im looking for new friends who know about this topic who will share some expierences,develop good friendships and can be kind.

Welcome, Mr Baker. I hope you can find a way to live with PTSD and the effects.

Depends on the situation....If your PTSD is combat related, go to the VA or DAV and get into a program....It is is because of other situations, seek help from support groups that deal with your specific PTSD....

But.......DO IT....don't hold that stuff in....Theres life after PTSD.

my son's best friend came home from Iraq with that disorder as a Marine.

About 9 percent , conservatively, of combat veterans have PTSS or PTSD. It is usually latent after a few years/months (IME) as long as certain triggers can be avoided - anything reminding one of the traumatic event. Only extreme trauma such as combat, rape, being held at gunpoint, or other lifethreatening victimization is deemed to cause PTSS - so it is somewhat uncommon. It is a disorder not a disease.

It seems to be misunderstood, as it is uncommon. And it's identification is recent in the literature. It never goes away - just gets better and as I mentioned can be latent. It is an anxiety disorder rather than a mood or personality disorder, or a psychosis.

There will often be difficulty with noisy environments and there is a strong startle reflex. Usually because of the severity of the trauma there are trust issues, and there can be brief panic episodes also. best wishes to you! FYI

My father abused me so much and for so long I had it bad. It took two solid years of counseling and a lot of learning Behavior Modification to get a handle on the anger issues.

It sucks living in the "victim" place and getting out of it is extremely important.

PTSD manifests itself in different ways. Mine became hostility and anger issues as well as an over developed sense of justice. I have seen it manifest in fear, raw hostility, and what comes off as Bi Polar Disorder. That is the most dangerous form and it is misdiagnosed sometimes. It took my counselor four months to get an idea of what happened to me.

There is no easy road out. All you can do is find the root of the problem, what behaviors are associated with that trauma, and learn to catch yourself engaging in them. Granted each case is different but the treatment is the same. there is NO reason for drugs to deal with it! Again it is understanding what caused it and how to cope with it.

You right there, Andy.

We also have to stay aware of the triggers that can trip us into that blind rage.

except that ptss is not a mood disorder or a psychosis like Bi Polar - that is something else as are personality disorders - rage isn't really part of the PTSS equation.

But misconceptions about PTSS make it very difficult to live with it and share the information in terms of relationships with friends, employers, family. becasue most people don't even know that there is a diffrence between an anxiety disorder and a mood disorder , for example....so one has to explain these things EVERY time it's discussed - which in and of itself can be a trigger and harmful.


ptss/d is an anxiety disorder with definable parameters and with very few exceptions mostly seen in veterans of the military and police forces, or victims of life threatening crime.

Anyway, I am so sorry to hear of your troubles!

I also have PTSD with depression...Around the time of desert storm at a Vet Center in Cleveland, I tried Hypnosis to relieve the pain...It worked up until about 2005 and led a semi-normal life, but still had problems holding a job over a year.....I now remember being hypnotized....I still have problems with the past and I find it hard to get the gremlins out of my mind...

Like my father who served in the Phillipines, who drank heavy when I was young, he would wake up in the middle of the night screaming bloody murder....He never got help..His generation just pulled up their bootstraps and continued on....I respect him deeply now that he is gone and wonder how he did it and hid it from everyone....

Mine is not nowhere near as bad, but I have nightmares that I wake up from and they affect me and my balance, often....

I deal with it not by drinking, or talking to others anymore, now I find peace of mind being out in the forest by myself for periods of time....I honestly have stayed out in the middle of no-where for weeks at a time and find peace within myself...But the nightmares, I process as best I can....

The V.A. wants me to take meds, but the meds leave me brain-dead, over medicated and thirsty....I am done with that crap....I would rather feel the pain, than to be a zombie, like I have seen me be, as well as other brothers.....

I deal with it the best I can and do the things to make me feel secure in my mind and that is to be alone in the desert, or the forest of Arizona....Nothing like it in the world for me...

Now, if I can intergrate back into society and hold a job, but at this time, I can not...Emotionally, I break down after the stress hits home of life, then the nightmares of the past effect me and my balance again...

