Before I go off and talk about Jessica Jones I thought it was important to talk about my own horrible week, but right now I can't seem to get the words to talk about it, and close family has just found out. I hope to talk about it with you when I feel a bit more able to talk about it, so right now you'll just have to settle for the fact that I had a horrible week.
Much like Jessica Jones it's easy to try and reach for the bottle to dull my emotions, but unlike her I know exactly where that leads, and it's no help to anyone. Jessica has PTSD from abuse she received at the hands of the Purple Man before the show begins, and right now that is all I can relate too.
She receives flashbacks to her past abuse during the first season, these cause her to have a panic attack, and she recites the phrase, "Birch Street, Higgins Drive, Cobalt lane," as a coping technique used to ground her back in reality.
This I can fully relate too, I use objects to bring me into the present, ones I can use if I am out the house, or having a challenging day. Grounding techniques are really helpful when it comes to any mental illness, by using these the show can help those who are struggling with panic attacks and flashbacks understand how it can work.
Jessica is one of the most physically strongest superheroes out there, but her mind is broken, which is a very poignant statement about mental illness. Generally others think of having a mental disorder as being incredibly weak, but we're not, mental illness does not discriminate, and I think its time others saw that.
Her flashbacks can seem to come out of nowhere, but there is always a trigger, and I like how its portrayed as she doesn't seem to know every trigger she has. It can be helpful to know what caused the flashback, but I myself don't know why I can trigger sometimes and it's helpful to know that it isn't just me.
Her sleep is constantly disturbed, when I feel heightened my sleep is constantly broken, and I get terrible insomnia. She drinks constantly as its the only way she can sleep properly, without being woken up in the middle of the night covered in sweat, but this still occasionally happens to her because alcohol never truly helps.
She doesn't trust anyone around her, after the abuse she faced she just pushed everyone away, she tells Trish its because she doesn't want her to get hurt which could be true, but I always took it as a way to guard herself against anyone else. I did this too, I still do it to everyone, I just push everyone away.
It doesn't mean I don't care, in fact I really do care about every person I ever had in my life, truly deeply, but I had to protect myself and I also had to protect them from me. When you go through something so horrific, it is easier to push everyone away than face the truth of what you went through.
Jessica truly has some severely pent up anger inside her, this comes out constantly, and she takes her frustrations out on those around her. A sober Malcolm and Trish are really the only people who understand she doesn't mean it, probably because they both understand what its like to be used and an addict.
Trish understands abuse, she faced it at the hands of her mother when she was younger, she also understands addiction, and knows what its like for Jessica after the Purple Man. Malcolm knows what its like to be used by someone who can control you, and was used to become an addict to serve the Purple Mans needs.
They both get frustrated with her, but they never really stop trying to help her because they really do understand what it's like for her. I'm glad the show doesn't just focus on Jessica's abuse and mental illness, but it really does take the time to show that anyone can be susceptible to abuse and addiction.
Images Courtesy of Netflix/Marvel
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