Link between Cptsd and getting colds / run down?

[Indigochild]

I know that the body never forgets trauma.

Does anybody know if there is a link between c ptsd and getting colds / feeling physically run down?
I know that neglecting your health during long flashbacks, self sabotaging health wise, not taking care of yourself, drinking too much alcohol...can take its toll and doesnt help health.

I am starting to think that there might be a pattern, in which when the same flashback repeats itself (abandonment and with the same person in this case), my body reacts with breaking out into a cold. The last time was winter so i put it down to that, only now its summer.
This is happening during something that i can not resolve on my own, its lingering, like a long flashback, and caused scary hypervigilance out of know where it seamed after never having had it before. I am still hypervigelant, but seems to have calmed down a bit from terrorising gripping fear at night. 
I have all sorts of negative feelings about family, things are coming up from reading, but my partner set it off when he tried to talk to me, which was fine...only i don't know what to do with all these negative feelings. Sometimes i cant sleep and have all this pent up rage inside.   

I am thinking that whilst i want to read and to know the truth, maybe it is damaging me, ...but with this long trigger, and other triggers heaped on top of it, maybe its making me ..unwell?

Hope this makes sense..

[C.]

It does make sense.  There is a lot of information out that there has shown that stress leads to physical illness.  When the body is coping w/stress (for example EFs, C-PTSD symptoms) it uses it's resources to for the stress and reduces the ability to cope w/illness.  And limited sleep does something similar.  So your body maybe cannot fight off a virus that might be in your body or to which you're exposed if you're stressed.  I've also read that the chemicals one's body produces from ongoing stress have a direct link to physical illness.  And I'm pretty sure they're starting to link fibromyalgia and possibly other illness to stress.  I'm sure there are others who could give you more detailed information.

I hope that you have a good enough doctor whom you can trust and to whom to turn when you're ill.  In my experience, scheduling a yearly time to visit your doctor or an ill visit helps.  A good enough doctor will listen to you and have some empathy and understanding of your experience, as well as how it may relate to physical symptoms that you experience.  It's important to take care of yourself so kudos to you for reaching out and asking the question.

[Indigochild]

Hi, thanks for replying to this post.

You have explained that really well, that the body uses up its resources dealing with stress etc that you are more likely to catch a virus.
i have heard about the link between physical illnesses and fibromyalgia. i just wasnt sure if normal colds apply but it makes sense.

I have just moved doctors and spoke to a nice doctor about going on the list for therapy and he put me on it.
He wants to see me in about a week to see how Ive been the past 2 weeks...maybe mentioning physical symptoms is an idea.

Thanks so much

[C.]

Your welcome.  Sounds like you have a good plan. 

I know that in my FOO emotional pain was ignored, but physical pain was accepted as "real" if there was a fever, vomiting, a doctor visit, or a test came back from a laboratory.  I received more empathy when I was "sick" so for a while I think that became a way for me to get the much needed nurturing.  I had a lot of tummy aches, head aches and ear aches as a child.  Then a lot of viral illnesses, pre-diabetic, arthritis and back pain during my marriage.  Now that I'm out of those toxic environments I usually feel physically better.  And when I do get sick I've always been experiencing more stress stress or lack of sleep within the past few days.

[Indigochild]

Umm..i understand that.  Shame isn't it that you had to have something *physically* wrong for them to pay any attention.

Im glad youve worked out and understand why you needed to be sick to get the nurturing you needed and that your out of those environments.  Must of been weird for you being out of those environments but needing to be sick to get what you needed still.

Im not sure if this was the case when i was ill in my case. My mum was never harsh when i wasnt well. She used to put the radio on for me when i was in bed, and i have always found falling asleep at night more comforting when i have a tv programme / series playing.

It makes sense too that the link between you going through something and then getting unwell physically could be the bodies way of coping, and the minds way too, as it is looking out for nurturing.