The Truth about PTSD - from the Christian Perspective

It kills me very time I read or hear a report about how our brave soldiers must suffer forever because of what medical science calls PTSD. PTSD is very real but not necessary to put up with.

If you or someone you know is suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) I have good news for you; you can be healed quickly, permanently and without drugs and hours of therapy. How do I know? Because I have helped many find permanent release in just a few one-hour meetings.

For those who are interested, I will explain in more detail in my blog at http://www.howdoihelphurtingpeople.blogspot.com/ or http://www.larrylow.blogspot.com/ but for now you need to know that God has the answer to every disorder and syndrome known to man. They are only un-healable to man, but to God nothing is impossible. I’m not talking about throwing up a prayer and hopping something happens; I’m talking about instant change as you learn to work with God.

Everything that holds man back or causes one to live, respond and react to his environment inappropriately or abnormally is known as a lie. When Jesus came on the scene He said “I am the way the truth and the Life” as well as “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”

No, it doesn’t mean you need to study and learn the medical truth about the syndrome or disorder; it means you must hear the truth from the One who is Truth (Jesus) and when you receive it (know or experience it) it will then make you free. Free from what? Free from the lie which causes mankind to miss the mark and act unbecomingly, inappropriately or not in accordance with all normal social standards.

To be healed one only needs the following:

1. A desire to be healed permanently

2. Willingness to learn

3. Belief in God or the willingness to learn and experience Him

This is very real and if you are interested read on to find the hope that is only found in working with God.

* * *

Going Deeper

Did you know that Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is not a disorder at all, but a natural reflexive response to a condition or conditions programmed into your subconscious mind?

Do you know that in typical life experiences, all people are constantly programming their subconscious mind by subconsciously adding to their life’s database? It is a natural function of your brain, necessary for self-preservation and protection.

Every experience we have is recorded in our subconscious mind. We call this section, memory and it is used, first and foremost, to protect and preserve life. This protection process begins as each experience is interpreted by our brain based upon the premise of “what this experience makes us feel about self.” If the experience makes you feel like you are in danger then your memory will be flagged as danger. If the experience was sensual and pleasing, your memory will be flagged accordingly. If the experience makes you feel stupid, it is flagged as – you guessed it, stupid and so on.

How does it protect us?

Each new experience is then compared to every experience you have in the future. When a current experience resembles the stored data in a past memory, the emotional response of the past memory is the feeling you receive for the current experience. Each flagged memory has the potential of causing you to respond in a way that defends, run from, run to, etc., depending upon the circumstance at hand and the type of flag associated with the memory being compared.

What do I mean it is not a disorder?

Disorder means “Lack of order”. The physical responses to current situations may be out of the ordinary but they are not out of order. In fact the responses are exactly what your brain has been programmed to do.

In the advent of a traumatic experience where your life was in danger and you possibly incurred some physical injury or you witnessed others being hurt or possibly killed, your interpretation of that experience will be naturally flagged with danger and fear, causing you to respond in the proper way to defend yourself from harm.

Example;

Soldiers patrolling the streets of a town when children come running at them looking for American candy bars, happy and excited about being close to the Americans who have come to protect them. The lead soldier bends over to give the first little boy a piece of candy and as the child reaches upward to receive the candy he suddenly explodes, killing your buddies landing you in the hospital suffering from burns and shrapnel wounds.

What do you think your response is going to be when you are finally home with your family and some neighborhood children, excited to see you are home, come running at you in the shopping mall or down your street? Your response could be rather inappropriate or bizarre for the place you are now. What once was a true dangerous situation is now an innocent daily occurrence in every city or town in America.

However, your mind instantly signals your body’s response as your heart rate increases, the adrenaline rushes through your muscles causing you to dive for cover, or worse yet, physically onto the approaching child in the attempt to protect your family from the explosion that never comes; after all, you are home now – no danger of exploding children, roadside bombs and pickup trucks with rocket launching renegades threatening your life.

What was once a truth (your life is in danger) is now a lie stored in your subconscious mind (memory) that the current experience (children approaching) triggered your mind, instantly alerting your body to perform supernatural life-saving action or worse yet, a defense posture of kill or be killed. You may physically be in a safe place but, because of the stored data in your subconscious mind, which saved your life many times in the war-zone, your mind says you are in danger and commands your body to instant action.

Once your subconscious mind sends the signal, your natural self-protection training and reflexes take over, overriding your natural thinking and reasoning capacities ever kicking into gear. You never think about where you really are. For that brief moment, you are back in the danger zone.

My grandfather suffered from PTSD because of the experiences he had in WW-I as he fought in the foxholes of France as a machine-gunner.

He was horribly tormented during the 4^th of July celebrations. As soon as firecrackers began to explode and the fireballs that are shot high into the night sky began to boom and light up the sky, he would begin to tremble, physically shaking and weeping over his dead army buddies.

There was no place for him to find solace during these celebrations, as fireworks were legal in his town then.

As a child I remember grandpa always disappearing during these times and I could never understand why he wasn’t with us to enjoy the beautiful lights in the sky and the deep rumbling explosions that shook the ground. I understand now and so wish I could have helped him like I have helped many others.

