The Red Pickup Truck Story
I had a client who could not understand how her own behaviors related to PTSD. She was sexually assaulted and suffering from anxiety, intrusive thoughts and panic attacks that were impacting her ability to live her life on a daily basis. She could not enjoy the things she used to love. She constantly worried that she would have a panic attack in public and embarrass herself further. She was ashamed and confused as to why this was happening. I explained the brain science to her, and that helped a little bit, but I could tell she still wasn’t getting it. So I told her the following story about a red pickup truck and it made all the difference.
Let’s say your friend calls you and says, “Hey, friend! Guess what?!? I just got free tickets for that movie we wanted to see and it starts in 30 minutes. I’m swinging by to pick you up now.”
You have the day off and you’ve been excited for this movie, so you grab your things and hop in your friend’s car. She is sober, a good driver and it’s a clear day. Awesome. You both realize that you are hungry and you don’t want to pay movie theater prices for a bad slice of pizza. So you drive through Taco Bell and get a quick snack. You continue on your way to the theater, on a busy road that you travel on at least once a month. That’s when the Macarena comes on the radio. You question why in the world the Macarena is playing on the radio, but you both laugh and do some of the dance moves in your seats. You give your friend a free sample of perfume you picked up the other day and she puts some on at the stop light.
You continue on to the theater and approach an intersection. Your light is green. There is a red pickup truck coming from the opposite direction.
The red pickup truck makes a left hand turn in front of you. It collides with your friend’s car and you both go spinning. It is very loud, then it is very quiet, then you both are asking each other if you are alright. You both are, or you think you are. The firetrucks come, the ambulance arrives. The firefighters are in full protective gear as they pry open your door that is jammed. They take you and your friend to the hospital where you get X-rays and have a variety of tests done. Several hours later, the doctor comes in and says, “Good news! There are no fractures, no internal injuries. You’ll have bruises from wearing your seatbelt but you are free to go. You should feel like yourself a week from now and have no physical consequences from this accident.” Great. You and your friend will end up with a nice insurance settlement and make a little money from this unfortunate incident. A blessing in disguise.
But the following month, you're waiting at a stop sign and a red pickup truck passes by. Your breath shortens, throat tightens, and palms sweat. Your brain has associated red pickup trucks with danger, leading to a conclusion that this situation requires your fight or flight responses to kick in at full gear.
A week later, you are at a cousin’s birthday party. It's a sunny day and your loved ones are eating and dancing. The Macarena comes through the speaker and your nerves spike. You quickly make your way to the restroom to catch your breath and settle yourself down. You don’t understand what is happening.
Or maybe you go to Taco Bell and get a weird feeling of doom, danger and feel like you’re on high alert. Or maybe you walk through the mall and smell the perfume you gave your friend again and your heart rate spikes, your head gets dizzy, you feel faint or your muscles tense up. Or all of the above.
I explained to my client that her brain was actually doing its job and doing it well. Her brain associated Taco Bell and red pickup trucks and firefighters and that perfume and the Macarena with a dangerous life-threatening scenario. This would activate her amygdala and kick in the fight, flight or fawn trauma response system. Our brains do a great job at keeping us safe, but the trauma response can be counterproductive. If our brain is relating our daily events, enjoyable activities, or favorite places with danger, its once useful safety mechanisms are acting on overdrive. I help you identify, work through, and eliminate triggers. Your brain no longer needs to interpret those things as dangerous and you can move forward in your life just like you did before the accident with the red pickup truck. How do we get there? A mix of things: a little talk therapy, Accelerated Resolution Therapy, and trauma focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TFCBT).
By:
Jennifer Teoli, LCSW
My next blog will explore more about Accelerated Resolution Therapy and TFCBT and explain how we can process trauma and eliminate or reduce your PTSD related symptoms.