I have basically all the symptoms of PTSD from an abusive childhood - "overreacting" to things, nightmares, social anxiety etc, but I recently tried to get a diagnosis for PTSD and my psychiatrist said she couldn't call what I had PTSD because I didn't have flashbacks or nightmares of particular memories from my past. I have flashbacks of fear and nightmares of people trying to kill me, but I don't have nightmares of my dad beating me up, for instance. I think for me one of the reasons for this (other than it being for my entire childhood and not being just one event) is that I was gaslighted to a degree by my mother and have some disassociation between my feelings and my memories (my memories don't seem 'enough' to justify how I felt, because I was constantly told to forget about things and that I was overreacting). So it's easier for me to speak of my past in metaphors - it was like being a slave, being chained in my own house, like one of those people who are kidnapped by seemingly normal people and who live crazy lives right next to normal ones, like living in a fantasy movie etc. So this may be the explanation for it, but I'm wondering - is anyone else like this? Do you have CPTSD without reliving particular memories (but just feelings, like me)?
(I also only just found this forum today, and only learned that there's a 'complex' variant of PTSD)
(I also only just found this forum today, and only learned that there's a 'complex' variant of PTSD)