#whumpee rescue

[whumpsandbumps]

intro :)

Hi! My names Jay and I’ve been a massive lurker in the Whump community for a while now and I’ve finally found the courage to actually write it so here I am i guess lmfao.

Feel free to give prompts either for me to post or write about in my ask box or dms :)

I also do requests!

My favourite tropes to write about (so far) are Kidnapping Whump, Creepy intimate whumper, Caretaker who is also an ex whumpee and other stuff i cba to list.

Basically I’ll write anything, depending on how much I actually know about it! For example I got a lovely ask about Factory Whump Prompts however I didn’t know a thing before I searched it :) But if I don’t I’ll definitely try!

Have a good day/night or whatever time it is for you <3

-Jay <3

[bilightningwhumper]

Chapter 6: “You’ve done so well. Let me take it from here.”

Summary:

Isaac gets the group successfully into asylum at the Evergreen Heart Medical Center Potential spoiler excerpt from "Burning Ashes"

Notes:

Shorter one this time. I don't think this one needs any warnings, but let me know if it does. Characters: Isaac- Beast Cinder- Cinderella Crystal- Beauty/Belle Sienna- Red Riding Hood Leslie- Rapunzel Note: for my version, Isaac and Crystal are soulmates, but solely platonic as Crystal is aroace. Cinder and Isaac are a slow-burn romance pairing.

[lumpsbumpsandwhumps]

amnesia as a trauma response has the potential to be so fucking funny because imagine you just spent like 6 months breaking Whumpee down piece by piece, stripping them of their rights, destroying their mind and body with scars that will never heal, relishing in the irrevocable damage done by your hand even after they've been rescued

and then you run into them at a grocery store and they're like "oh hey (: sorry didn't see you there ((((: no i have no idea who you are but you're blocking the shelf i need to look at"

my ass would be humbled so goddamn fast. i would be shinji gripping the sink sobbing in the mirror because Whumpee basically just called me cringe. my brilliant torturing apparently meant fuckall and i'm not even worth the time of day. they'd probably misspell my name on a starbucks cup. whumper turned whumpee because how do i recover from that. what the fuck.

[whump-in-the-closet]

a disorientated whumpee at a party with whumper's hand uncomfortably wrapped around their collarbone. There's a spiraling fear that they can't quite name-- they're losing themself in this nightmare of insinuating whispers.

The music is pounding and Whumpee can feel it in their teeth.

Whumper pulls them into a dark corner to push a drink up to their lips. "Your friends are coming," Whumper's voice is low, it's calm, it's measured, and Whumpee's skin crawls. "You're going to tell them you want to stay with me."

"No--"

"Or one of them will take your place."

[jordanstrophe]

After caretaker brought whumpee home, they stayed deathly quiet. They kept their eyes low and the most caretaker could get out of them was tired mumbles and warning sounds when they were nervous.

"Please tell me what happened. I want to know how to help you," Caretaker asked.

Whumpee shook their head and could barely muster eye-contact. "It wasn't as bad as you think," Whumpee muttered, almost as if they wished to not be heard. "I'm okay, really." Whumpee looked down at their bandages and clutched the cloth woven around their hand.

But whumper in their interrogation told a different story.

A detailed, gruesome, cruel and torturous story that sounds hardly survivable. 

[whumporama]

Caretaker who is rescuing Whumpee, but Whumpee is so out of it they don't recognize them.

Caretaker needing both of them to be quiet, and dragging Whumpee behind a wall, holding them down against Caretaker's chest and holding a hand over Whumpee's mouth.

Caretaker feeling Whumpee's panicked fight, too weak to do anything but still trying. Their too fast breathing from their nose, the whimpers that slip through anyway, their hands pushing against Caretaker's arms...

Caretaker feeling so guilty, but the alternative is being found, so there is no choice. Whumpee will know who they are soon and forgive them.

Right?

[whumpdaydreamerx]

Caretaker or team member immediately hugging and latching onto Whumpee once they’ve been rescued or returned home.

Whumpee groaning or hissing at the pain from contact. Caretaker apologizing profusely, hurrying to let go. But Whumpee doesn’t budge, just holds on tighter. Tucking their face into Caretaker’s neck, reminded of the reason they endured their torture.

[whumpy-galaxy]

Listen I am a SUCKER for conditioned whumpees. Specifically the unconditioning that comes after rescue.

Whumpee being afraid of Caretaker.

Whumpee having to wear a collar and a muzzle because that’s how Whumper kept them.

Whumpee panicking when they mess up or drop something, waiting for Caretaker to get upset and beat them.

