Learn How Mold PTSD Can Impede Your Recovery Both Physically and Emotionally
I have often cited the term “mold PTSD” when I write about my personal experience and health collapse from a hidden mold infestation in our home. Using the term is my way of trying to somehow illustrate the tremendous and lasting physical and psychological impact that mold and environmental illness had on me and my family. I also use it to show the way in which certain places, smells, memories and objects still sometimes trigger significant physical responses and a sense of panic inside of me. My responses are usually indicative of what I experience with a mold exposure, so for me this takes the form of rapid heartbeat, sudden nausea, facial flushing, sinus pressure, and lightheadedness, even though, in reality, I am not always being exposed or in any real physical danger. For a long time, I struggled to address or to get a handle on this, and just pushed through, mostly doing everything I could to ignore the sudden and magnified symptoms. But, as all unheeded warnings eventually do, they forced my hand by becoming so pronounced that my sanity and recovery were being compromised.
(Note: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD is a mental health problem that some people develop after experiencing or witnessing a life-threatening event, like combat, a natural disaster, a car accident, or sexual assault. While most often in reference to returning veterans, there remains a great deal of literature on PTSD related to traumatic experiences that can happen to anyone throughout the course of a person’s life. Symptoms can become debilitating and can last a lifetime, if not addressed. In my case, the physical illness, cognitive dysfunction, irritability, insomnia and fatigue I suffered from mold and mycotoxin exposure was ample trauma to trigger PTSD.)
The good news is that I have finally taken the necessary steps to address my mold PTSD specifically, and I am seeing a greater positive turnaround in my health and in my ability to interact with my environment in a way that is no longer driven by compulsion and fear. It is a welcome and happy change for both me and my family. I didn’t actually recognize how negatively my behaviors were impacting others until I addressed them. That is why I want to bring my story and this information to you. I think it can really help and can be a great accompaniment to the other steps you are taking to regain your health, especially if you are finding yourself at a standstill or dead end in your recovery progress.