People who have been diagnosed with PTSD show some or all of the following symptoms:

· Frequently having upsetting thoughts or memories about a traumatic event.

· Having recurrent nightmares.

· Acting or feeling as though the traumatic event were happening again, sometimes called a "flashback."

· Having strong feelings of distress when reminded of the traumatic event.

· Being physically responsive, such as experiencing a surge in your heart rate or sweating, to reminders of the traumatic event.

People do not need to suffer this way any longer because God has the way of turning the current lie off by recording the current truth over it in the memories that were created during the trauma.

I can teach you how to facilitate or minister at that level if you are interested in helping hurting people. Check out my training material by clicking on the following link - http://larrylow.com/dvds.html#restorationdvd

I can help you overcome your pain if you contact me. Please contact me through my website at http://larrylow.com/contactus.html

You can also learn more about the process of restoring yourself and others through my two books Genuine Christianity and Your Pain Is Showing, both found on my website at http://larrylow.com/books.html

Put my years of experience to work for you and begin living free from your fears and traumatic events of the past. Learn to help others and spread the word.

A common question I am constantly faced with is;

If this is just working with God – why doesn’t every church teach this and help the hurting in their area find permanent freedom?

To be perfectly honest – I don’t know!

Once I found how powerfully and quickly God will meet with us when we are dealing with inner pain and trauma, I have done nothing else but help hurting people find perfect freedom from their torment so they could live in perfect inner peace. I gave up a growing, thriving church so I could devote full-time to helping the hurting.

Christians – we have the answer to mankind’s worst problems. I do not wish to stand before God and explain why I didn’t help the hurting like He helped me. How about you? Let me help you learn how.

Until next time;

Pastor Larry Low

The Truth about PTSD - from the Christian Perspective

It kills me very time I read or hear a report about how our brave soldiers must suffer forever because of what medical science calls PTSD.

PTSD is very real but not necessary to put up with.

If you or someone you know is suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) I have good news for you; you can be healed quickly, permanently and without drugs and hours of therapy. How do I know? Because I have helped many find permanent release in just a few one-hour meetings.

For those who are interested, I will explain in more detail in my blog at http://www.howdoihelphurtingpeople.blogspot.com/ or http://www.larrylow.blogspot.com/

but for now you need to know that God has the answer to every disorder and syndrome known to man. They are only unhealable to man, but to God nothing is impossible. I’m not talking about throwing up a prayer and hopping something happens; I’m talking about instant change as you learn to work with God.

Everything that holds man back or causes one to live, respond and react to his environment inappropriately or abnormally is known as a lie. When Jesus came on the scene He said “I am the way the truth and the Life” as well as “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”

No, it doesn’t mean you need to study and learn the medical truth about the syndrome or disorder; it means you must hear the truth from the One who is Truth (Jesus) and when you receive it (know or experience it) it will then make you free.

Free from what? Free from the lie which causes mankind to miss the mark and act unbecomingly, inappropriately or not in accordance with all normal social standards.

To be healed one only needs the following:

1. A desire to be healed permanently

2. Willingness to learn

3. Belief in God or the willingness to learn and experience Him

This is very real and if you are interested read on to find the hope that is only found in working with God.

* * *

Going Deeper

Did you know that Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is not a disorder at all, but a natural reflexive response to a condition or conditions programmed into your subconscious mind?

Do you know that in typical life experiences, all people are constantly programming their subconscious mind by subconsciously adding to their life’s database? It is a natural function of your brain, necessary for self-preservation and protection.

Every experience we have is recorded in our subconscious mind. We call this section, memory and it is used, first and foremost, to protect and preserve life. This protection process begins as each experience is interpreted by our brain based upon the premise of “what this experience makes us feel about self.” If the experience makes you feel like you are in danger then your memory will be flagged as danger. If the experience was sensual and pleasing, your memory will be flagged accordingly. If the experience makes you feel stupid, it is flagged as – you guessed it, stupid and so on.

How does it protect us?

Each new experience is then compared to every experience you have in the future. When a current experience resembles the stored data in a past memory, the emotional response of the past memory is the feeling you receive for the current experience. Each flagged memory has the potential of causing you to respond in a way that defends, run from, run to, etc., depending upon the circumstance at hand and the type of flag associated with the memory being compared.

What do I mean it is not a disorder?

Disorder means “Lack of order”. The physical responses to current situations may be out of the ordinary but they are not out of order. In fact the responses are exactly what your brain has been programmed to do.

In the advent of a traumatic experience where your life was in danger and you possibly incurred some physical injury or you witnessed others being hurt or possibly killed, your interpretation of that experience will be naturally flagged with danger and fear, causing you to respond in the proper way to defend yourself from harm.

Example;

Soldiers patrolling the streets of a town when children come running at them looking for American candy bars, happy and excited about being close to the Americans who have come to protect them. The lead soldier bends over to give the first little boy a piece of candy and as the child reaches upward to receive the candy he suddenly explodes, killing your buddies landing you in the hospital suffering from burns and shrapnel wounds.

