Dear Carlota: How Do I Deal With Relationship PTSD?

Did you hear about the self-help Guru who died in some weird, unexpected death? No, this isn't a joke or fake news. According to LiveNews5.com.

James Arthur Ray, led a sweat lodge just outside of Sedona AZ, where he basically tortured 20 people by raising the heat levels to insane heights and ignored the pleas of the ‘clients” to turn it down. Two died, while the other 18 just flat out suffered. James lost everything and then in early January, he passed “unexpectedly” 

What a tragedy. Ok, I’m being sarcastic. Or am I? 

I mean, are all self-help seminars scams? Or are they more like Matthew McConaughey's version? Overpriced, useless and just flat out bizarre?

I’m thinking both. 

But hey, Far be it for me to tell someone to go to a self-help seminar, but a listener id ask if I had ever been to one, and my answer is below. 

And while I'm on the subject of self-help and looking inward, I was also recently asked about relationship PTSD and what can be done about it. Look, relationship PTSD is a real thing, and according to Psychology Today, we roll into new relationships thinking we are going to be able to leave the baggage behind. We are going to start a new. Fresh slate. But it just isn't true. We carry that trauma with us everywhere we go. And I agree with psychology today, as I explain below.  

And it's not just relationship PTSD that is eating at our souls these days. America as a whole is incredibly stressed right now, for one reason or another. We are a very pent-up country. Some of the reasons are involving our mindset, certain life events, and being too involved in social media, according to this fun blog. And this article was written in 2024. I imagine the list is a tad longer in 2025. A listener recently asked my advice on releasing tension, and I let her know my thoughts on the subject.  

Am I wrong?