You hit the nail on the head with the ’emotion regulation skill’ deficiency. I’ve watched him for three years pour alcohol on his problems and supplement his horrible sleep schedule with excessive eating and energy drinks. He’s said so himself these past few days that he believed for the longest time that if he kept pushing it deeper, it wouldn’t be able to escape. I told him ‘you’re going the wrong way. let it out.’ He truly believed all this time that if he kept it secret, it would go away. Typical coping strategy for someone living out of trauma and patterns that aren’t checked.