identities numerous T's who offer distance therapy which should make location less of an issue. See - http://www.theravive.com/therapists/e-counseling.aspx

The second is the Sidran Institute at https://www.sidran.org/about/which.  This is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to treatment, education, raising awareness, etc about trauma and dissociative disorders.  (Note: They mention PTSD, but not Complex PTSD.)  Again the org's DB is primarily US and some Cdn, but I contacted them and they are willing to help people from other countries locate a trauma T.  For assistance email them at help@sidran.org. 

Other free databases include:

The International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies - http://www.istss.org/source/cliniciandirectory/

Good Therapy - http://www.goodtherapy.org/find-therapist.html
The International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies - http://www.istss.org/source/cliniciandirectory/

Psychology Today - http://therapists.psychologytoday.com/rms/prof_search.php

Dr. Doyle is a lecturer at Southampton Solent University in the United Kingdom and is involved in an ongoing a research study investigating whether childhood trauma may make women vulnerable to post-natal depression.  He has asked and I have given permission to recruit participants from OOTS on an ongoing basis. 

In order to participate, you must be a female over 18, have had a baby within the last three years, and not be pregnant currently. This study entails completing an anonymous survey which will take approximately 20 minutes to complete.  He suggests in his email to me that "The benefits of this research would be  to help understand an area of mental health that requires much greater attention."

For further information and to view the Informed Consent form and survey, go to https://educ.sphinxonline.net/v4/s/0rb8to

Please direct any questions regarding this research to Dr. Doyle at mark.doyle@solent.ac.uk or 023-8201-2056

[Note:]

As some of you may know I am a university professor at a university in Canada. I teach and supervise graduate students in the Masters of Adult Education program.  I am also involved in research as part of my employment and have chosen to investigate learning in online self-help forums such as OOTS together with the Dean of my Faculty, Dr. Rita Kop.  The title of our research proposal  is "It's Not Just about Support: Self-directed Learning in an Online Self-help Group."

The purpose of this research study is to investigate the nature and purpose of informal, self-directed learning (SDL) in an online self-help group in order to provide information to others (i.e., sufferers, professionals) who may want to develop and/or improve self-directed learning about a disorder/disease at an online self-help site. The data will also be used to improve learning at Out of the Storm (OOTS) specifically.                 

Participation will involve the completion of an anonymous online questionnaire which will take between 30 and 60 minutes to complete.  The questionnaire will provide data regarding:  your experience with Complex PTSD (e.g., diagnosis, causes, symptoms); what you have learned at OOTS; and, what you would like to learn at OOTS. 

If you are interested in participating please go to https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/OOTSLearningSurvey.   There is additional information about the study there.   Study is closed.


Note: In order to ensure this research is conducted in an ethical manner, we have taken measures to preserve your anonymity.  First, the questionnaire is completely anonymous. Second, any communication about the study should be directed  to my colleague as follows:

Dr. Rita Kop - Telephone: 506 454-1220 #1379;  Fax: 506-459-3489; or, Email: rkop@yorkvilleu.ca. 

Should you choose to contact Dr. Kop, please be assured that she will not reveal any identifying information about you (e.g., your real or forum name, email address) to me. I have locked this thread to ensure anonymity of potential participants.

This topic has been moved to When Someone in Your Life has CPTSD.

http://outofthefog.net/C-PTSD/forum/index.php?topic=5490.0

Just posting to let members know there is a new pdf form available -  "Locating a Trauma Therapist" . 

Just wanted to announce that with Sanmagic's permission (tks SM), I have added her story to the "Personal Stories" section of the OOTS site (see http://www.outofthestorm.website/personal-stories-of-complex-ptsd/).  It's here if you'd like to have a look -  http://www.outofthestorm.website/sanmagics-story

If at any time anyone is interested in sharing their story on the web site, please let me know.  The intent is for our stories to provide visitors and potential members with insight into how/when/why Complex PTSD develops, and what the lived experience is like.   

There have been a number of people who developed CPTSD in adulthood (versus childhood) who have reached to me about making more of a distinction between the development in childhood and in adulthood.  I have been thinking this myself as I suspect there are more in the latter category than I and others realize.  One example is from my country where our federal police force (RCMP) recently settled a large class action suit for sexual harassment of female officers.  For many it was years of ongoing interpersonal trauma from which their only escape was to quit.  Just one of many examples I've been seeing lately - refugeeism, divisive, corrosive politics in the US, UK and elsewhere ......

If you developed CPTSD in adulthood for whatever reason, please know you are welcome at Out of the Storm. We hope you will find comfort, support and helpful, relevant information about the disorder here. 

I've had a few inquiries from new mbrs/guests regarding the possibility of getting together via audio (no picture, just voice) or teleconferencing for a live chat. I don't want to look into the possibly if no-one is that interested so thought it best to ask first.

Is anyone is interested? 

This topic has been moved to Christmas & New Years.

http://outofthefog.net/C-PTSD/forum/index.php?topic=5255.0

This topic has been moved to Christmas & New Years.

http://outofthefog.net/C-PTSD/forum/index.php?topic=5252.0

Here's a link sent to me by a member (tks SS!) about neuroplasticity which is a hot topic in psychology and cognitive neuroscience currently.   It's an "infographic" so not packed with scientific language, but uses a lot of graphics instead.

URL = http://theunboundedspirit.com/how-to-re-wire-your-brain-the-incredible-benefits-of-neuroplasticity/

Has anyone had trouble logging in in the last two days? It seems some people have been getting an error message that the forum is unavailable so I just want to check on this. 

Here's an article sent to me by a member (tks SS!) about research at Stanford University that may have ramifications for treatment by gender.

https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2016/11/traumatic-stress-changes-brains-of-boys-girls-differently.html

There's also a BBC article here - http://www.bbc.com/news/health-37936514

If your time is incorrect now that it has changed by an hour you  need to go into your Profile, then Account Settings, then Modify Profile, then Look and Layout and there near the bottom you will see: 

Time Offset: Number of hours to +/- to make displayed time equal to your local time. AutoDetect

If you click on the AutoDetect it will automatically change your time when it shifts during the spring and fall.