I have seen it after getting out of the Army, but did not understand it...People thought I was lazy, but they didn't know that I would break down and cry for long periods of time wondering what is wrong with me...

I would drive for hours and days back then...I would wind up in Florida, New Orleans, Chicago and still feel lost...then I would continue driving some more...Honestly, I think I cracked right before getting out...I became very short tempered, but made it with an honorable discharge....

I find it hard to talk about what occurred and sometimes when I wake up in the middle of the night it is like it is happening all over again, but now they are abstacts of the events that occurred; they are bizarre....

Well, I hope this helps...I just can not talk about the events....I cope the best I can....I love myself for who I am and I live for today...

people with PTSS should be able to hold jobs tho' it might be bumpy going at first - it shouldn't be a problem as time goes on. avoiding triggers is key- can't emphasize that enough (and only you know what those are) and don't tell a lot of people what they are. Because there are a lot of a-holes out there who will expose you to them on purpose. (some think they are helping???? WTF?)

Also, significantly reduce or eliminate time spent discussing events - as soon as feasibly possible for you to do so - except maybe in therapy - but even that can get to a point where it's doing more harm than good - because you have got to move on

and like u said cope, and if you can put all of the crap in the past, you can actually have a pretty good life, good job etc. Who you surround yourself with is key. Be choosy. Some of the things you do sound perfectly normal to me - not disorder related- I've gone for drives ever since I got my 1st set of wheels - whatever.

As for the VA - they are reknowned for poor recommendations - nuff said. But they are such a big institution that they will look at things like meds as a quick fix so they can say they are doing something, and they really don't know what to do....anyway

people who have not experienced some degree of extreme trauma are different - seem shallow - just seem like idiots to the rest of us who have - sorry - that was not meant to be offensive - it's just how it is- at the same time we 'd never wish it on anyone in a million years. But I think it takes time to learn that "Suzy Jones" down the block has no way of understanding wht happened to you - and she can't tell just by looking at you....so PTSS people are called on to be undrstanding as well as recover and be compassionate

I had never heard of this topic until I was fortunate to have one of my patients expain his experiences to me. His stories really helped to enlighten me and help me understand him. Most of my co workers didnt like dealing with him. I actually spent the time to understand (of an outsider point of view) the best I could what he was going thru. He was not near as anxious letting ME take care of him. I am always open to more knowlege on the subject

When I was 15 I was shot at a school dance. For years afterward I couldn't be around people dancing, and I still have trouble with dancing myself. What helped me is a close group of friends, and exposing myself to small amounts of the stimulus that would trigger flashbacks. Overtime time the flashbacks became less frequent. Today, at 26 I won't say my fears are completely gone, but they're very controllable now.

What helped me the most were friends, time, and mindfulness training/meditation (this goes into Buddhist philosophy so I wont go into detail here.)
Try and surround yourself with people you trust, I hope all goes well for you.

There is no shame in finding a means to face the demons of our own self doubt which is a component of PTSD. Although I am not a practitioner per say of Buddhism myself there are things in it that I found very useful in both spiritual awareness but in learning to find focus within myself.

All things have their place. Each of us must find the path that suits us properly. With PTSD though the treatment sometimes is confrontation of the issue. Others is learning to just let go. PTSD though can lead to the Victim complex where traumatic relationships become the norm and that adds and stacks one "component" of the trauma on top of another. Some people cannot meditate and no matter how hard they try they can't.

You did touch on something that is a necessary component of the 'cure.' PTSD is impossible to face alone. Counseling to find what the causation are and then learning to modify your own behavior is what it takes but again you have to trust the one or ones you choose for counseling. Depression is often a misdiagnosis of PTSD as well!

And worst is drug is not the answer! Facing the trauma and learning to deal with it is!

Well where to start (without going into details). I was abused from the age of 4 to 12. I almost died several times during this. I was diagnosed as having PTSD when I was 21. The therapist suspects it was affecting me from the 4th grade on. My triggers are almost impossible to avoid as most of them are visual. I do have the extreme end of it. I've been having the black outs since 5th grade. Use to get into trouble in school because I would get up and walk around when I was told to sit in my desk. Teacher would ask me why I got up and I honestly told them that I didn't. I have zero memories from my black out points. I have found very few people who have it to my extent and even fewer who can understand what it is like to live like me.

