PTSD. How common is it I wonder?

[Sundancefisher]

I was wondering how common PTSD is in society. It can be pretty debilitating.

https://www.anxietycanada.com/sites/...ult_hmptsd.pdf

[Twisted Canuck]

I got it from being a mod, pretty sure.

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by Twisted Canuck

I got it from being a mod, pretty sure.

Self inflicted

Now file a claim to the owner(s)

Might get you a few free magazines and a hat.

But in all fairness those who are suffering from PTSD I wish you the best and please reach out for help.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Twisted Canuck]

Originally Posted by 58thecat

Self inflicted

Now file a claim to the owner(s)

Might get you a few free magazines and a hat.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not bloody likely, on either count.

[Drewski Canuck]

Had a Client on a truck - bicycle car accident claim.

Symptoms of seizure gave a working diagnosis of epilepsy from brain injury.

All the scans, testing, and MRI's indicated no brain injury and a severe case of PTSD.

She could not drive and her seizure condition was triggered by flashing lights and sudden noise. Pretty hard to drive with that kind of condition, and her licence was taken on medical grounds.



Drewski

[roper1]

Arrived on scene to a farm amputation 25 years ago. Got a tourniquet on, kid dispatched 10 miles of gravel to meet the ambulance, kept a neighbor forcing the injured to speak & stay conscious. Looked like the injured was stable, conscripted another guy to help me fish the arm & hand out of the silage chopper.

Dang if about 20 years later, I woke up in the middle of the night with that vision clear as day. Bugged me daily & nightly for a couple weeks. Told the wife I might need to go lay on the couch & talk to the nice lady but it went away.

Hope this helps somebody else if it's bugging you. Best of luck!

[Bushrat]

PTSD is very real for those who actually have it. On the other hand there are probably just as many who don't have it but fradulently claim it. It used to be, I got a bad back, I need to go on long term disability. Now that mental illness is accepted as a legitimate illness there are many jumping on the bandwagon of false claims because instead of feigning a bad back, hobbling around like their in pain worrying about someone reporting them if they see that person throwing hay bales or packing moose quarters out of the bush. Now they can claim PTSD or other mental illness that is very hard to prove they don't have to keep the benefits or gov't money coming in and not have to work, nor constantly feign that they have a crippling physical disability.

Edit to add, I know a person who worked at a mill, was cleaning the burner stack, layed down until someone saw him, said he fell off the scaffolding, hurt his back. He got workers comp to pay him for quite a while, years actually, until he showed the 'wrong' person his moose hunting video where he was packing moose quarters out of the bush and the guy reported him. He got cut off. Several years later on another job he claimed ptsd, stress and mental illness. He's still on disability benefits, spends his days fishing, hunting, golfing etc.

[Twisted Canuck]

My apologies if I made light of the topic. Fact is I do suffer from it, from events I don't share but with a few close friends. I still get nightmares 23 yrs later. I coped, never kept me from work or responsibility, never a burden on anyone. One way is by joking about things I ought not to. Sorry.

[tirebob]

Originally Posted by Twisted Canuck

My apologies if I made light of the topic. Fact is I do suffer from it, from events I don't share but with a few close friends. I still get nightmares 23 yrs later. I coped, never kept me from work or responsibility, never a burden on anyone. One way is by joking about things I ought not to. Sorry.

Yep I am the same way. Should probably have had help with some stuff but somehow learned to manage on my own. Still wake up in the middle of the night hollering sometimes to find my wife rubbing my shoulder or back to try and help it calm before the moment happens but once it is done I am right back to sleep.

Certainly affects people different and can come on without notice.

[Battle Rat]

I'm triggered everytime a siren comes on the TV.
I'm sure my blood pressure jumps right away.
There are various levels of PTSD or any mental health issue.
Sort of like managing a mild cold on your own up to needing outside help with pneumonia.
So far I've been successful at managing it and still respond to calls without adverse affects.

[buckbrush]

It is a strange thing. Sometimes symptoms don’t appear for years after and can manifest differently in different people, or differently in the same person over time. I luckily don’t suffer daily from it but it has given me some issues.

[KGB]

After 35 years of marriage I think I am ready to file the claim….