Whumpee who won’t eat unless Caretaker orders them to.

Whumpee who doesn’t know what to do if they’re not being dragged around on a chain.

Whumpee who’s afraid of windows and the outdoors because Whumper convinced them everyone and everything outside wanted to hurt them, and they were safer with Whumper.

And everything that comes with that.

Caretaker not knowing what to do and feeling worthless. (Bonus points if they even consider mercy killing Whumpee because maybe they’ll always be afraid of everything and there’s nothing they can do).

Caretaker thinking maybe they DID do something to hurt Whumpee.

Caretaker being upset every time they look at Whumpee because they still insist on wearing the collar and muzzle Whumper bought for them, and Caretaker never wants to see them like that.

But also the good things that come with it!

Caretaker getting a new collar and muzzle made, with padding and lots of extra space for Whumpee to wear while they recover.

Whumpee finally being able to do something without asking Caretaker first, and Caretaker being so proud of them.

Caretaker’s praise and excitement at this makes Whumpee feel proud, too.

I just. I love it so much.

[yet-another-heathen]

On the topic of realistic conditioning/deconditioning,

If the trigger is something whumpee wouldn't hear often when they're with caretaker but whumpee still wants to break it because they might hear it elsewhere (like kneel being taken as a command)

Would whumpee ask caretaker to casually trigger them so they have the opportunity to challenge it in their own head and in a safe place? Would this be a good idea for recovery?

And of course being there with the praise everytime whumpee makes just a little bit of progress, or comfort when they don't.

Heads up, anon: your ask was an EXCEPTIONALLY good one, and I ended up writing another mini TED talk (~3-4 min read) in response. Thank you so much for sending it in!

...on Conditioned Whumpees - Part 3

[ Part 1 - Part 2 ]

That is a very, very good idea! You're spot on with all of it, particularly operating in a safe environment where whumpee is ultimately calling the shots. Having that comfort/support readily available will make a huge difference in how well whumpee can tackle the matter. And while the process isn't fun, approaching desensitization with this much intent is much, much more likely to result in success.

I can offer a few pointers that can add another few layers of realism, as well as some other things to think about while tailoring it to your story:

if whumpee is actively working through their conditioning in this way, memories of their trauma will become closer to the surface. As a result, all of their other PTSD symptoms will be elevated during the course of their practice sessions, as well as for at least a few weeks after.

flashbacks are a very common experience during times like this. engaging with triggers like this is going to cause their flashbacks to become more frequent and intense.

during such flashbacks, it is almost a given that whumpee's mind and body will enter a similar state to the one it was in during the time when the flashback was taking place. By that I mean that the fear they felt in that moment, where it was physically located in their body, will echo into their body in the present moment. Same goes for other all other emotions, and sometimes even phantom aches surrounding any injuries they received at the time...

while the emotions tend to be identical to the ones felt during the trauma, in my experience, the pain comes out distorted in a similar way to the way it does in dreams: less intense, and more "blurry" and imprecise in location. When we say that someone having a flashback is "reliving the moment", we mean that their body literally feels as though they're in the same immediate danger that it was in back then.

this is true even though they'll be aware to at least some degree that they're presently with caretaker and safe.

the flashbacks don't always happen immediately after the conditioning trigger is used. Often they flare up hours or days later, sometimes without warning, sometimes as a result of encountering a different flashback trigger. The whumpee's thresholds for what counts as a trigger will drop, which is part of what causes the flashbacks to happen more often. Something they could normally ignore is going to affect them much more while they're like this.

your whumpee is more likely to experience severe mood swings while in this heightened state. Especially feelings like irritability, frustration, anger, loneliness, and grief. This stuff ain't pretty, folks. Even your sweet cinnamon bun is most likely going to lash out at someone as a result.

PTSD episodes are also exhausting. your whumpee is going to feel mentally, physically, and emotionally drained. And, to add insult to injury, being tired amplifies the emotions listed above.

Now all of this said, your whumpee may or may not know that this is to be expected. If they've worked on processing their trauma before this, they'll have figured out that one often leads to the other. They'll go into the deconditioning practice knowing this is coming, and will approach it carefully, but with a fairly level head. Knowing that it'll suck, but they'll come out the other side okay.

If not, they're in for a rather nasty surprise.

For the latter, they will feel at first that the deconditioning practice is making everything worse. They're suddenly struggling the way they did when the trauma was fresher, and it can be tempting to stop and refuse to touch it again because the mental/emotional pain gets so intense.

