My Favorite Resources for C-PTSD

Part of an ongoing series about life with complex post-traumatic stress disorder

From basic info links, forums, Youtube channels, to family support resources

When I was first diagnosed with C-PTSD, it took a ton of trawling around the internet/reading books recommended from different practitioners to figure out what exactly it was, and what to do about it. I’m hoping to spare other people some of the trouble. Most individual sites prioritize linking their own content; this is a guide agnostic of brand, just by how helpful each was, to me.

General links to learn about C-PTSD (Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)

• What is CPTSD from BAB: https://www.beautyafterbruises.org/what-is-cptsd
• https://www.outofthestorm.website/symptoms
• https://www.brightquest.com/post-traumatic-stress-disorder/complex-ptsd-symptoms-diagnosis/
• https://www.eggshelltherapy.com/sensitivity-and-childhood-trauma/ (kinda long)
• https://www.acesconnection.com/blog/what-is-complex-post-traumatic-stress-disorder-cptsd
• https://www.thrivetalk.com/cptsd/ (probably redundant, but hey)
• ACE Score study links (you may hear “ACEs” mentioned frequently as a gauge of breadth of trauma)
• My own, non-clinically valid take
• What is trauma
• See Youtube links below if you prefer to learn via video

PTSD vs. CPTSD Symptoms

Favorite books, and what they’re good for

• Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving by Pete Walker — this one seems to resonate most with people who have CPTSD…it gave me a whole new framework for thinking about myself and behavior
• The Body Keeps Score by Bessel van der Kolk — This book helps people understand the physical context of complex trauma, and is useful particularly if you have chronic health issues or want to read about the variety of treatments available. It is written at a level appropriate for health care providers
• Toxic Parents by Susan Forward — An amazing way for people who come from dysfunctional homes to re-contextualize what was/was not normal behaviors for them to experience
• The Drama of the Gifted Child by Alice Miller (super misleading title) — This book is one of the original books describing the origins of childhood trauma
• Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents by L. Gibson — This book is great at helping people understand what they should have received as a child and did not, how to reach/develop emotional maturity, and how to craft a semblance of a relationship with emotionally immature family if desired
• The Tao of Fully Feeling by Pete Walker — A book about how to reconnect with emotions
• When Pleasing You is Killing Me by Les Carter — Many people with CPTSD are people pleasing, or have a narcissistic parent/family member; this book is useful for that and for boundary building
• The Anger Trap by Les Carter — Many people with CPTSD get stuck in anger related to family dynamics/difficult people; this book is useful for that
• Codependent No More by Melody Beattie — Codependency happens when you have unusual circumstances in a home (e.g. alcoholic or mentally ill parent), and describes the behaviors people adapt to protect themselves — some productive, some unproductive. This books helps you see which of your behaviors are coping mechanisms, and invites you to look through them and discard what may no longer be useful for you

Super useful workbooks to help you understand yourself, learn about, and work on CPTSD

• The Complex PTSD Workbook by Arielle Schwartz (a good intro and lighter overview, very accessible/easy to understand)
• A more thorough self-guided toolkit book, Growing Beyond Survival for PTSD and CPTSD by E. Vermilyea (disclaimer: I haven’t done the whole thing yet)
• Healing Trauma by Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing Guide to Feeling Mind/Body Connecting)
• DBT Workbook — great for distress tolerance skill development, interpersonal skill practice
• Janina Fisher’s new workbook

Anecdotes on what it’s like to have emotional flashbacks and other symptoms

• https://agileleanlife.com/emotional-flashbacks/
• https://themighty.com/2017/07/what-its-like-to-feel-an-emotional-flashback/
• Hypervigilance/Avoidance
• Dissociation and Dissociation FAQs
• Freeze/fight/flight/fawn responses
• Narcissistic fight responses

Some more advanced links (read after general)

• Pete Walker’s theory of the 4F Trauma Responses
• Coping with the Inner Critic
• Coping with the Outer Critic
• How PTSD changes brain structure
• Talking to your inner child
• Structural dissociation and the secondary structural dissociation of CPTSD (this site also has good resources on OSDD/DDNOS and DID)
• Age regression

More on the physical effects of trauma

Grounding, distraction, and flashback management resources

• Grounding https://www.beautyafterbruises.org/blog/grounding101
• Online class that teaches somatic grounding https://trauma-aware-care.mykajabi.com/find-your-ground
• Distraction https://www.beautyafterbruises.org/blog/distraction101
• Sleep https://www.beautyafterbruises.org/blog/nighttime201
• Pete Walker’s 13 steps to manage flashbacks
• How to help someone who is triggered
• My personal grounding steps

Different types of CPTSD treatment (overview of my experiences with each here)

