Best Tweets for Trauma and PTSD Survivors is a weekly Friday feature. My selections are entirely subjective, and I know it will never be possible to include every great resource tweeted. But I can try! I’ve personally read all tweeted links, and believe them to be of great value.

Disclaimer: I am in no way responsible for content found on any other website. Stay safe, and don’t follow links if you believe you might be triggered by them. Also, I will not be re-checking links from older Best Tweets posts, and if the site’s archived URL is different from the one I’ve provided here, you may need to do a search on their site.

Please Share My Stuff! You can now “like” and “share” this post everywhere with the touch of a button or two at the end of the linked tweets! Feel free to do any or all of that! (And thanks.)

Six Standalone Tweets to Ponder

@LLProject “Meditation practice isn’t about trying to throw ourselves away and become something better, it’s about befriending who we are.” ~ Pema Chodron

@jennwatts “Just the act of listening can be calming. If you stop what you’re doing right now, what are 5 things you can hear?”

@visityourself “The longing to feel self-compassion during difficult times points to some part of you that already cares.”

@kathiekeeler “The people who are the hardest to love are the ones who need it the most.” ~ Peaceful Warrior

@karenkmmonroy “Try to remember you always have faith. Faith in the problem, or faith in the Solution….”

@Tamavista “Instead of searching for the meaning of life, make your life meaningful.” ~ Kitamori

Linked Tweets

In the News

@NAMIMass What are you doing Memorial Day Weekend to remember those that died in service to our country?
[SEO: On Memorial Day, I not only think of all who died, but of all those who came home still fighting battles within themselves every single day. I think Memorial Day must be very tough for them. Please take a moment this weekend to thank a vet for their service.]

@LillyAnn Joplin tornado: How you can help (@RedCross and state agencies)
[SEO: The devastation is just … stunning. We seem to be getting a new disaster every week, and it can be tempting to shut it all out in a bit of ‘disaster fatigue’. Perhaps take a breather to regroup. But people dealing with these traumatic events will need help for a very long time. What would you wish for, if calamity knocked on your community’s door?]

@samhsagov Managing Your Stress:Tips for Survivors of a Traumatic Event
[SEO: At this link you can immediately download the .PDF, or order up to 10 printed copies for free (shipping may apply). “Gives stress prevention and management tips for dealing with the effects of trauma, mass violence, or terrorism. Lists tips to relieve stress, describes how to know when to seek professional help, and provides accompanying resources.”]

@WomeninCrimeInk Elizabeth Smart Confronts Kidnapper
[SEO: She is a poised, confident young woman now. And she made sure her kidnapper, Brian David Mitchell, knew she was flourishing before he was given a life sentence. Beyond finishing college and a two year mission in France for her church, she’s paying it forward. “She works as an advocate for children and victims of crime, especially kidnapping. And she has started the Elizabeth Smart Foundation with her first goal to get a program called RADkids into public schools. RAD, which stands for ‘Resist Aggression Defensively,’ teaches children specific techniques to get away from would-be attackers.”]

The Rest of the Best

@nourishthesoul May is PTSD Awareness Month. What is trauma?
[SEO: “…[I]t’s not usually very useful for medical professionals to ask patients, ‘Have you experienced trauma?’ Usually, patients will deny trauma because they haven’t been a victim of obvious physical abuse, natural disaster, or combat. But when I ask my own patients whether they’ve ever felt extremely unsafe, felt violated, or been made to feel overwhelmed and powerless, the answers often change.” A good overview of what trauma is, how it impacts us, and what you can do to learn to cope with it and find treatment.]

@psychcentral What Depression Looks Like in Men
[SEO: “A mix of biological and cultural factors often conspire to keep men and those who love them from recognizing and addressing their depression.” An important post that discusses how men differ from women in how they deal with depression and cope with it; how they have different symptom patterns; and differences in how they handle feelings. Most importantly, it explains why depression is often undiagnosed in men, and how that can be deadly dangerous. Don’t ignore it.]

@lifeinthewest How Yoga Can Help Heal PTSD
[SEO: “A traumatic incident may or may not leave physical wounds, but the body takes up the imprint of mind’s emotional distress, and these effects linger. They may manifest in the muscles and bones of the body, as with the rancher, or in our digestive or immune systems. They may settle into our very chemistry, affecting our neurotransmitters. But settle, they will. And until we discharge that trauma — from the mind, yes, but from the body, as well, it will continue to linger, affecting the quality of our lives.” …

“Hatha yoga, the yoga of body and breath, is an invitation to discharge the trauma that resides in our bodies — and to do it in a way that respects our limitations, our needs, and our choices. By providing our muscles and organs and minds with new information — that we””re now safe to grow and change — we can gradually release the lessons of the past that no longer serve us.” A very interesting read!]

@unsuicide Great how-to vid on Progressive Muscle Relaxation, good for stress, insomnia. Free and simple (YouTube)
[SEO: “The second exercise from a full length DVD on anxiety for Dr.Glen Berry, Annapolis Valley Mental Health.” A woman’s voice guides the woman pictured on screen through tension and release exercises, with a handy 5 second countdown while holding the tension positions.]

@psychcentral A reminder about what happens when we stuff down our anger
[SEO: “My expression of anger (or lack thereof) was like my negative body image. How? Because just like I didn’t think that I deserved to feel great in my own skin because I didn’t look a certain way, I didn’t think that I deserved to express my feelings. To be true to myself.” Excellent post! Lots to consider.]

@goodthingz 7 Principles To Help You Change Slowly but Surely (via @mrjWells)
[SEO: “Most of the time, for anything worthwhile, slow progress is what we’ll all be making. We have a myth of overnight success and a habit of instant satisfaction, but one reason so many people never achieve much is that big things take time. …. Most people, when they discover that, give up. How are we going to not be among them?”

While this post is geared toward achieving mostly outward goals, it strikes me how useful it is when considering the course of progress for internal goals. For example, how striving for good mental health might seem to take forever, but look at it in smaller chunks, consider your goals in terms of the seven principles listed herein, and you’ll be able to identify specific areas of progress. A very useful process, especially when feeling down about how slow it seems to move.]

@psychcentral Looking Through the Keyhole of Loss
[SEO: “Whatever your style of coping with loss, it can be important to get to know it better — because it could be an insight into how you are with your life. A doorway into what it means to be you.”]