I think one huge thing we all have in common, at least from what I have read and learned the many years of struggling AND each and every time I meet someone who knows exactly what it's like...
Is that we as one said, don't have good boundaries. Either we never learned or like in my case, a parent did not "allow" them. Also, we tend to stuff our feelings. It was not ok to be ANYTHING but happy and appreciative. So forget the anger, hurt, disappointment, frustration, fear. If it wasn't happy and thrilled to be alive and with the parents you "picked?" Sorry...not allowed.
So what we learned to do was "swallow" so much. You can say in a sense, it's all trapped inside our bodies...that is why it reacts. When I am mad? My heart skips beats, and it scared me. When I am scared I feel dizzy, etc etc. Can't even name my feelings anymore because they are now symptoms. Therapy is helping tremendously.
And lastly, I will bet alot of us were not allowed to say "no" or "I don't want to" or "I don't want to go there" but...when we got sick or had a "symptom" that said, "Oh, ok, she can't go...she's sick..." we didn't have to.
Not saying it is all easy and simple once we see how we got here? But interesting to see the things we have in common that at one time told us we needed to "feel" things another way...a safer way.
Did I make sense? I was on my way for a nap, and stopped in...Maybe I am too tired t have tried to make sense. :p
