advertisement
Reply
Thread Tools Display Modes
Anonymous57363
Guest
Anonymous57363 has no updates. Edit
 
Posts: n/a
Lightbulb Dec 22, 2018 at 10:25 PM
  #1
Hello. I was diagnosed with PTSD and had never heard of Complicated PTSD until I came to this forum. One person said that C-PTSD is like narcissistic personality disorder. Is that accurate? If that's true, then wouldn't it fall in the personality disorder section? Would anyone care to explain? What am I missing? Thank you
  Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
Fuzzybear
 
Thanks for this!
leomama

advertisement
leomama
Grand Magnate
 
leomama's Avatar
leomama has no updates.
 
Member Since: Feb 2014
Location: USA
Posts: 4,703
10 yr Member
172 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Dec 23, 2018 at 01:14 AM
  #2
Quote:
Originally Posted by HopefullyLost1211 View Post
Hello. I was diagnosed with PTSD and had never heard of Complicated PTSD until I came to this forum. One person said that C-PTSD is like narcissistic personality disorder. Is that accurate? If that's true, then wouldn't it fall in the personality disorder section? Would anyone care to explain? What am I missing? Thank you


No it is not, but the defenses can be. Read Pete walker. Complex ptsd is very different from ptsd.
leomama is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
Fuzzybear, Skeezyks
 
Thanks for this!
HD7970GHZ, reps_as_pets
Skeezyks
Disreputable Old Troll
 
Skeezyks's Avatar
Skeezyks has no updates.
 
Member Since: Oct 2015
Location: The Star of the North
Posts: 32,762 (SuperPoster!)
8 yr Member
17.4k hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Smile Dec 23, 2018 at 03:23 PM
  #3
Well... I'm certainly no expert with regard to this, although I think I probably have some complex PTSD myself. When I think of PTSD versus cPTSD I think that PTSD is a response to a particular experience, where cPTSD is a response to an accumulation of experiences over time. (I don't know if that's at all accurate though.) Here are links to 2 articles, from PC's archives, one that discusses PTSD & one on cPTSD:

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Complex PTSD | Psychotherapy Matters

Skeezyks is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
Fuzzybear, Nalot, reps_as_pets, seeker33
seeker33
Poohbah
 
seeker33's Avatar
seeker33 has no updates.
 
Member Since: Nov 2017
Location: Europe
Posts: 1,417
5 yr Member
1,603 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Dec 27, 2018 at 06:07 AM
  #4
No, it's absolutely not the same. What can be similar is the reason these conditions appear. It may be childhood abuse and neglect. Both physical but emotional abuse and neglect is a huge trauma as well. So the reason may be the same. However the symptoms and personality traits are very different.
As has been already suggested, I highly recommend to read Peter Walker's book and watch videos about cptsd on YouTube.

__________________
Complex trauma
Highly sensitive person

I love nature, simplicity and minimalism
seeker33 is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
amandalouise
Wise Elder
 
amandalouise's Avatar
amandalouise has no updates.
 
Member Since: Mar 2009
Location: 8CS / NYS / USA
Posts: 9,133
15 yr Member
884 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Dec 29, 2018 at 11:06 AM
  #5
Quote:
Originally Posted by HopefullyLost1211 View Post
Hello. I was diagnosed with PTSD and had never heard of Complicated PTSD until I came to this forum. One person said that C-PTSD is like narcissistic personality disorder. Is that accurate? If that's true, then wouldn't it fall in the personality disorder section? Would anyone care to explain? What am I missing? Thank you
no you are not missing anything... no its not like narcissistic personality disorder.

the word complex is sometimes added to a persons files when they have many different problems with their mental disorder.

CPTSD is not a mental disorder in the books yet. but some places around the world recognize that people like veterans have a long term problem with having flashback, nightmares, anxiety, depression, intrusive thoughts, mild dissociation problems, due to long term military duty or long term abuse. (basic PTSD symptoms)

if you do a google search of the history of the word complex being added to PTSD you will find such things as in its beginnings it wasnt looped with a mental disorder. the word complex was a description of a persons problems...

you know like a teacher can be teaching math and say to their students ... now pay attention because this lesson is complex, there are many different things you need to do with it.

and somewhere along the way it started being misused as a separate PTSD disorder even though its not recognized as one. as a way to designate that a person has long term PTSD with long term symptoms.

