[QUOTE=CubeManv2;32644323]When you start having constant flash backs or start reacting more actively to sounds then you can call it PTSD, I'm not saying you don't have it as I'm no doctor but it could also be you just changing scenery again.
I can completely see myself reacting to loud noises or fireworks and waiting to see if its gunfire or more gunfire on the way. You just came out of a warzone. Go see a therapist it's not a shameful thing. If it's nothing you opened up and talked to someone. If it is something you could catch it early and work on it and save alot of trouble in the future.[/QUOTE]
Really? You're going to define what is or isn't PTSD? PTSD isn't just flashbacks. I find your comment pretty rude.
go see a psychiatrist...
I've had the honor of knowing a couple other veterans during my forays over the internet. they have had similar issues, staring at the side of the road while driving to look for IEDs, being startled by noises, etc.
They said that their therapy sessions have helped improve, but not cure the problem. (One even said that the best medication is still Jack Daniels, oh well)
This is a guy who was in Fallujah and took 3 7.62s to his front SAPI, and whose heart stopped in the OR once.
Hope that helps.
Thanks for serving.
You could play paintball or airsoft or something if you want to fill the void deployment in Afghanistan left.
[editline]6th October 2011[/editline]
PTSD is not a weakness, it just doesn't quite fit in society as it is today. People see therapists all the time, nothing to be ashamed of.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32644128]
My friend said I might have PTSD and recommended I go see a therapist, but I see it as weakness; The fact that I can cope with gunfire, bombs, and death, but I can't cope with some symptoms of war? I don't know, are their any other Facepunch veterans around here?[/QUOTE]
Don't see PTSD as a weakness, it happens to the best of the ones serving. My grandfather had it from serving in the Pacific during WWII, (Known then as "Battle Fatigue" back then) He was a strong man but he said it was hard for him to cope with it. When he went to a doctor or therapist they told him to suck it up. You live in 2011 and have the luxury of getting meds and drugs for it, so you should do so, it will probably improve your outlook.
Good luck and thanks for serving.
Don't worry, you are just going through something many infantrymen go through. You adjusted to something really foreign, now it will take time to re-adjust to everything you have done before.
It can seem really unnerving at first, getting back, hearing about people's problems and what they have to deal with from day to day. It all seems insignificant. But you should take some pride in the fact that, when you enlisted, you pretty much stood up to make sure that's all they had to complain about. Without people like you, they'd be seeing the same thing you saw when you were deployed, and bangs would make their minds jump to the exact same situations.
Don't worry about PTSD though, give yourself time to adjust. Enjoy things. You'll fall back into the same rhythm you had before you left. It just takes time. If you don't, see someone who can help. Weakness is fighting the battle you aren't winning, when you can just turn to one of you resources and say 'Hey, can I get some help here?'. Don't let your pride bring you down.
I get where you're coming from on the ashamed front, I had the same issues with my depression. While our situations are barely similar, I will say that seeking help is like ripping off a band-aid, you just have to front through the initial embarrassment because it's really helpful
[QUOTE=Lizzrd;32651704]You could play paintball or airsoft or something if you want to fill the void deployment in Afghanistan left.[/QUOTE]
Are you kidding? He's having trouble adjusting to civilian life, and you're suggesting a game designed to emulate the very thing he's recovering from? No. Just no.
OP: PTSD is not a strictly defined, physically-caused disease, it's an observation of behavior. If you're questioning yourself in this manner, it can't hurt to speak to a psychiatrist.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32644128]I am new to facepunch, but anyway, I got back from Afghan a few months ago. I was an Infantryman and saw quite a lot of combat as well as good friends get hurt and killed.
I came back and things just seem way different then before. Things seem to piss me off a lot quicker. Just the way that people take stuff for granted like showers and food and running water. The people over there live like a biblical times except they somehow managed to get motorcycles. It pisses me off when I hear people complaining about traffic and their jobs.
For instance, all of my friends on facebook complain about jobs and how they got shafted because they got to work overtime or how hard their day was, blah blah blah. To me, it just seems miniscule. My days were a lot harder their when your good friend gets blown up by IEDs or gets shot and dies. Nothing is more harder than coping with the loss of a close friend to some piece of shit asshole living in a mud hut and fucking donkeys.
