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Take medication as prescribed.
Avoid mixing medication with alcohol, tobacco or
other drugs, as this could have dangerous consequences, such as making prescribed
medication ineffective or increasing the effects of alcohol or other drugs.
•
Try not to block out thoughts of what has happened.
Although this is hard, it is
important to let your mind process what has happened. Listen to your thoughts, but do
not pay too much attention to them. Do not think of them as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ thoughts,
but just as thoughts that are equal to each other. Remember, while the memories may
be distressing, the event is not happening again — it is only a memory and the memory
cannot hurt you. This can be seen as nature’s way of helping.
•
Seek support.
Everyone needs support. Share your experiences with people you trust or
write them down in a diary. The services listed at the end of this booklet may also be useful.
•
Plan to do something each day that brings a sense of achievement.
Often everyday
tasks like washing, cleaning, paying bills or returning phone calls, tend to pile up when a
person is going through a hard time. This can become overwhelming as the pile gets bigger
and bigger. By just choosing one of these activities to do each day, you can prevent things
piling up, which can help you feel a bit more in control of your life. The flow-on effect can
be a real sense of achievement (or relief) that this activity has been completed.
•
Monitor your emotions.
Try keeping track of your emotions and trauma symptoms in a
diary. Write down how you have felt at different times of the day. When were your trauma
symptoms highest, when you felt the worst? When were your trauma symptoms lowest,
when you felt best? What were you doing and what were you thinking at those times?
When did you have cravings to use alcohol, tobacco or other substances? How much sleep
did you have each night? Keeping a diary of your anxiety and emotions can help you learn
the patterns between the way you feel, the things you do and the way you think.
What strategies do you find help
manage your trauma reactions?
6 •
trauma
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substance use