• EMDR
• Somatic Experiencing
• IFS (“parts” work)
• Sensorimotor
• NARM technique
• Trauma-sensitive yoga practices
• DBT
• CBT
• NeuroAffective Touch
• Art therapy
• TMS
• Psychedelics (ketamine, MDMA, psilocybin)
• Brainspotting
• Neurofeedback
• Support groups/group therapy
• IOP, PHP, and inpatient programs
• Psychiatry (see What it’s like to go to the psychiatrist)
• Therapeutic tremoring/TRE

Some Youtube channels that support C-PTSD related learning

• Basic CPTSD info channel and symptoms video
• Another CPTSD overview
• Debbie Mirza
• Dr. Les Carter — this channel focuses more on dealing with difficult people, particularly narcissists
• Dr. Ramani — Similar to Dr. Carter’s channel, helps advise on how to deal with difficult families
• Anna Runkle (note: not a counselor)
• Patrick Teahan — interpersonal role plays, advice from CPTSD therapist

Instagram accounts you might like to follow

• The.Holistic.Psychologist
• CPTSD foundation
• BeautyAfterBruises
• LatibuleCounseling
• Revelatori
• Cptsd_support
• PTSDcomplex_recovery
• NAMIcommunicate
• CPTSDSurvivalGuide
• TraumaAwareCare

Online forums and foundations, and what they do

• C-PTSD Foundation — book club, weekly newsletter, support groups, daily encouraging texts, recently added support group for partners of people with CPTSD
• Beauty After Bruises — explanations, resources, funding assistance for therapy
• OOTS Site — has wonderful resources for working with/finding providers, as well as another CPTSD forum (not quite as active as some)
• CPTSD Reddit — a decent forum, pretty active. Very good for learning if others experience your symptoms, and how they handle them. They also have some book recommendations.

Provider resources (to self evaluate/take to PCP or therapist)

• OOTS site — includes provider education forms and therapist evaluation/selection assistance
• For practitioners: Training course on Advanced Trauma-Informed CPTSD Treatment
• Article about what a counselor should consider/keep in mind with complex trauma clients, by a complex trauma client

How to pick a counselor/therapist

• Use this sheet
• Try this simple method.
• CPTSD self assessment questionnaire you can bring with you to an intro session
• Make sure you feel safe with them, and that their modality is something that resonates with you (CBT only is not recommended for CPTSD)
• Watch for these flags to see if they are genuinely trauma-informed.

Crisis resources

• Crisis text line Text HOME to 741741 (US)
• Trevor Project (LGBTQ under 26)
• https://old.reddit.com/r/CPTSD/wiki/index#wiki_crisis_support_resources

Complex Trauma Certified Programs

• BAB List of programs (scroll to bottom of page)
• The Meadows (~$12k IOP, CA and AZ, 8ish weeks, 3–4 hrs/day 4 days a week)
• Trauma and Beyond Center
• Reconnect Integrative Trauma Center

Organizations that frequently overlap with/assist CPTSD folks

• CODA (coming soon — article on codependency, boundary setting, and CPTSD)
• Adult Children of Alcoholics and Dysfunctional Families
• AL-ANON
• CBTI
• VA
• ISSD-T
• Parenting traumatized children courses and resources
• Restraining order clinics (see this article on how to get protective orders against abusers)

Best (English-speaking) cities to get help that I’ve been able to find

• Boston — JRI Trauma Centers/Bessel van der Kolk, Janina Fisher, Judith Herman
• Bay Area — Pete Walker/Trauma informed work is popular out there
• Denver — Arielle Schwartz and other locals she recommends

Workshops you might want to attend

• Esalen (CA)
• Kripalu (Lenox, MA)

Overlapping resources also frequently helpful for anyone who has CPTSD:

• Toxic Parent or Emotionally Immature parent resources
• Narcissism reading/channels
• Codependent affirmations/patterns of recovery
• OSDD/DID information

You made it to the end, so time for some fun infographics (general mental health)! Yay!

• https://www.facebook.com/TheOutreachVan/photos/a.1733229660286846/2418285268447945/?type=3&theater
• http://www.iamhoneydill.com/new-stuff/2018/3/2/the-mental-health-all-stars
• https://www.huffpost.com/entry/cartoons-for-anxiety_n_5bacd763e4b091df72ee3e90?

Side note that Complex PTSD (CPTSD, C-PTSD) is also called: Developmental Trauma Disorder (DTD), DES-NOS (old name, not a great name), Relational Trauma Responses (RTR), or grouped under typical PTSD with combinations of other symptoms.

If you have resources you really like that are not included here, email them to me at kathrynmintner@gmail.com, and I’ll consider them to update the list on a rolling basis.

[disclaimer: Not a therapist, not a counselor, not trained in medical-health fields. If you’re experiencing a medical or mental health emergency, call 911 immediately.]