I'm out now of the military, and even found a job. But it seems I miss the comradeship from the military. It's very tight knit. No other job can come close to it. Even all my friends in high school from whom I've know for 10+ years, don't seem as close as the buddies I've served with. I miss the directness of the situation over there. Where nothing is taken for granted. You can be ugly, poor, rich, or whatever, as long as you commit toward the team and I had full confidence in knowing that If I got shot out in the street, my friend would without hesitation run out there and drag me back under enemy fire. It doesn't seem like that in the civilian world. All my civilian friends can't even keep a promise to go hang out on the weekend and it sickens me. Some of them seem very shallow.
Anyway, things would blow up a lot, and loud noises occasionally still make me jump. Distant fireworks and noises immediately make me stop and listen as if listening for the ensuing hail of gunfire. It's gotten better since being out, but I still also get a little paranoid of large crowds and shady people walking on the street.
My friend said I might have PTSD and recommended I go see a therapist, but I see it as weakness; The fact that I can cope with gunfire, bombs, and death, but I can't cope with some symptoms of war? I don't know, are their any other Facepunch veterans around here?[/QUOTE]
If you truly are in the military then you should already know all you have to do is go to mental health and talk to someone. You should still have some benefits, I don't think you're suffering from PTSD. I think you're just depressed and miss the "good old times." When my dad got out of the military he missed the whole close-knit unit and military family, he always says if they would have let him stay he would have. (He Did like 21 years in the military)
People are always quick to blame or label themselves with PTSDs. You're going though a major change, going from being in the military to civilian is a huge change no matter what people say. Though it would never hurt to go see a mental health resource and talk to them. Maybe you got PTSD or maybe you're suffering from a bit of depression, who knows. None of us are doctors.
[QUOTE=strayebyrd;32654520]I get where you're coming from on the ashamed front, I had the same issues with my depression. While our situations are barely similar, I will say that seeking help is like ripping off a band-aid, you just have to front through the initial embarrassment because it's really helpful[/QUOTE]
Yeah, I'm just a little worried my friends will find out and make fun of me. :/
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32655509]Yeah, I'm just a little worried my friends will find out and make fun of me. :/[/QUOTE]
If they make fun of you for serving your country then they are just dicks.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32655509]Yeah, I'm just a little worried my friends will find out and make fun of me. :/[/QUOTE]
If they make fun of you then they're not your friends.
You just got used to WAR! You need to go back to WAR!
Protip: To access WAR! faster,use the war room door.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32655509]Yeah, I'm just a little worried my friends will find out and make fun of me. :/[/QUOTE]
I understand your fear, but it isn't the 1910's anymore, PTSD is a recognized psychological issue that has nothing to do with cowardice.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32655509]Yeah, I'm just a little worried my friends will find out and make fun of me. :/[/QUOTE]
if they do ask them how they would feel if they saw their friends die and be shot at
I would recommend you see a doctor, but its up to you. If you dont, do something that you find relaxing, like listening to music, playing games, having a few friends over, you know? Maybe go to a friends house, take a vacation, have a few drinks with some friends. Up to you, but i would recommend doing something you enjoy. Hope I helped a little bit :)
I wish I could experience that type of comradery and viewpoint without having to serve in life-threatening situations. I suppose those are the things that bring you together, though.
[QUOTE=amcfaggot;32663005]I wish I could experience that type of comradery and viewpoint without having to serve in life-threatening situations. I suppose those are the things that bring you together, though.[/QUOTE]
Usually second to that is pain in misery in my experience. Sports I guess would be kinda close.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32663164]Usually second to that is pain in misery in my experience. Sports I guess would be kinda close.[/QUOTE]
Kinda close, but not quite. Buddies made in combat are usually very close, like brothers. That, and not only is death much more likely, it's far more painful when it does happen.
Reading this book called 'War' which sums it all up. Here's a definition of what I miss:
"Civilians balk at recognizing that one of the most traumatic things about combat is having to give it up. War is so obviously evil and wrong that the idea there could be anything good to it almost feels like a profanity. To a combat vet, the civilian world can seem frivolous and dull, with very little at stake and all the wrong people in power.
