Mindfulness and PTSD: How Remaining Present Promotes Relief

If you live with PTSD, you know that your inner world can become confusing and frustrating. The triggers and memories that arise and threaten to overwhelm you. Symptoms are eased with the help of therapy and trusted supporters. The more patience you show yourself the better. The more tools you have to calm and comfort yourself the more productive your life can be.

Mindfulness for PTSD is such a tool.

In effect, being mindful, or "in the moment," can help you create a quiet mental place to address and soothe your trauma symptoms. The practice of being present is often the key to relief and comfort.

Of course, when fear and tension seem to live within you, achieving a peaceful state of mind is easier said than done.

How can you self-soothe and learn to work through waves of nervousness, suspicion, hypervigilance, and upset? Consider the following ways mindfulness practice helps you become more observant and calm. 

Mindfulness for PTSD Helps You Become Aware and Accepting

Mindfulness is the ability to remain in the here and now. What you notice, engage, and share now is all you can control and affect. Thus, it is all that deserves the bulk of your attention.

With regards to PTSD, this is crucial. Mindfulness supports a path to overcoming intrusive and persistent thoughts and memories. Your rumination on the feelings thoughts and sensations linked to your traumatic past is eased and overcome by a willingness to let life be what it is. 

As you pay attention to the present world and the people around you now, trauma-related memories take up less space in your mind. The reactivity, numbness, and anxiety linked to the past can give way to calm as your mind and body recognize that you are currently safe.

You control what's going on in the present. Over time, mindfulness mitigates anxious avoidance as a coping mechanism. Soon, your body and mind resume a healthier interaction and you feel a greater sense of self-control.

Mindfulness Supports Self-compassion and Non-Judgmental Processing

PTSD unhelpfully narrates your life. Your trauma script implies a lack of safety and reliability at every turn. This is unproductive and unfair to you. Your traumatic experience needn't define you. 

To mindfully approach your life and dismantle unhelpful beliefs, it's important to notice assumptions, self-criticism, and the desire to avoid or control your thoughts. Then, you can intentionally let those things go. You don't have to do more.

Mindfulness is the practice of allowing thoughts to come and go without forcing anything. Preconceived notions of how things should be are decreased when you are mindful. How things are, how you feel, and the way you experience life now, are all okay and honest. Acknowledge, rather than judge, your hurt. Permit yourself to stop hiding from pain. Give up the habit of harshly criticizing yourself for your reaction to it.

Mindfulness gives you the tools to observe and comfort yourself. The regret, shame, and anxiety of PTSD no longer dominate you but lessen, as you feel empowered to notice discomfort and let it pass.

Embrace Empowerment and Release Overwhelm

As awareness, acceptance, and calm observation become habits, you will likely start to feel capable and tolerant. You can better cope with your own thoughts, uncertainty, and triggers. Your memories exist, but with less power to upend your life or ruin interactions with others. You can move forward and attack your goals knowing that you have the tools to face and endure links to the past.

Mindfulness supports a natural state of breathing, attunement to your surroundings, and balance. You aren’t devoting energy to avoidance or suppression, you aren’t forcing yourself to change or "get over" your past. You can move ahead because you are gentle with yourself, intentionally reorienting your mind,

Your improved ability to tune into and ground both your body and your mind. Ultimately mindfulness supports a sense of freedom, self-control, and a brighter outlook.

Take the Next Step

PTSD is not a life sentence. It's a treatable condition. You can recover, you deserve relief. Mindfulness can help.  

Your trauma treatment may include meditation, breathwork, and more. Work with a qualified therapist is a helpful way to create a practice that meets your particular needs. 

Please don't continue to suffer your PTSD symptoms without support. Read more about trauma therapy and contact us for a consultation soon. We're here to help you feel better and live well.