Does anyone know much about attachment disorders and whether they are linked to PTSD or something completely different?

I know separation anxiety has been a poll on here, so wondering whether it is a factor of PTSD.

I'm experiencing at the moment some separation anxiety from my therapist who will be away for the holidays. I have a meltdown everytime she goes on holidays. I spent last session with her crying & it doesn't matter what she says nothing really reassures or comforts me. I then sat at the bottom of her stairwell in her building sobbing for an hour. I've been crying on & off since, although it is easing.

I'm googling 'attachment disorder' as my GP had mentioned it to me.

I would describe my relationship with my parents as loving and close, yet there is some dysfunction (isn't there with all families?) particularly around showing or even discussing emotions/feelings.

When I was born, it was very dramatic and my mother nearly died. My mum was not able to hold me or breastfeed for some days. When she was finally okay she said I did not seem to bond. And then as I became a toddler was very clingy, becoming hysterical in her absence or indifferent about her return and pushing her away.

My mother had post-natal depression from the time I was 5 and half to the time I was 7. I also think this period was the time I experienced one of my traumas with the spouse of a relative.

Part of me thinks the whole attachment thing is a bit of a crock and possibly I'm taking it too far. But then again, I really do seem to have some 'mother issues' and I'm trying to dig to the bottom of it, in an attempt to get some relief.

Any thoughts, advice, links or personal experiences would be much appreciated.

I don't know alot about any of this really. But...I don't think I ever bonded with my mother for like a million reasons I wont go into on here and I often wonder if it has caused some type of disorder like the one you speak of infact. It makes sense that it might really.....I mean if you think about it.

Yeah, I've been reading about attachment theory. Often PTSD pops up along side it.

I'm just wondering if something happens to a child during one or more of the attachment stages e.g. parent dies, parents absence, depression/anxiety in parent, serious illness in parent, neglect by parent, drug addiction by parent - whether that may make the child more susceptible to developing something like PTSD.

I'm not suggesting my Mum's depression caused my PTSD or damaged me in someway. Just wondering whether that had some affect on my developing brain that with the right trauma/s triggered the PTSD?

Plus I read on here from time to time some issues that sufferers experience with their parents (particularly mother). In the case of abuse or neglect it may well have been the cause of the PTSD which explains it. But I'm more wondering if the parent figure did not cause the PTSD, was there a problem with attachment in the early years (0-6)?

Really, we have an attachment disorder from the world. Our heads are stuck in the past, our bodies too. PTSD encompasses all of this. I don't consider it separate but part of.

bec

I am not sure if I understand the term "attachment disorder" properly, but I looks like dysfunctional or otherwise unhealthy relationship with another person due to inability to develop a proper emotional bond. Am I right?
If yes, I think it may be linked to PTSD, especially if the trauma involves loss or disease of a loved one.
My husband is a PTSDer, too, and his attachment to me is sometimes just overwhelming. I mean, he so is horrably afraid that something can happen to me, that it often becomes a problem. I, in turn, do not care enough about him. :(
Actually, there is probably no family with a PTSD sufferer with totally healthy relationship, and problem with attachment may be at least partially an issue.

Yes I think you understand correctly Linda! There is a whole bunch of staff on Bowlby's Attachment Theory if you google search.

I guess I am more wondering about all of us PRE-PTSD.

Specifically Im wondering would anyone have got PTSD because of the traumas I experienced or did I get PTSD because *something* made me pre-disposed to. Add trauma to pre-disposition = PTSD. Trauma but no predisposition maybe NO PTSD.

And I'm wondering if that *something* has to with attachment theory. If a disruption occured during the attachment/emotional bonding process does that affect the child's brain in such a way that it makes it more likely to develop PTSD?

That's my first point.

My second point is why I experience such strong intense separation anxiety from my therapist each & every time she goes away. Intellectually I can appreciate she is coming back and that I will be okay in her absence and if I'm not I can call, but my body responds quite dramatically & all of my symptoms seem to increase.

I think I'm starting to understand why I have such a reaction. I think it's because she is the very first person in my life that I've experienced such emotional bonding with.

Even prior to PTSD (but then it's hard to tell if my trauma took place 5 to 7) I've never been someone to get too close to anyone. I'm not into intimacy. I don't do girly chats. I don't confide secrets. I've never been one to cry in front of other people not even at funerals.

If I have a problem (up until PTSD) I've always been one to solve on my own, in my own head. I would not seek out advice from someone else or ask for support or help. I've been extremely independant & self sufficient.

OK, I am now rambling. But the two points I wanted to make was;

1. Could a disturbance in the emotional/attachment process be a pre-cursor for a child developing PTSD?

2. Could PTSD'ers experience separation anxiety from those person/s that are meeting their need for emotional bonding?

3. In attachment theory it's normal for a child to experience separation anxiety from the main caregiver. But eventually they develop enough confidence in their own abilities and will be comfortable on their own, seeking out their mother/parent if they need her.

4. Is it possible that PTSD'ers (with their black & white thinking) are being either incredibly independant & self sufficient (to the point of pushing others away & wanting space) or they are in fear that the person they are closest to emotionally (partner, parent, therapist) is going to abandon them.

5. If so, perhaps there is something in relearning healthy attachment and finding a balance between self-sufficiency & asking for help & support?

I think it's all speculation and it will be almost impossible to figure out the answer to this, because every child is unique. Also, the child's genetic disposition coupled with environment plays a role in their circumstances with regard to their relationships with parents.

Do you feel you need to know the answer to this, or can you just accept it as a part of who you are? It's not something to be ashamed of and there is always going to be a challenge to deal with even if you figure this out.

There is a possibility if you read to much into this you will go around in a circle and waste much needed energy. On the flip side, while trying to figure this out maybe it is taking the focus off of your therapist being absent.

Damn it you are probably right

Hi Awakening,

4. I would call it to pretend to be incredibly independant and self sufficient. Or to convince ourselves in it. There is probably no PTSDer who actually does not need help, but many, myself included, who push the helping hand away.
It is just sooo incredibly hard to show you weak point to anyone, since it seems to be dangerous. My ability to experience loving feeling and to make emotional bonds is impared, to be short.
My husband, oppositely, is very attached to me and to his family. Yes, he does experience fear of losing his loved ones, myself first of all. So, yes, I agree, can be both types.

5. Of course, I just do not know how to re-learn

I have some similar personality features. I was not "girly", did not cry in front of others, and developed closeness very slowly. And I prefer not to go for support (actually, did not have it) in difficult situations. Can compare myself to a cat, who, when is hurt, hides from his owner. However, I also was traumatized as a kid, althoug did not have direct symptoms until some major event.

Thanks Linda, and of course you are right it's all in the pretending.