When Men say they miss combat, it's not that they actually miss getting shot at-you'd have to be deranged-it's that they miss being in a world where everything is important and nothing is taken for granted. They miss being in a world where human relations are entirely governed by whether you can trust the other person with your life.
It's such a pure, clean standard that men can completely remake themselves in war. You could be anything back home-shy, ugly, rich, poor, unpopular- and it won't matter because it's of no consequence in a firefight, and therefore of no consequences, period. The only thing that matters is your level of dedication to the rest of the group, and that is impossible to fake. That is why the men say such impossibly vulgar things about each other's sisters and mothers. It's one more way to prove nothing can break the bond between them; it's one more way to prove they're not alone out there.
Combat is the smaller game that young men fall in love with. For some reason there is a profound and mysterious gratification to the recipricol agreement to protect another another person with your life, and combat is virtually the only situation in which that happens regularly. These hillsides of loose shale and holly trees are where the men feel not most alive-that you can get skydiving- but the most utilized. The most necessary. The most clear and certain and purposeful. If young men could get that feeling back home, no one would ever want to go to war again.
War is a lot of things and it's useless to pretend exciting isn't one of them. It's insanely exciting. The Machinery of war and the sound it makes and the urgency of it's use and the consequences of almost everything about it are the most exciting things anyone engaged in war will ever know. The Public will never hear about it. It's just not something that many people want acknowledged.
War is supposed to feel bad because undeniably bad things happen in it, but for a 19 year old at the working end of a .50 cal during a firefight that everyone comes out of okay, war is life multiplied by some number that no one has ever heard of. In some ways twenty minutes of combat is more life than you could scrape together in a lifetime of doing something else.
Combat isn't where you might die-although that does happen-it's where you find out whether you get to keep on living. Don't underestimate the power of that revelation. Don't underestimate the things young men will wager in order to play that game one more time. "
Sorry, it's quite long, but I think it sums up everything about our current generation and the effects of combat.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32655509]Yeah, I'm just a little worried my friends will find out and make fun of me. :/[/QUOTE]
Honestly, if your friends would make fun of you for that, they're dicks. Total dicks.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;32644128]I am new to facepunch, but anyway, I got back from Afghan a few months ago. I was an Infantryman and saw quite a lot of combat as well as good friends get hurt and killed.
I came back and things just seem way different then before. Things seem to piss me off a lot quicker. Just the way that people take stuff for granted like showers and food and running water. The people over there live like a biblical times except they somehow managed to get motorcycles. It pisses me off when I hear people complaining about traffic and their jobs.
For instance, all of my friends on facebook complain about jobs and how they got shafted because they got to work overtime or how hard their day was, blah blah blah. To me, it just seems miniscule. My days were a lot harder their when your good friend gets blown up by IEDs or gets shot and dies. Nothing is more harder than coping with the loss of a close friend to some piece of shit asshole living in a mud hut and fucking donkeys.
I'm out now of the military, and even found a job. But it seems I miss the comradeship from the military. It's very tight knit. No other job can come close to it. Even all my friends in high school from whom I've know for 10+ years, don't seem as close as the buddies I've served with. I miss the directness of the situation over there. Where nothing is taken for granted. You can be ugly, poor, rich, or whatever, as long as you commit toward the team and I had full confidence in knowing that If I got shot out in the street, my friend would without hesitation run out there and drag me back under enemy fire. It doesn't seem like that in the civilian world. All my civilian friends can't even keep a promise to go hang out on the weekend and it sickens me. Some of them seem very shallow.
Anyway, things would blow up a lot, and loud noises occasionally still make me jump. Distant fireworks and noises immediately make me stop and listen as if listening for the ensuing hail of gunfire. It's gotten better since being out, but I still also get a little paranoid of large crowds and shady people walking on the street.