What do you think your response is going to be when you are finally home with your family and some neighborhood children, excited to see you are home, come running at you in the shopping mall or down your street? Your response could be rather inappropriate or bizarre for the place you are now. What once was a true dangerous situation is now an innocent daily occurrence in every city or town in America.

However, your mind instantly signals your body’s response as your heart rate increases, the adrenaline rushes through your muscles causing you to dive for cover, or worse yet, physically onto the approaching child in the attempt to protect your family from the explosion that never comes; after all, you are home now – no danger of exploding children, roadside bombs and pickup trucks with rocket launching renegades threatening your life.

What was once a truth (your life is in danger) is now a lie stored in your subconscious mind (memory) that the current experience (children approaching) triggered your mind, instantly alerting your body to perform supernatural life-saving action or worse yet, a defense posture of kill or be killed. You may physically be in a safe place but, because of the stored data in your subconscious mind, which saved your life many times in the war-zone, your mind says you are in danger and commands your body to instant action.

Once your subconscious mind sends the signal, your natural self-protection training and reflexes take over, overriding your natural thinking and reasoning capacities ever kicking into gear. You never think about where you really are. For that brief moment, you are back in the danger zone.

My grandfather suffered from PTSD because of the experiences he had in WW-I as he fought in the foxholes of France as a machine-gunner.

He was horribly tormented during the 4^th of July celebrations. As soon as firecrackers began to explode and the fireballs that are shot high into the night sky began to boom and light up the sky, he would begin to tremble, physically shaking and weeping over his dead army buddies.

There was no place for him to find solace during these celebrations, as fireworks were legal in his town then.

As a child I remember grandpa always disappearing during these times and I could never understand why he wasn’t with us to enjoy the beautiful lights in the sky and the deep rumbling explosions that shook the ground. I understand now and so wish I could have helped him like I have helped many others.

People who have been diagnosed with PTSD show some or all of the following symptoms:

· Frequently having upsetting thoughts or memories about a traumatic event.

· Having recurrent nightmares.

· Acting or feeling as though the traumatic event were happening again, sometimes called a "flashback."

· Having strong feelings of distress when reminded of the traumatic event.

· Being physically responsive, such as experiencing a surge in your heart rate or sweating, to reminders of the traumatic event.

People do not need to suffer this way any longer because God has the way of turning the current lie off by recording the current truth over it in the memories that were created during the trauma.

I can teach you how to facilitate or minister at that level if you are interested in helping hurting people. Check out my training material by clicking on the following link - http://larrylow.com/dvds.html#restorationdvd

I can help you overcome your pain if you contact me. Please contact me through my website at http://larrylow.com/contactus.html

You can also learn more about the process of restoring yourself and others through my two books Genuine Christianity and Your Pain Is Showing, both found on my website at http://larrylow.com/books.html

Put my years of experience to work for you and begin living free from your fears and traumatic events of the past. Learn to help others and spread the word.

A common question I am constantly faced with is;

If this is just working with God – why doesn’t every church teach this and help the hurting in their area find permanent freedom?

To be perfectly honest – I don’t know!

Once I found how powerfully and quickly God will meet with us when we are dealing with inner pain and trauma, I have done nothing else but help hurting people find perfect freedom from their torment so they could live in perfect inner peace. I gave up a growing, thriving church so I could devote full-time to helping the hurting.

Christians – we have the answer to mankind’s worst problems. I do not wish to stand before God and explain why I didn’t help the hurting like He helped me. How about you? Let me help you learn how.

Until next time - remember,

There is real hope in Christ Jesus;

Pastor Larry Low

Master's Touch Ministry Turning inner pain to inner peace.

Avoidance Symptoms

• Making an effort to avoid thoughts, feelings, or conversations about the traumatic event.
• Making an effort to avoid places or people that remind you of the traumatic event.
• Having a difficult time remembering important parts of the traumatic event.
• A loss of interest in important, once positive, activities.
• Feeling distant from others.
• Experiencing difficulties having positive feelings, such as happiness or love.
• Feeling as though your life may be cut short.

Hyperarousal Symptoms

• Having a difficult time falling or staying asleep.
• Feeling more irritable or having outbursts of anger.
• Having difficulty concentrating.
• Feeling constantly "on guard" or like danger is lurking around every corner.
• Being "jumpy" or easily startled.

Many of these symptoms are an extreme version of our body's natural response to stress. Understanding our body's natural response to threat and danger (the fight or flight response) can help us better understand the symptoms of PTSD.

Do You Need All of These Symptoms for a Diagnosis of PTSD?

To be diagnosed with PTSD, a person does not need to have all these symptoms. In fact, rarely does a person with PTSD would experience all the symptoms listed above. To receive a diagnosis of PTSD, you only need a certain number of symptoms from each cluster. Additional requirements for the diagnosis also need to be assessed, such as how the person initially responded to the traumatic event, how long the symptoms have been experienced, and the extent with which those symptoms interfere with a person's life. You can learn more about receiving a diagnosis of PTSD from the following article: