prismatangle

About Elizabeth

Elizabeth is a 30-something asexual woman who is often mistaken for a lesbian, due to the fact that she is partnered to a lady. She is actually bi (but not biromantic) and somewhere on the aromantic spectrum. She is formally trained in creative writing with a focus on non-fiction and poetry. She writes for The Asexual Agenda and maintains a personal blog called Prismatic Entanglements. In her spare time, she enjoys being cat furniture, coming up with new Pokemon strategies and never going to church.

Friday Question: Coping Skills for Different Situations

By | 2015-10-02T19:14:12-04:00 October 2nd, 2015|Categories: Coping Strategies, Questions|Tags: , |

Maybe one barrier to identifying positive coping skills is that when people ask "how do you cope?" in general, without specifying any kind of situation or feeling that we're coping with, it doesn't paint a concrete enough picture in our minds for the things that we do in different situations to become clear. So I think it may be helpful instead to have a specific situation or feeling in mind that you're trying to cope with, and write down ways that help you deal with just that particular case. What are the coping skills you use when...? - You feel depressed, sad, or lonely? - You feel angry, resentful, or frustrated? - You feel anxious or panicked? - You feel dissociated or have a flashback?

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Asexuality Basics for Health Professionals Printable Info Sheet

By | 2018-04-22T20:21:49-04:00 September 29th, 2015|Categories: Asexuality & Mental Health, For Activists, For Professionals|Tags: , , , , , |

A resource for those who: Need to come out to their therapists about asexuality, but aren’t up for fielding 101 questions Want their doctors to understand asexuality to avoid misdiagnosis, bad assumptions, or awkward questions Simply want to do activism to promote better understanding of asexuality and competent treatment of [...]

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Friday Question: Metaphors for Trauma

By | 2015-09-25T16:27:29-04:00 September 25th, 2015|Categories: Questions|Tags: , , , , |

Metaphors can be incredibly useful tools for explaining trauma and understanding our feelings. Art is frequently symbolic, and it can be easier to express feelings generated by trauma when they are encoded in a symbolic way. So this week, let's think about these symbols and metaphors that help us deal with trauma (and everything related to trauma). What is your favorite metaphor or analogy for trauma?

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Asexuality, hypothyroidism, and PTSD

By | 2018-04-10T01:21:26-04:00 September 23rd, 2015|Categories: Asexuality & Mental Health, By & For Ace Survivors, Intersectional Issues, Personal Narratives|Tags: , , , , , , |

The only reason they found out that I have hypothyroidism at all is because I decided to try some medication for PTSD, so they screened me for it. PTSD shares some of the same symptoms—poor memory and concentration, depression, and fatigue (from PTSD affecting the quality of sleep). Some of my other symptoms could have been explained by other factors, too. So I think it went undiagnosed for a long time.

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An Apology

By | 2015-09-21T20:55:21-04:00 September 21st, 2015|Categories: Announcements|

In our most recent Recommended Reading post, there was a link that really upset some of our readers. I’d like to extend a heartfelt apology to anyone who felt hurt or retraumatized by its inclusion. The fault is mine alone. I’m sorry. I want to make this a better, safer [...]

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Recommended Reading: September 19th, 2015

By | 2015-09-21T01:49:56-04:00 September 19th, 2015|Categories: Linkspam|Tags: |

Every other Saturday we will post links relevant to survivors. Please feel free to discuss these links in the comments, or post more links! Trigger warnings appreciated, and self-promotion welcome. Blanket trigger warning for all of these posts.

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Friday Question: Fictional Characters

By | 2015-09-18T15:50:28-04:00 September 18th, 2015|Categories: Questions|Tags: , , |

Fiction can sometimes provide us with escape, and a way of processing things that we otherwise might not feel able to release. Sometimes characters remind us of ourselves, allow us to feel less alone, or inspire us to keep going in spite of everything stacked against them. So this week, let's talk about those characters that touch us, that strengthen us, that come along to remind us of something we needed to hear at just the right time. What fictional character has helped you on your healing journey, and how so?

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Friday Question: Small Comforts

By | 2015-09-11T22:13:18-04:00 September 11th, 2015|Categories: Questions|Tags: , |

Sometimes long-lasting happiness feels elusive, and our burdens feel too great. It can be easy to slip into hopelessness, so this week I want to focus on small, bite-sized bits of happier feelings. Even if the good feelings last only a little while, they can still be a very helpful tool for fighting off depression, fear, invasive thoughts, and all the other not-so-great leftovers of trauma. Seeing others share these moments can give us a little vicarious joy too, and help us learn to look for and really savor these moments in our own lives. What things in the past week have brought you happiness, comfort, or a sense of safety?

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Friday Question: Gender-Based Triggers

By | 2015-09-04T11:35:21-04:00 September 4th, 2015|Categories: Questions|Tags: , , |

Do you have any gender-related triggers? What do they look like, and how do you deal with them? - What kind of feelings about gender come up for you? Fear or nervousness? Anger? Aversion or disgust? Suspicion? - Are your triggers generalized to all of the people of the gender that you're most triggered by (for example, all women), or are you triggered rather by certain traits (like tallness, or certain clothing or hairstyles) but only when those traits are expressed in a person of a certain gender? Are there other factors playing into this besides gender? - Do any cultural messages or stereotypes you have received through your upbringing contribute to your triggers? (Have you been taught, for example, things like "men only want one thing"?)

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