My friend said I might have PTSD and recommended I go see a therapist, but I see it as weakness; The fact that I can cope with gunfire, bombs, and death, but I can't cope with some symptoms of war? I don't know, are their any other Facepunch veterans around here?[/QUOTE]
Firstly, thank you for serving our country. The sacrifices you, your friends, and family have made, are the reason my friends, my family, and I can live in peace and comfort. I honestly couldn't describe the amount of respect I have for the military. I may not always agree with the war or whatever we have you guys doing, but I will always support the people who protect me.
I'd seek "professional help". Nobody is going to judge you. Fixing a potential problem or flaw isn't a weakness -- besides, that's what it's all about, right?
Strive to make oneself be all you can be.
Go see a Therapist, man -- who knows, it might not even be PTSD... maybe just a phase or something. (:
Good luck!
Try Ecstasy (MDMA). Seriously, it can help you first time you take it. It will clear your head from bad thoughts and put your mentality in safe place with good vibes.
MDMA abuse can fuck you up, but first time (and probably last) will not harm you.
[QUOTE=HeatPipe;32665339]Try Ecstasy (MDMA). Seriously, it can help you first time you take it. It will clear your head from bad thoughts and put your mentality in safe place with good vibes.
MDMA abuse can fuck you up, but first time (and probably last) will not harm you.[/QUOTE]
Not sure if recommending drug use for a problem like this is the best idea, dear
[QUOTE=HeatPipe;32665339]Try Ecstasy (MDMA). Seriously, it can help you first time you take it. It will clear your head from bad thoughts and put your mentality in safe place with good vibes.
MDMA abuse can fuck you up, but first time (and probably last) will not harm you.[/QUOTE]
That's retarded, don't take ecstasy to "solve" your problems.
I'm one of those guys that probably "sickens" you. I don't have the guts to stand up and fight for my country and I take everything around me for granted. I don't know how hard it can be to cope with what your dealing with and I don't have any practical advice. But I think that its important that you know that in my heart, I have the utmost love and respect for those of you who can go out and serve.
If you have the courage to go out there and do what you believe is right, then surely you have the courage to cope with the transition back to civilian life. I wish you the best of luck, and give you my deepest thanks.
Hello
I've had PTSD most of my life due to some happenings in my childhood, related to my father being violent and almost killing my mother at multiple occasions, and at the end it reached a certain point where my mom got very badly injuried. All in front of me.
I was around 4-5 years old at that time, which is iirc considered to be the worst age to experience that kind of stuff.
Now, I had anger and fear / paranoia problems my whole life after what happened. I don't like sudden loud sounds or other things that I don't have control over, I need full control of my environment.
Problem was, Norway doesn't know how to handle PTSD, I never got the help I needed. So, I ended up being this overly paranoid guy I am today.
But anyways, I'm sure it shouldn't be a problem for you to get professional help, and I wish you luck.
[QUOTE=Cadaver;32666437]That's retarded, don't take ecstasy to "solve" your problems.[/QUOTE]
It's retarded because you think it doesn't work and call me retarded.
Also to show that I am not talking out of my ass:
[url]http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2004887,00.html[/url]
[url]http://www.maps.org/research/mdma/[/url]
[url]http://psychcentral.com/news/2009/03/10/mdma-ecstasy-for-ptsd/4642.html[/url]
[url]http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/07/20/mdma-may-have-role-in-treatment-of-ptsd/15778.html[/url]
[url]http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20100720/ecstasy-may-ease-ptsd-symptoms[/url]
[QUOTE=HeatPipe;32679391]It's retarded because you think it doesn't work and call me retarded.
Also to show that I am not talking out of my ass:
[url]http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2004887,00.html[/url]
[url]http://www.maps.org/research/mdma/[/url]
[url]http://psychcentral.com/news/2009/03/10/mdma-ecstasy-for-ptsd/4642.html[/url]
[url]http://psychcentral.com/news/2010/07/20/mdma-may-have-role-in-treatment-of-ptsd/15778.html[/url]
[url]http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20100720/ecstasy-may-ease-ptsd-symptoms[/url][/QUOTE]
my issue is you said Ecstasy, which can be severely different from MDMA. The Ecstasy where I live is usually about 10% MDMA, and the rest of it is just shit that kills people in my town center every week. You can't be ensured unless you're getting pure MDMA that what you're taking is safe for human consumption.
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