If they do give up at this stage, it will make trying again far more daunting in the future.

But the trauma being stirred up is actually a sign that it's helping. It means that the whumpee is starting to process what happened to them, which is a fundamental step in being able to heal.

Note: All throughout the process, crying is a very good thing. It lets them physically get rid of a lot of the brain chemicals associated with these surges of emotion. Letting themselves cry over things they couldn't cry about back then can actually help them let go of those feelings in a similar way to if they'd been able to process them in the moment. [Which is the basis for much of EMDR, a specialized tool used in trauma therapy.]

Okay. So now we know what other effects can cascade from the actual deconditioning practice, now we have some things to consider.

First off, what time parameters are whumpee and caretaker working within while deconditioning? There are three basic options:

they sit down together and practice repeatedly using the trigger for [X amount of time; usually <45m at once] back to back. Once that time is up, caretaker will no longer use the trigger at all, the excercise will end, and they'll get up to do something else.

whumpee sets a specific window of time [X number of hours] within which caretaker will use the trigger word at random points. Once that time has elapsed, the exercise is over.

over the course of days, caretaker uses the trigger word at random points without giving warning. the excercise only stops after being ended by whumpee.

Now why is that important? Because of something called hypervigilance. It is another symptom of PTSD which, to put it into the simplest words, is whumpee waiting for the other shoe to drop. It's a heightened state of tension and wariness in which whumpee is expecting that something bad is going to happen, and is constantly searching for any sign to indicate when it's coming.

It is beyond exhausting.

Imagine knowing that someone is about to slap you as hard as they can, and you have to sit there with your eyes closed, waiting for it. The breath-holding, the flinchiness, the rigid tension in your body as you strain to listen for when they're coming.

Only now, stretch that moment out into hours. Days. Weeks. That is hypervigilance.

A hypervigilant whumpee is not going to be able to relax. Or rest. Or decompress. Or readily trust much of anything around them. They're MUCH more likely to flinch at sudden movements/sounds. They might start biting their nails or showing other signs of nervousness and distress.

These methods above have a gradually increasing chance of setting off whumpee's hypervigilance. If they know exactly when the next trigger is coming, as in example 1, then their 'waiting for it' tension will be low. But the more uncertain they become of exactly when it's going to happen, as in examples 2 & 3, the worse the hypervigilance is going to get.

The trade off is that the later examples are more effective in desensitizing them toward the trigger. The more their practice mimics encountering an unexpected trigger in day-to-day life, the easier it will be to fall back on that desensitization when the time comes.

Therefore, it would be a very good idea for a whumpee who's new to this to start with number 1, then gradually progress to 2 & 3 as time goes on. They should be the one to decide when the next step is made, and if/when they need to dial it back.

Other questions to ask yourself while plotting:

how mentally prepared is whumpee for worsening symptoms? what about caretaker? did either of them know it was coming?

how much of this heightened PTSD stress can your whumpee take before it becomes too much? how do they react when they do hit that tipping point?

if caretaker feels that whumpee is getting too distressed during practice even though they're not tapping out, would they call it off themself? Or would they ultimately leave that decision to whumpee?

based on the answer, how would whumpee feel about caretaker's decision? Relieved? Belittled? Betrayed?

does whumpee have any grounding tools they can use while practicing?

how does caretaker handle the mood swings and instability that come with whumpee's heightened PTSD? You should consider both their internal and external reactions on the matter.

how does whumpee prefer to decompress after a practice session? what things would help them calm down and recover?

how long do they need (hours or days) before the next attempt?

Even with all I've just written, there's far more to the resulting hightened state of PTSD than flashbacks and hypervigilance. PTSD symptoms that they're most likely to encounter in the background while doing deconditioning practice include:

Flinchiness, anxiety, panic attacks, nightmares, exhaustion, emotional mood swings, outbursts, crying spells, depression, executive dysfunction, dissociation, numbness, racing thoughts, freeze responses, tremors, inappetence, muscle tension, and heart palpitations.

Yes, usually many of them at once, even those that contradict. Your whumpee is going to have a LOT going on at once, and it is not going to be a fun time. I recommend looking up any of the above symptoms you don't recognize, and looking for whump inspiration in what you learn.

(Because everyone experiences PTSD episodes differently, there's a lot of wiggle room in which ones whumpee will encounter. Don't feel pressured to use all of them, find what you want to write and have fun with it!)

