Stories for my next book!!
Added 2024-08-07 15:44:03 +0000 UTCStill writing away over here, and I am moving into a new chapter. I am looking for stories about the different ways we numb out from stressful or overwhelming events. No judgment here, just looking for stories about a situation that happened and the way that we coped or even patterns we have seen in our lives over time. I am hoping to talk about many various numb outs so that people can at least relate to one (if not more). Feel free to leave them here in the comments or message them to me! Thank you!! xoxo
Comments
Trying again Whenever I feel like I cant or dont want to handle what Im feeling or what is going on around me I play a video game or on the nintendo switch. Its calming, it teleports me away and into another world, and lately I have used it very often. Hole days in fact... I dont know why I just know I need to not be here. I suffer from ME, that is extreme exaustion aswell and I think Im doing it to numb out from that aswell, not just the emotionally overwhelming things, cause lately I have been very tired. I feel a need to numb out from the fysical feeling of it and from the fact that it makes me feel bad to know that Its there, and I need escape, so I can forget for a while, the last two days Ive been so tired of it I felt like I just needed to be anywhere else, a better place with as few reminders that im actually in the real world as possible. Its probably not healthy but sometimes i just need the world to go away and leave me be. I can use it to numb out until my mind stops being so disregulated after an overwhelming event as well, so that I can handle the situation when im more able to.
Linn
2024-08-15 20:31:23 +0000 UTChah, im doing the same mistake as you! sorry that was supposed to not be sendt on its own. When we hit enter it sends I think?
Linn
2024-08-15 20:20:29 +0000 UTCIts a bit similar for me.
Linn
2024-08-15 20:19:27 +0000 UTCI don't know of a way to edit a post, I'm still new to this so I apologize for this being so unjointed. I keep pressing enter by mistake. I'm sorry. Not sure if I should add this, but trigger warning for mention of sensitive subjects below. Whenever my mother would start screaming and verbally abusing someone, be it me, my sister, my step father, or someone else, the easiest way to try and block it out when I was little was to read. Trying to escape into a different world just helped numb me to whatever was going on, while still be hypervigilant to the energy in the room to make sure everything was safe and when it was over and that I wasn't the next target. I can't say this was bad because it fostered my love of reading and gave me a very eclectic taste in books. I will read a computer manual if it's interesting enough. When things got really bad with the emotional/verbal/mental abuse, and then the separate issue of sexual abuse that no one knew of, I also turned to animals for comfort to try and escape. I had a cat and she was the only one that was with me through everything. The only one who loved me no matter what. To have her to cuddle with and just numb out was the best. She would keep me from getting lost for too long because heaven forbid I miss her dinner or breakfast time. She was very demanding about getting fed in a timely manner, believe you me. When I was in high school, I also worked enough to pay for one horseback riding lesson a week. Horses are so amazing and therapeutic. Just being able to lose myself in my ride helped. And horses know, even if all of them don't care about it all the time. On the extremely hard days, I always seemed to have a better ride than not. And an extra nudge to the chest and snuffle in the hair seemed to at least bring a smile to my face more often than not. While they didn't help me stay away from unhealthy coping methods, animals and reading were definitely instrumental in keeping me sane as a child. I don't know if this is what you're looking for, and if it's not I'm sorry and feel free to remove it.
Brianna Elmore
2024-08-15 03:24:37 +0000 UTCSorry, the last one was an error. I'm not sure if you want to include unhealthy methods in this, so I will stay away from those. My two biggest ones that would not be considered unhealthy are reading and animals.
Brianna Elmore
2024-08-15 03:08:40 +0000 UTCHi Kati,
Brianna Elmore
2024-08-15 03:07:08 +0000 UTCI am wrapping up the chapter this week, so ideally by Friday :)
Kati Morton
2024-08-13 20:55:10 +0000 UTCI have many but my main one is thought of as beneficial but for me it is not always that. I love to read and I read a lot to escape from abuse while growing up. I still read a lot but really have to watch myself because when it is a difficult time and /or some conversations are going on that I probably need to pay attention to or be involved in, I find myself glued to a book escaping once again. Sometimes I don't realize it for a long time (especially if the book is really good lol).
