JBC Vitality Alternative Therapy Blog

In my case an accident caused me great concern and I felt that I needed to talk to someone neutral to me. I became increasingly anxious after the accident and although friends and family just want to care for you sometimes they can only make the situation worse. For me this was the case, I continually re-ran the accident over and over in my head and sleeping became increasingly difficult.
I was constantly listening to the people around me and without realising it I was beginning to suffer from post traumatic stress. Although this is very common after an accident I was convinced that the symptoms I was suffering were completely normal and just me being silly. Although the symptoms were normal I still knew that I had to seek help.

Following the weeks after my accident I didn’t leave the house for 8 days and even thinking about doing it was very stressful. I have always been very independent so relying on others to help with food shopping etc. only made me even more distressed. Every night I would feel exhausted from not sleeping the night before but when it came to going to sleep I simply dozed on and off for the majority of the night and even 3 weeks after the accident I still wasn’t getting a good nights sleep.

I had a session with Jane, a counsellor at JBC Vitality, she instantly put me at ease and the room was so warm and cosy I simply felt I could tell her everything and anything in complete confidence. She started off by asking me a variety of questions regarding the accident and how I was feeling and then occasionally she would step in and ask more questions to help elaborate on what I’d said. She also explained about post traumatic stress and how everything I was telling her was completely normal as she has seen many people for the same condition as myself. Sometimes speaking to someone who isn’t a friend, family member, colleague etc and someone who wasn’t there at the time of the accident to pass judgement on the situation really helped me feel better. The time went by very quickly and I didn’t feel distressed or uncomfortable speaking to her.
At first I thought I wouldn’t have anything to say or that I would feel uncomfortable telling her but as soon as she explained about the counselling session and how it would work and once I was sitting comfortably it just flowed. Jane is an incredible calming person with a really soft aura about her. She was extremely professional with me but at the same time always assured me that everything was normal and that everything would get better.

Despite still feeling anxious, time is a great healer and I am slowly letting myself get back to normal things like food shopping, driving and joining in in social situations. Travelling on crowded metros and being is busy situations still panics me but no where near as much as they used to and the main thing for me is that I know that everything I am feeling is completely normal and there is help readily available for me and others in my situation and that alone has helped me move on. My advice is to go and talk to someone because it’s helped me enormously and I am very grateful to Jane for all her help and support.