PTSD – 7.11am Monday 28th April 2025
PTSD – 7.11am Monday 28th April 2025
I believe I may have some insight regarding PTSD, especially for war veterans.
I have PTSD from a traumatic event many years ago, a newer event has caused yet another effect of it.
It’s possible that my input may have already been observed by others elsewhere as I don’t follow discussion or research on the state of PTSD.
Firstly, I’m aware that people can go through the same event traumatic event together, yet not all be affected by it in a way that will trigger a PTSD. Which indicates that some people are at a greater risk for the condition than others. I believe another factor is what happened prior to the PTSD affected person and in some cases shortly afterwards, that is actually part of what caused the traumatic event to trigger the PTSD. Hence, you have a group of persons go through the same specific trauma event, but only a single person PTSD affected.
Which, for some, may appear to be (wrongfully) viewed as a weakness of some sort when it’s nothing of the sort. For the combat soldier this probably is a part of it and possibly leads to significant depression. It’s got nothing to do with a lack of manliness or lack of bravery.
The persons body is in a type of shock which keeps signalling the brain to an alert.
For the person who has been in a persistent trauma, day and night for an extreme length of time, they are at risk. For the person who has been in a sustained situation where they are in constant threat, experienced harm physically or mentally and the situation continues at length, never knowing when the threat is going to show itself, this person is at risk of PTSD.
Another is surviving a long-term threat situation and for example believing the situation at end and just as you begin to feel safe again, the situation strikes you out of nowhere. This person is at risk of PTSD.
The body learns to go straight to maximum level threat response and naturally this is most debilitating because maximum heart rate, respiration takes a terrible toll and because it keeps happening, the person behaves accordingly. Panic occurs for some, because you become victim to the physical response and start taking measures to avoid anything that will provoke it.
If any of the above is new insight to PTSD or helpful, then it was worthwhile my writing.
I think what might prevent the condition from manifesting is good breaks between, especially in the case of the combat soldier, which would allow the body not to learn permanent alert and hence decrease the risk of triggering the PTSD.
Fiona MacLeod (C)