Cindy Johnson
2024-08-13 17:46:35 +0000 UTCHi Kati- when would you need this by?
rachel murphy
2024-08-12 20:54:57 +0000 UTCMy now ex-spouse took my (then) 1 year old twins across the country to move in with their mom. I had no idea this was happening until I got home from work & was reviewing bank accounts for clues to where they might be. I had to file for divorce to get them back. It was a whirlwind 5 months from that day to a finalized divorce. I kept my home in the process. I found myself numbing out by throwing myself into projects, justifying it by saying I was "improving my house." I painted what was now my bedroom (not ours), refinished furniture & bath tubs, spent afternoons pulling weeds, rearranged the patio, cleaned out the garage, put up a backsplash in the laundry room, etc. Anything I could do to "distract like a MFKR" so I didn't have to feel all the feels. My therapist encouraged me to let my thoughts roll in & out like a wave while I was doing a project, which ultimately helped to slowly acknowledge the thoughts & feelings in a way that felt less threatening. Thank goodness she figured out a way to use the numbing process to process the uncomfortable!
Alli
2024-08-09 11:38:52 +0000 UTCI numb out differently now than as a teen. In my teenage years, I started “doodling” with a razor blade. But it stirred some attention from a mentor in my life. I had so much love and respect for her, that seeing her so upset about the design on top of my hand was enough for me to not do that anymore…well, I convinced her of that anyhow. I moved to doing it at the top of my legs where no one could see (way above my shorts line. I remember doing it so that I would feel the physical pain instead of the emotional pain. It got my brain to turn off in a sense. As an adult, my “cutting” has become work. I will work myself to the point that it’s impossible to think about feeling. Overworking takes its toll on your body just like cutting. Your body tries to mend a cut, your body tries to mend from not resting. Add the things you try to numb away (even though it never goes away) on top of being physically exhausted, just escalates the anxiety, which escalates the exhaustion, which escalates the mental turmoil going on, which escalates physical illness…it becomes this ongoing cycle.
SusieQ
2024-08-08 01:22:56 +0000 UTCMine toggle and tag-team. Sometimes I hit a freeze state where I cannot move from the bed/couch, and scrolling keeps me comforted, other times, I busy myself with work and other's time, until I lose myself and break again. Other times my ED flares up and I focus on exercise and restriction, and other times we drink too much. Sometimes I want to end it all, fearing that I won't be able to handle the stress/overwhelm long term.
Jessica Q
2024-08-07 23:15:49 +0000 UTCThank you so much for sharing. xoxo
Kati Morton
2024-08-07 22:53:02 +0000 UTCThank you for sharing :) xoxo
Kati Morton
2024-08-07 22:52:51 +0000 UTCThank you Pieta. xoxo
Kati Morton
2024-08-07 22:52:31 +0000 UTCYes! Thank you :)
Kati Morton
2024-08-07 22:52:19 +0000 UTCI have sent you a message, hope that’s ok.
Enby Bear
2024-08-07 22:34:58 +0000 UTCI don’t feel safe in my bedroom at night. I often find myself doomscrolling late into the night, endlessly consuming negative news and social media updates to avoid going to sleep. I don’t stop until I’m completely exhausted. During the day I numb out by immersing myself in work, starting early in the morning and staying late. I avoid taking breaks and often skip lunch to maintain a constant state of busyness.
Peita Brown
2024-08-07 21:36:25 +0000 UTCI'm only just realizing.... but I think mine is finding someone else to focus on healing. If I focus on helping a friend in every way I don't have to feel my feelings. I can just follow the waves of their life. I can rescue them from crisis... but never myself. Bc im numbing out everything in me to give all I have to them... idk if thay makes sense
Kyrianna Tran
2024-08-07 18:47:16 +0000 UTCMy main one is when I lived in an abusive household as a teenager I started making and following really strict schedules so I didn't have to think about or respond to what I was feeling. Very much "ignore it and just do the next thing". As an adult I still go back into this whenever I get too stressed and it's really hard to keep some kind of structure, which i need for my bipolar, without going overboard.
Isobel Totten
2024-08-07 15:58:38 +0000 UTC
