What is C-PTSD?
Read Time: 6 minutes
It’s almost as if you can feel it in your bones. You just feel unsettled, antsy, on edge. Even when you’re just sitting and doing nothing, everything just feels, well, wrong. Even among friends, you feel weird and removed. As if you’re there but not really there.
Worst of all, your brain won’t shut up about it.
This isn’t safe.
Just relax.
I’m too much.
I’m too different.
I’m all alone.
Why can’t I just be normal?!
Over and over and over.
It’s exhausting. You’re physically crushed by the emotional and psychological weight of it all. You get headaches, your body feels weak, and all you want to do is sleep.
If some of this (or all of this) feels familiar, you may be struggling with Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or C-PTSD. Curious? Read on.
What is Trauma?
While most people are familiar with PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), awareness and understanding of C-PTSD are still catching up. Popular culture has inundated us with images of what we now recognize as PTSD, like the veteran huddling in a dark room while fireworks burst outside, or the child who refuses to talk after some unspeakable event.
We recognize trauma as something horrific in nature, or something that is too much, too fast, and too soon. Our natural response to this “blast” of stress to the nervous system becomes stuck, and we find our body and brains hypervigilant in some ways (think being overly aware of your surroundings, or anxious) and hypovigilant in others (think cognitive dissonance, and dissociation).
Psst...by the way…
FEEL LIKE THINGS ARE, WELL, JUST A LITTLE TOO MUCH?
What exactly is C-PTSD?
“But, what if my trauma’s not ‘big’? What if I feel this way, but nothing really bad happened to me?”
First of all, everyone's trauma response is different, meaning what may not seem traumatic to one person is very much traumatizing to another. And even if your trauma wasn’t “big”, if these “little” traumas keep happening, too often, too soon, and too fast, this is where we fall into the realm of C-PTSD.
When trauma is ongoing or repeated, most often happening in our early childhoods, we refer to this as C-PTSD. This might look like:
Neglect or abandonment, physical and/or emotional.
Childhood emotional, physical, or sexual abuse.
Growing up in an unsafe environment (think domestic abuse, substance abuse, or mental health struggles).
Not being allowed to show or express emotions that are considered “undesirable.”
Living in a chaotic, unstable, or threatening environment.
When experiences like these happen during our early years, when our brains are still developing, the effects of these traumas can be long-lasting and devastating.
What are some symptoms of C-PSD?
Similar to the Neurodiversity Wheel, which shows the common challenges and strengths of neurodivergent folx, we like to refer to the C-PTSD symptom wheel when talking about common signs of C-PTSD with our teens and young adults. This resource has been generously created by Lindsay Braman, a fellow therapist and artist who creates visuals to help make mental health education more accessible.
The C-PTSD Symptom Wheel
The main spokes around the C-PTSD Symptom Wheel represent the most common symptoms of C-PTSD, as defined by the World Health Organization’s diagnostic criteria. From these spokes, the symptoms are broken down into more familiar examples we can actually resonate with.
Let’s take a look at each spoke.
Hypervigilance
This is that constant “on edge” feeling, like your nervous system never got the memo that the danger has passed. You may be easily startled, watchful, and careful. You may be sensitive to loud noises, or constantly scan a room for exits or threats (even if you’re not aware of what you’re doing). This can manifest as difficulty relaxing, trouble sleeping, or feeling irritable and tense, even during calm moments.
Intrusive Memories & Re-Experiencing
You might find memories popping up when you least expect them; maybe as nightmares, vivid flashbacks, or as emotions or bodily sensations (somatic intrusions) that don’t seem connected to what’s happening now. A tone of voice, a smell, or a look from someone can throw you back into old feelings of fear, shame, or panic.
Memory & Attention Problems
Ever walk into a room and forget why you’re there? Or reread the same paragraph five times and still not absorb it? Chronic trauma can negatively impact memory, thinking, and cognition. When your brain has spent years prioritizing survival, things like concentration, recall, and planning often take a hit. This can be especially frustrating as a teen or young adult, when you may feel as if you’re “behind” or “not living up to your potential.”
Emotional Regulation Struggles
Emotions may feel overwhelming, unpredictable, or all-consuming (enough to trigger self-harm). On the flip side, you might feel numb and disconnected. You may go from calm to crisis in seconds, or struggle to identify what you’re even feeling at all.
Relational Instability
C-PTSD can deeply impact how you experience relationships. You may crave closeness but fear it at the same time. Trust might feel dangerous. You may worry about being “too much,” feel hyper-sensitive to rejection, or constantly brace for abandonment. This can lead to unsafe and high-conflict relationships, as well as intimacy issues.
Belief System Impacted
Long-term trauma doesn’t just affect how you feel; it even affects what you believe. You may carry deep, often unconscious beliefs like I’m unlovable, I’m unsafe, I don’t matter, or Something is wrong with me. Beliefs shape how you interpret the world and yourself, so this loss of meaning, deconstruction of belief systems, and/or loss of belief in a religion that was previously important to you can be incredibly devastating.
Somatic Symptoms
We all know trauma lives in the body. Physical symptoms like headaches, stomach issues, chronic pain, fatigue, tightness, dizziness, or a general sense of feeling “off” are common. You may struggle to connect physical symptoms to emotional stress, or feel frustrated after being told “everything looks normal” by medical providers.
Avoidance
Avoidance can look like isolation, dissociation, and compulsive behavior. It might show up as procrastination, numbing out, overworking, or staying constantly busy. Avoidance is often misunderstood as laziness or disengagement, but in reality, it’s a survival strategy, one that helped you cope at one point, but may now be limiting your life.
How Therapy Can Help Those with C-PTSD
Healing from C-PTSD isn’t about “getting over it” or forcing yourself to think positively. It’s about helping your nervous system learn that safety, connection, and regulation are possible.
Here at Interfaith Bridge Counseling, we move slowly and intentionally, taking in your story, your needs, and your goals. We focus on building safety first: within the therapeutic relationship, within your body, and within your daily life. You’ll learn how to recognize your triggers, understand your trauma responses, and develop tools to regulate your emotions without shutting them down or being overwhelmed by them.
Individual or group therapy can also help you gently challenge long-held beliefs about yourself and the world, process past experiences at a pace that feels manageable, and build healthier, more secure relationships. Over time, we hope that you’ll feel more grounded, more present, and more connected to yourself and to others.
Perhaps most importantly, therapy helps you understand this truth: your symptoms make sense. You are not broken. You are responding exactly as a human would after too much, for too long, without enough support. And with the right support, your nervous system can learn new ways of being.
If you’re a young adult or teen living in Colorado, we’re here for you. Don’t hesitate to reach out for a complimentary consultation.
Until next time,
About Our Author | Lena McCain MA, LPC. 0017723
Lena McCain is our Founder here at Interfaith Bridge Counseling, where she continues her support as our Clinical Director. She also holds a Master of Arts degree in Clinical Mental Health: Mindfulness-Based Transpersonal Counseling Psychology from Naropa University.
Lena’s drive and passions lie in the realm of community building and youth collaboration, which she has spent the last 12 years studying with an emphasis on one’s exploration of personal growth, community healing, and multicultural values. Lena’s expertise in these areas and the therapeutic field acts as a reminder to our community, teens, and young adults that they are not alone in their experience of life.