At the moment this is not in the diagnostic books as a mental disorder but some locations recognize the grouping of symptoms and the severity and the duration that a person has had PTSD as Complex PTSD.

now on come the change over of the mental health systems in 2013 and thanks to the DSM5 Complex PTSD is called by different things more individualized according to how it affects a person and what each persons grouping of symptoms are.

example my CPTSD is called Acute Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. america has many trauma and stress related disorders category with many different PTSD mental disorders. CPTSD is not one of the diagnostic labels but they do recognize the symptoms and call it by other things.

right now there are petitions and considerations with the APA (american Psychiatric Association, the agency in america that names what mental disorders there are in the world along with other countries professionals, and anyone else that wants to take part in the process ) for considering making this grouping of long term problems an actual mental disorder label

so maybe some day it will be a recognized mental disorder label, until then people get their problems with it treated under different mental disorder names.
amandalouise is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
may24, Nalot, seeker33
Fuzzybear
Wisest Elder Ever
 
Fuzzybear's Avatar
Fuzzybear has no updates.
 
Member Since: Nov 2002
Location: Cave.
Posts: 96,298 (SuperPoster!)
20 yr Member
81.2k hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Jan 01, 2019 at 06:38 PM
  #6
I agree that CPTSD is not like NPD..


__________________
Fuzzybear is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
Anonymous57363, HD7970GHZ, may24
 
Thanks for this!
HD7970GHZ, may24
Carmina
Poohbah
 
Carmina's Avatar
Carmina has no updates.
 
Member Since: Sep 2017
Location: A Growlery in the UK
Posts: 1,158
5 yr Member
129 hugs
given
Default Jan 01, 2019 at 07:11 PM
  #7
Quote:
Originally Posted by HopefullyLost1211 View Post
Hello. I was diagnosed with PTSD and had never heard of Complicated PTSD until I came to this forum. One person said that C-PTSD is like narcissistic personality disorder. Is that accurate?
Absolutely not.
Carmina is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Thanks for this!
HD7970GHZ
Carmina
Poohbah
 
Carmina's Avatar
Carmina has no updates.
 
Member Since: Sep 2017
Location: A Growlery in the UK
Posts: 1,158
5 yr Member
129 hugs
given
Default Jan 01, 2019 at 07:14 PM
  #8
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skeezyks View Post
When I think of PTSD versus cPTSD I think that PTSD is a response to a particular experience, where cPTSD is a response to an accumulation of experiences over time.
That's a pretty good simple summary, Complex PTSD is PTSD but with complex causes, tangled up in a person's personal history and development rather than reducible to discrete events (although in most cases there are also discrete events that stand out).
Carmina is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
 
Hugs from:
Anonymous57363
 
Thanks for this!
Fuzzybear, HD7970GHZ, seeker33
HD7970GHZ
Grand Poohbah
 
HD7970GHZ's Avatar
HD7970GHZ "Primum Non Nocere"
 
Member Since: Sep 2013
Location: N/A
Posts: 1,776
10 yr Member
2,626 hugs
given
PC PoohBah!
Default Mar 04, 2019 at 05:14 PM
  #9
Quote:
Originally Posted by Anonymous57363 View Post
Hello. I was diagnosed with PTSD and had never heard of Complicated PTSD until I came to this forum. One person said that C-PTSD is like narcissistic personality disorder. Is that accurate? If that's true, then wouldn't it fall in the personality disorder section? Would anyone care to explain? What am I missing? Thank you
Hi Anonymous,

Complex PTSD is not at all remotely similar to Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

It is said that everyone who has had a relationship with the Narcissist will have some form of Complex PTSD as a result.

Complex PTSD is a result of multiple traumas in life. It is a normal reaction to abnormal circumstances; abnormal being narcissistic abuse.

Those with Complex PTSD often do not like themselves because they have been treated so poorly in life. Their abusers created an environment with toxic shame, which is unfortunately adopted by those who suffer with Complex PTSD. The repeated traumas destroy the ability to trust, to connect to others and to feel safe in the world.

Narcissists feel like they are the superior beings and will exploit others in order to win. They rarely if ever have the ability to empathize and are constantly thinking about themselves and what serves them. They choose targets who are vulnerable and easily manipulated. They do this because they know if their targets defend themselves, they will have little or no credibility and the abuse will remain hidden.

Complex PTSD sufferers are empaths. They understand pain and are survivors of abuse.

Thanks,
HD7970ghz

__________________
"stand for those who are forgotten - sacrifice for those who forget"
"roller coasters not only go up and down - they also go in circles"
"the point of therapy - is to get out of therapy"
"don't put all your eggs - in one basket"
"promote pleasure - prevent pain"
"with change - comes loss"
HD7970GHZ is offline   Reply With QuoteReply With Quote
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:48 AM.
Powered by vBulletin® — Copyright © 2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.



 

My Support Forums

My Support Forums is the online community that was originally begun as the Psych Central Forums in 2001. It now runs as an independent self-help support group community for mental health, personality, and psychological issues and is overseen by a group of dedicated, caring volunteers from around the world.

 

Helplines and Lifelines

The material on this site is for informational purposes only, and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment provided by a qualified health care provider.

Always consult your doctor or mental health professional before trying anything you read here.