PTSD Forum - Symptoms?


Symptoms?

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tinkinpink84

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Joined: 11 Sep 2006
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Location: , Germany

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Symptoms? Posted: 10-07-07 14:54pm


What exactly are the symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder? Just woudl be a good thing to know, with my husband deployed and around people that see and do alot of things that normal civilians wouldnt do. Anyone personally affected can tell me or if anyone finds good information on it? Thanks

tnmommy

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Joined: 10 Oct 2007
Posts: 36

Symptoms Posted: 10-10-07 13:55pm


I am also a military wife. First off I want to say thank you to you and your husband for what he's doing. 2nd off I was daginosed with PTSD. This is some of the signs to look for. Flashbacks or reliving the event for minutes or even days at a time. Shame or guilt (feeling like you could have done something to prevent or avoided the event.) Upsetting dreams about the event. Avoiding talking or thinking about the event. Emotionally numb or disconnected from feelings easily upset or angered poor relationships self-destructive behaviors, ex. drinking, using drugs, even sex Hopelessness about the future trouble sleeping memory problems, unable to concentrate, startled or frightened easily hearing or seeing things that aren't there losing intrest in activities PTSD is often confused with depression mostly because the pt. is not being honest with the doctor and is downplaying some of the symptoms. Depression usually has the trouble sleeping, lost of intrest, memory problems, the concentration, etc. so it has easily been missed because the pt. is not honest with the doctor.

mel61

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Joined: 22 Jan 2007
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My Experience With Ptsd... Posted: 10-28-07 02:17am


There is a great forum called Healing Wounds, on PTSD. I have PTSD and am taking anti-depressants to help me cope. I feel 150% better now than I did only 7mths ago. I was an avoider...I basically didn't have any emotions. It went something like this...I would be "triggered" (something would remind me on the incident) and I would start to feel the pain but I learned to turn it off...I learned to turn my emotions off so I could no longer feel the pain but I lost control of it. I started to not feel anything, no good emotions and no bad emotions...I was like a robot. I felt empty and numb. My friends, family and BF all said I changed my personality drastically...they called my cold and heartless. Which is how I felt. I stopped going outside...stopped doing things I normally loved. I distanced myself from everybody. I felt like I was inside my own body watching life not living it. I had no idea there was a condition called PTSD. Finally I went to the doctor and told her that I was having trouble with my periods. I was so stressed and depressed I stopped having my period. She asked me if I was under any stress and I burst out into tears.... Then she helped me. I was sooo scared to take the anti-d's but she asked me to trust her and I'm so glad I did. It took about 2 months before I started to get pieces of myself back. Now, I'm happy and I love life (and myslef) again. Do you think you have PTSD or does your husband have it?

tinkinpink84

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Posted: 10-28-07 02:38am


Neither at the moment, i was just wondering the symptoms, my husband is in afghanistan right now, and i know ptsd is a big thing with the soldiers, and i just wanna know what to look for , if he starts acting not himself or something.

eguest4um

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Joined: 08 Mar 2008
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Treated for PTSD Posted: 03-08-08 23:32pm


Hi, I suffered greatly from PTSD. My PTSD was a result of my experiences with 9/11 and my experiences in New Orleans following Katrina. PTSD was very confusing and I had no idea what was happening to me. I consider myself lucky. I don't drink or use drugs, but I was growing incredibly irritable and impossible to live with. I would become so angry over the smallest things that I would nearly black out from my anger. Most people knew me as a very quiet and generous person, but here's an example of how PTSD was tearing apart my life: we missed the pay date on a credit card bill and were charged a late fee of only $30. I was so enraged I tore a door of its hinges obviously costing me more in repairs than the $30. My therapist said, emotinally, I had no reserve. I was functioning, but I had reached my limit. Now I couldn't figure out why I was acting this way, but that's not what brought me to a therapist. Whenever co-workers or people learned I had very personal experiences with 9/11 and Katrina, they would ask me a lot of questions. If people around me would comment, "why can't those people (New Yorkers or others affected) just get over it." You could imagine my response to them. Sometimes though, I was being asked by a boss or it would come up at a business meeting. I felt myself re-living the event and sometimes couldn't control myself and start crying - even though in both events, I was able to complete the tasks I had to complete, keep my teams safe and I never broke down. Of course, even now, I would have vivid nightmares of what I witnessed, but I thought that was perfectly normal. The crying in front of colleagues was a bit much for me, so I decided to see a therapist through my employers Employee Assistance Program. It was there I was diagnosed with PTSD. I'll never regret going to that therapist, but I will tell you, it was unnerving living the events in front of the poor guy and hearing him struggle to contain his own emotion. I actually feel badly for putting the poor super guy through it, but I had to do it and I may have to do it again. Some may start drinking or using drugs, but for me, I feel a strange edginess. Instead of just yelling at the guy that cut me off, I may chase them and veer my car toward theirs, narrowly escaping a collision. I guess the thing I want to communicate is, be very supportive of your spouse if he/she decides to learn about why they're acting very strangely. Understand that it may be a long road they have to travel. Don't bother asking them to relive the nightmare in front of you. It actually could be very traumatizing to you. I feel like it may have been for my therapist. One last thing, thank you to your family for their sacrifice in serving. Others may have forgotten why we're there, but as you can guess, I haven't forgotten.