A video about PTSD to share

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6_H-A-JuE0

Worst is what you will go through when you do break the barrier finally. You suffered some very deep traumas that are conversely triggered by common visual cues. Again in an extreme case like this it is getting past the point of helplessness that is the core of these episodes. i knew a woman who had a similar condition where she literally "shut down" under stress. when she finally did manage to face her trigger it turned out to be parental sexual abuse. She had a BAD breakdown and required a whole new type of counseling. Once she got her feet under herself and she got past the self loathing she stopped having her shut downs. Her blackouts she would sit there eyes open and just not move or blink even for minuets. For a while she had the crying phase where visuals would set her off and even certain phrases. AS time passed though and she faced herself and learned to accept herself even as 'flawed' (like anyone is perfect!) she began to finally lead a "normal" life.

You really do not have an easy road to walk. One day you will have to face yourself and that is where the fun begins. Self blame is a part of is deep down inside. Your Mantra should be "It was not me and that which does not kill me makes me stronger!" You suffer from a variant of Stressor Shut Down or Symptomatic Narcolepsy. It is actually very common more among women than men but it usually has DEEP sexual components as well. I hope you can eventually break the cycles you are stuck in and can move on to a more happy and fulfilling life!

Actually already been threw all that. Believe it or not who I am now is a vast improvement to who I use to be. I haven't blamed myself since I was 21 years old. I work with a therapist who specializes in PTSD. According to her I'm as good as I'm going to get with the extent of what happened to me. I've already had my crash. And I've climbed my way back up. Cured doesn't always mean back to societies normal. Am I violent? No I've never been. According to the therapist I mentioned me being violent is the last thing I have to worry about. There are other stress related disorders that are similar that cause violence but a ptsd person is more likely to run then confront. I know I'm better then I was because I can now confront. For many years if I thought the person would get mad at me I wouldn't say anything. I wouldn't take the chance. Because of how far I've come I've actually been asked to talk in schools explaining both service animals and PTSD. You are right about the confronting though. People with it also need to talk about it in situations that they feel conformable. They need to desensitize themselves to their stimulus. One of the best ways is to talk. I'm not saying go up to some stranger on the street and start spilling your life story. Find someone who understands or has gone threw something similar.

I have it from abuse and have been through couseling as well, but still have a lot of anxiety and can be very over protective of my kids to the point of letting someone else raise them because I can not handle both children's disorders together. I bite my nails, terrible because of anxiety.....I will not take chemicals....I do not believe in taking meds causing horrible side affects worse than the symptoms themselves.

You have to be careful with meds. There are a couple that just help with the anxiety and nothing else but most shrinks actually don't know much on the subject "hence the number of false diagnosis every year" and will attempt to prescribe anti depressants for it. This condition truly has nothing in it self to do with depression. Some people can become depressed in addition to it for obvious reasons. I have ativan for emergency use. My medical alert dog lets me know before the bad attacks and I can take my meds to avoid the attack. I still feel stressed and can get a bit paranoid for a bit but it's better then the full on black out.

Would never take Ativan....they gave it to my son in the hospital and he got angry and agitated.....like I said I despise medications and would not make my son even take any if he did not have 15-17 seizures a day without his meds. It is a very hard decision since side affect seem to occur alot in my family.
Just give me a jay, it helps and is a natural substance.....I do not have my throat close up get agitated shake or lose hair because of it.

Meds aren't for everyone. I don't have any mad effects from what I take but yes I have heard of a variety of things that have happened to others when they take it. I also drink alot of tension tamer tea. I think their stock would fall out if I stopped drinking it at this point lol

My brother suffers from this.. He was in Viet Nam at age 19 and exposed to Agent Orange..He was suicidal... He tried many meds with not much success but told me recently that "giving his life to the lord" has helped him tremendously...not saying thats a cure, just what has helped him...