Thanks again for the incredible ask, anon. And again, I want to congratulate you on how spot-on your original ask was. You nailed it. I know this was a lot more than you asked for, but I hope this provides helpful context for your whump! My inbox will always be open if you think of anything more <3

[a-class-attempter]

Caretaker sees Whumpee for the first time after their rescue. Whumpee is like a parent to Caretaker and to see Whumpee reduced to scarred flesh on a hospital bed breaks them.

Caretaker stays with Whumpee for days, barely getting any sleep. When Whumpee finally wakes up, they hold Caretaker close.

“Do you want to know what kept me alive?” Whumpee asks.

Caretaker, so overcome with a mix of terror and relief, can only nod.

Whumpee squeezes Caretaker’s hand. “You did, Caretaker. I lived so I could see your face again.”

[inkwell-and-dagger]

living weapon whumpees who, during the first few months of recovery with caretaker, are foreign to the concept of comfort‼️‼️‼️

have them flinching away from caretaker's soft touch because they believe they don't deserve it‼️‼️‼️

have a caretaker gently massage living weapon whumpee's shoulders, soothing words further adding to whumpee's overall confusion before they eventually lean into caretaker's warm touch‼️‼️‼️

have caretaker's soft words and hands holding whumpee's face snap them out of their conditioning after something / someone accidentally triggered them, startled at first before recognizing that, caretaker wasn't a threat, they were safe with them and that whumper wasn't here anymore ‼️‼️‼️

[jump-in-the-whump]

Whumpee doesn’t really understand what is going on, everything is happening so fast and their head is pounding so bad.

“hey, can you hear me? Whumpee?” A voice calls out their name. Whumpee raises their head.

“i-i... don’t... understand....i-i...” Whumpee rasps out, before a coughing fit interrupts him. 

“shh, don't force yourself too much. I'll explain everything later, now I'm here and I just wanna help you, ok?”

Whumpee is in so much pain, it's hard to breathe. They’re so weak, they lean onto Caretaker, drowning in their quiet words and soft movements. A tear escapes Whumpee’s eye. It's been so long since they were treated like this, like a human being.

"Caretaker..... " Whumpee manages to say, with a weak, raspy voice. 

“Yeah, that's right, I am Caretaker. I am here and I won't let them hurt you anymore..." Caretaker whispers, hugging Whumpee, caressing their dirty, greasy hair.  Whumpee winces in pain and can't help but cry, the happiness and comfort are too much for them to manage.

[urlocalwhumper]

caretaker is losing their mind trying to help heavily conditioned whumpee, but nothing seems to be getting through to them. it's like talking to a brick wall! in one ear and out the other.

that is, until something forces whumpee to speak, and caretaker feels like the dumbest person in the world.

whumpee wasn't ignoring them, they don't speak english.

[honeycollectswhump]

to be known is to be loved

you know how when you are very close and familiar with someone, you can recognise them with ease.

you only need a slimmer of their voice from far away and your body perks up. it recognises the voice before you even processed it.

you can recognise their steps, their hums and coughs. you recognise the way they knock on your door and the way their keys jingle.

now imagine a long lost whumpee returning unexpectedly one day. perhaps a rescue team is still talking to caretaker, telling them they are unsure it’s the right person, they are unrecognisable and changed.

yet when caretaker hears them coming, they recognise whumpee’s steps, no matter how soft and unstable they are.

they burst into tears before they have even seen them, barely holding themselves back.

whumpee enters the room, broken and bloodied and nearly a different person and for a moment they are afraid caretaker won’t even recognise them, like the rescuers did. but the. they see caretakers face and open arms and jump into their embrace.

[jordanstrophe]

Whumpee wasn't the affectionate type. Too embarrassed to show anything aside from a firm handshake and a head nod.

But when they were in the hospital barely alive, drugged and exhausted, they were clinging to caretakers arm with tears welling their eyes.

Caretaker held them and promised everything was going to be fine. It was clear whumpee wasn't in their right mind; It was strange having the once-stoic whumpee sobbing and curled in their arms.

It was only a small glimpse into what whumpee must have endured. 

[dinkflocculent]

Creepy intimate whumpers make my heart go berserk <3

- Non-con kissing; grabbing their hair, shirt, horns, or head to pull them closer <3

- Non-con hugging; holding whumper as they squirm or violently shake <3

- Forcing whumpee for both of them to sleep in the same bed <3

- Whumpers who actually love whumpee (bonus if yandere) <3

- Physically-affectionate whumpers <3

- Whumpees who hate any form of intimacy; it is extremely unfortunate to be with whumper. <3

- Once physically affectionate whumpees conditioned to freak out when in intimate situations <3

I plan on having a whumper like this in a series; I just love them so much <33