It’s no secret that post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a severe medical condition that many people have difficulty coping with. If you have been diagnosed with PTSD, then there is a chance that you experience PTSD paranoia regularly. Sometimes PTSD paranoia goes beyond just feeling a bit nervous or on edge, and people refer to this as being in a hypervigilant state. Hypervigilance is a state of mind that you get into when you have PTSD, and your mind is constantly telling you that you’re in some type of danger. People who have been through traumatic events sometimes develop hypervigilance as part of their PTSD, which is common among patients involved in wars.
When you’re in this state of hypervigilance, it’s going to be tough to feel like you can relax. You might feel as if you can’t let your guard down at any time, and this level of paranoia makes it so difficult to live your life like normal. People with severe PTSD paranoid might even do things such as constantly scanning the room for threats or looking for exits if they need to flee. If this sounds like something you’re dealing with currently, you need to find ways to cope with this to feel better.
Keep reading to get several important tips for coping with PTSD paranoia. These coping methods have been able to help many people feel better about things over time. They might not completely eliminate your PTSD paranoia, but they should mitigate the severe issues you’re experiencing. All of the presented coping methods are very practical and work well, but some might appeal to you more than others based on your preferences and situation.
Seek Traditional PTSD Treatment Options
The first thing that you can do to help yourself is to seek traditional PTSD treatment options. It will be much easier to cope with PTSD paranoia and hypervigilance if you receive good treatment for your condition. Your doctor will be able to help you figure out the best ways to treat your PTSD based on your health history and your current symptoms. Many people diagnosed with PTSD feel quite better once they start taking medications such as antidepressants and anti-anxiety pills. Other medications can potentially help you as well, but your doctor will determine what you need.
Therapy is another important pillar of PTSD treatment that you will turn to when you need to learn how to cope. Working with a therapist is a great way to get yourself to a better place mentally. Therapists understand how trying it can be to be diagnosed with PTSD, but they understand how to help patients cope while also working through holding them back. If you’re able to work with a skilled and compassionate therapist, you will likely have far fewer issues with PTSD paranoia over time. Therapy won’t solve all of your PTSD problems overnight, but it can make a big difference in your life if you commit to the process.
Other treatments can help people cope with PTSD and paranoia issues, but therapy and medications will be the most common. Some patients might receive eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy if they’re having trouble responding to other treatment methods. This can help to alleviate the distress that you feel in relation to traumatic events from your past. Hypnotherapy is also something that certain therapists offer, but options like this are generally alternative treatments that will only be used when deemed necessary.
Learning Relaxation Techniques
Learning relaxation techniques will be a good place to start when trying to cope with PTSD paranoia. Paranoia is very much related to anxiety, and your anxiety levels might be way too high. If you’re wondering about your anxiety levels, it might help take a simple anxiety test online. It can tell you a lot about the anxiety you’re experiencing and how you might need to let your doctor know about it. It can also just be used as an indicator that you need to find ways to reduce anxiety.
There are lots of relaxation techniques that you can do to calm yourself down when you’re feeling anxious or paranoid. Your therapist will likely help you learn about some of them that will be simple for you to use in various situations. Some of the simplest and most effective relaxation techniques involve deep breathing and trying to enter a calm state of mind. Some people utilize meditation techniques to relax. You should develop good relaxation techniques that will work for you, and it’ll allow you to feel much better about things.
When you feel more relaxed, it might become possible to let go of those feelings of paranoia. When you feel PTSD paranoia is starting to become too much, you’ll be able to try to use the relaxation techniques. They should help you to feel at ease so that you can get through things just fine. People have been using relaxation techniques to cope with anxiety for a long time, and they work very well to help with paranoia issues. At the very least, it’s going to be good for helping you reduce anxiety symptoms so that you can think more clearly.
Getting Exercise
Getting exercise is a great way to help yourself feel better, and it’s surprisingly helpful for reducing PTSD paranoia. One reason why paranoia issues get exacerbated is that your stress levels will get too high. Increased stress levels lead to greater feelings of anxiety, and this can cause you to become more paranoid than usual. It can turn into a cycle of paranoia unless you get better at reducing your stress levels, and this is where the exercise comes in. Starting an exercise routine and sticking to it is a good way to help yourself alleviate stress.
If you can focus on trying to work out often enough, then it should be able to do a good job of keeping your stress levels in check. Many PTSD patients use exercise as a part of an overall treatment strategy, and it can work well in tandem with other coping mechanisms, too. You’ll feel better physically after exercising because it releases positive endorphins in your bloodstream. Also, getting in better shape is going to make you happy and more confident than before. Overall, exercising is a fantastic idea for anyone, but it’s especially helpful for those trying to cope with PTSD paranoia.
Having a Good Support System
Everyone who is experiencing PTSD symptoms should have a good support system that they can rely on. Sometimes you’re just going to need to be able to talk to someone who cares when you’re feeling paranoid. Your family members, your friends, and your significant other might be able to be there for you during tough times. They can talk to you about what’s going on and help you to feel calmer about things. Many individuals who have PTSD feel much more at ease because they have a strong support system.
It might be tough at first to open up to those who are in your support system, but you’ll get better at it over time. You can rely on others to help you when you’re feeling overwhelmed by paranoia. Sometimes just having the wherewithal to reach out or being honest about the paranoia you’re experiencing is enough. You might be able to get the help you need to snap back and feel more at peace. Your support system can be there for you in your life if you will allow them to be.
Practicing Mindfulness Techniques
Mindfulness techniques also work well for many people, and learning how to practice mindfulness could help you feel far less paranoid. Patients who learn to practice mindfulness will be better about focusing on the moments that they’re in rather than worry about the past or feeling hypervigilant. It’s about learning to recognize things for what they are instead of dwelling on the negative thoughts you often have. If you need help with learning about mindfulness, it might be worthwhile to work with a therapist.
Therapists will teach people about mindfulness techniques and how to change the way you think. They can also offer you what is known as mindfulness-based therapy. Becoming a more mindful individual might take time, but you’ll be able to slowly transition into this new way of thinking. A large number of PTSD patients have reported feeling less paranoid due to implementing mindfulness techniques. If you think that this can help you out, then it’s well worth looking into. You can also combine this with the other coping mechanisms above.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can PTSD cause paranoia?
Can paranoia be a trauma response?
Can PTSD turn into psychosis?
Can PTSD turn to schizophrenia?
What is PTSD with psychotic features?
Can PTSD cause voices in your head?
Do I have psychosis or is it PTSD?
Can PTSD cause homicidal thoughts?
Can PTSD cause brain damage?
What can untreated PTSD lead to?
