What is CPTSD?
Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, CPTSD for short, is like PTSD’s tougher, more complicated cousin. While PTSD usually stems from a single traumatic event, CPTSD develops after enduring prolonged or repeated trauma. We’re talking long-term abuse, neglect, captivity, or any situation where you felt trapped, powerless, and under constant threat.
This isn’t just one bad moment. It’s layers of trauma, built up over time.
People living with CPTSD often face flashbacks, intense anxiety, mood swings, and deep difficulties with trust. There’s usually this ongoing, background hum of hypervigilance, like your brain is stuck in “survival mode,” always scanning for danger even when you’re technically safe. And let me tell you, that’s exhausting.
It’s Not Just One Bad Day, It’s a Whole Pattern of Pain
CPTSD is different from PTSD in more than just cause. With PTSD, someone might be trying to process a specific event, a car accident, a natural disaster, a violent encounter. With CPTSD, it’s not one memory, it’s a whole environment, a pattern, a chapter of life. And that kind of trauma leaves a different mark.
Living with CPTSD doesn’t just mean managing symptoms. It means learning to navigate everyday life while carrying a history that shaped how you see yourself, others, and the world around you. Things like relationships, work, or even simple daily tasks can feel overwhelming. Some days, getting out of bed and showing up for yourself is a huge win. And you know what? It counts.
Here’s what I want you to know, especially if this is your reality: yes, CPTSD is tough. It’s messy and unpredictable. But there is also a quiet, powerful strength in surviving what you have. Healing doesn’t happen overnight, and there’s no one-size-fits-all roadmap. But it is possible. Slowly, steadily, you can start to feel safer, more grounded, and more connected to yourself and to the people who truly see you.
So if you’re living with CPTSD, please hear this:
You are not alone.
Your story matters.
Your healing matters.
And you deserve a life that feels good to live.