Posted by james s on 3/4/2008, 9:26 pm, in reply to "life of hell"

peter, just by leaving a message on the board, you’ve made a huge step. I am in my early 30s and have suffered with this for about the past 20 years. I found it incredibly hard to talk about to friends and family and felt so embarrassed. I avoided almost all scenarios that would lead me to have to use toilets other than the one in my house and I sometimes found it difficult to use that, too. around 18 months ago, my wife heard the radio 4 program on the internet (there’s a link on the ukpt website) and my life slowly began to change. I attended a workshop which was really the impetus for everything that has happened since. being around a group of people who understand exactly what you are going through gives such a feeling of freedom and hope. the support offered by the course leaders is amazing. one of the difficulties I had in talking to friends about it was that I just didn’t have the vocabulary to explain it to them in a clear way. I would be tense and nervous and hurried and panicked. going to the workshops can help to empower you in all sorts of unexpected ways such as giving you the means to express yourself. I can now use cubicles in public toilets – which is a world better than I ever thought would be the case - and I am not done improving yet. all steps are small but they soon mount up. the workshops are brilliant and I can’t recommend them highly enough. knowing about the website, attending workshops (and so understanding what you are going to through) can make such a difference to your life. all the best, james s

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