Peating after traumatic event
-
One month ago I had an extremely traumatic event happen in my life. I removed myself from the situation by quitting that awful work environment but I still have ongoing stress just from remembering what happened and dealing with the aftermath. More than a month later I still have no appetite, no ability to sleep at night (I can only fall asleep for a few hours after sunrise), regularly get nauseous, etc.
I only eat a few a few cups of orange juice and grass fed milk per day due to the low/nonexistent appetite. I ate ground beef a few times and experienced intense existential dread from it. I don't take any supplements or medicines.
In terms of healing from this, is this just a matter of waiting for time to heal all wounds or should I be doing something differently?
-
You've probably read this article already, it is very good. https://raypeat.com/articles/articles/dark-side-of-stress-learned-helplessness.shtml
Our body adapts to trauma in order to protect ourselves acutely, but when we cannot stop the cascade of stress it will lead to deleterious effects in the long run. Serotonin increases greatly during stress, suppresses appetite, inhibits our ability to get good restorative sleep, and also triggers nausea. These describe all of your symptoms. Ground beef, not paired with calcium or gelatin, will also increase serotonin. I suspect that is why you are filled with dread when you eat it. It adds more serotonin to the already highly serotonergic state.
I think addressing serotonin could help. The carrot salad lowers serotonin, eating easily digestible foods, getting plenty of calcium and sugars would all help. Cyproheptadine is a very potent anti-serotonin drug, it is very safe and well researched. Peat talks about it a lot. If you are already in a high serotonin state it will make you very sleepy and potentially groggy initially until your body can transition from operating on stress hormones to the youthful thyroid hormones. Removing yourself from stressful environments, spending time outdoors, engaging in stimulating interesting activities, and spending time with people you like are all are anti-serotonergic. If lowering serotonin through these means a lone doesn't get you back to where you want to be, Progest-E has a very healing and restorative effect.
-
Get on Cyproheptadine.
-
Evaporated milk for calories. Listen to music. Try not to stress about not being able to fall asleep at a certain time, that can make things worse.
-
Magnesium tends to get depleted during stress.
B vitamins
Vitamin D
Keep blood sugar up with good quality fruits
Cyproheptadine for nausea (no prolonged use)
Progest E is good for sleep
Essential Ray Peat listening on the effects of trauma and stress on the body
-
@VehmicJuryman said in Peating after traumatic event:
I ate ground beef a few times and experienced intense existential dread from it.
Likely histamine.
As far as not wanting to take medication, I understand that, but as the above example shows food can be just as powerful.
Check out the recipe in my signature for a good low-histamine source of protein. Make a soup with well-cooked zucchinis and lots of salt and you'll have a potent anti-stress food that's easy to eat on low appetite.
The above recommendations are all good, albeit ignoring your request not to recommend medication. I would say try to make small changes to your behavior that can shift things in the right direction; go out in the sun when it's out for example.
In terms of diet, eat things you truly love, because the low appetite is really a vicious cycle of lowering your metabolism. Eat often even if it isn't a lot. Get a spread of delicious fruits and cheeses going, those seem to always be appetizing. Don't be afraid to spend a little extra money on good food if it's the only thing you can stomach; Even if it's a pint of ice cream (without gums or harmful additives that are probably worse than supplements or medication) before bed.
Salt is very important, if you enjoy pickles have lots of them, that worked for me. I've been where you are, you'll get out of it 100%
-
Update: I started taking 700mg of aspirin before bed. My thought process is that it helps block serotonin and I'm more comfortable using an easily accessible over the counter drug than cypro. It seems to be helping, it makes me fall asleep almost immediately.
I started eating ham and cheese sandwiches with white bread. I think ham is high in glycine without many of the stressful amino acids. It definitely hasn't been giving me the anxiety I had experienced from the ground beef. I still mostly just eat milk and orange juice, and also cane sugar cola.
-
@jens Such a great reply.
-
@VehmicJuryman Sorry to hear that things aren't going well for you. I'm sure time helps, but if you haven't told someone that you trust, that would be something you should build energy up to do. Carrying the world on your shoulders won't help your metabolism.
Also, it's okay to wait for things to come back naturally. All I would suggest is that you add some B vitamins perhaps from brewers yeast tab (take like a pill) along with what your eating so that you can build back your energy.
Praying that peace will return to you.