[calgarychef]

I don’t know any chef/cook who can’t tell me what my reoccurring nightmare is because they all have it too. Hours and days and months of working on pure adrenaline seems to do it to most people to one degree or another.

[2 Tollers]

Talked with my wifes father about his time as a tanker in Italy in WW2 and how he managed. He said the long ship ride home talking with guys who had the same experiences plus the demobilizition time when he got back to Canada really was the key for him.

Flip this to an uncle on my Dads side that also served and took his own life a little over a year after getting back.

When I was working I had to asked staff to do clean up or perimeter work to support teams that were handling suicides. The majority of staff were good as they had team meetings after to talk through the situations. Some staff (very few) required additional support.

As part of my role I was on the EOC. I do know that a number of people were off on leave for assistance after being on the group for a number of years. Dealing with suicides can wear you down.

I think having friends that have similar experiences that you can talk through the issues with helps greatly.

I have had a couple of experiences that have caused loss of sleep --- talking through what happened with the friends really helped. The images and smells do not totally go away and at times I get flash backs but these periods are controllable.

I do wonder on the first responders and the impact on their lives. Hopefully the help is there for them.

[Battle Rat]

Originally Posted by calgarychef

I don’t know any chef/cook who can’t tell me what my reoccurring nightmare is because they all have it too. Hours and days and months of working on pure adrenaline seems to do it to most people to one degree or another.

There could be stress relating to a cooking but I wouldn't lump it in the same category as witnessing trauma.
You could start a Post Kitchen Stress Disorder group I suppose.

[big zeke]

Knew a couple folks who suffered from PTSD arising from assault/abuse events from decades beforehand, to say they were debilitating is an understatement. The flashback events were the worst, I was told it was just like they were right back in the event.

Saw one person start to bang their head against the wall during a flashback, stopped only after they had put their head thru the 5/8" drywall. Medication was the only thing that made a difference.

Please don't make light of this, it's truly a poorly understood disability. More common than most would believe.

[Pioneer2]

Firemen,first responders or unexpected sudden loss of a loved one can all cause PTSD. Future triggers can include sights ,sounds smells etc. Your mind can't unsee what your eyes saw. It's no fun.

[PaintearthCounty]

My dad went through 6 years of the Second World War . from when he was 19 to 25 , he had experienced too much terror and horror , see people suffering and die horrible deaths and not knowing if he would survive that day , he was always struggling with PTSD

[fed]

PTSD is a symptom I believe peaple can get. I have a freind who killed lots of peaple and even got a medal for for doing his service there. He was injured in an airstrike by an American drone. He’s showed me videos of Afkanistan and it really makes me think about what our government is for defence spending. When you watch a video of your freind in a gunfight with terrorists and a crosshairs appears over them you’d see what has happened there. I’m grad my freind is doing good with all her did there.

[bezzola]

When i was towing I witnessed a terrible accident and had a young boy pass on the ground right at my feet. For years i would dream about that.
It might not be PTSD but it sure messed with my head

[Battle Rat]

Originally Posted by bezzola

When i was towing I witnessed a terrible accident and had a young boy pass on the ground right at my feet. For years i would dream about that.
It might not be PTSD but it sure messed with my head

That fits the symptoms of PTSD.
When those events are affecting your personal life, such as looss of sleep, it is a concern.
If the dreams are no longer happening then you have managed to beat it.
If you still have those dreams then you might need some assistance.

[Dick284]

PTSD was first recognized around 1980, and no hard analytics were applied till the mid 1990’s.

I figure it’s far more prevalent than we think, due to actual diagnostics pretty much being in its infancy.

My dad had PTSD, although that’s an after the fact revelation we had as a family…… the sitting alone in a room when a thunder storm rolled thru, going to the basement to be alone when the Canada Day fireworks went off, but what do you expect from a WW2 veteran who was in places like Ortona and the Liri Valley!

A young lad I met in the reserves eventually went to the regular force, and saw action at the Medak pocket, when he returned to garrison duties beck in Canada, he had a few bizarre and dangerous incidents, that basically got him an administrative discharge from the infantry. He since was diagnosed with PTSD and went on to get his masters based around PTSD, in a conversation I had with him years after his masters degree, he pointed out that the Canadian military dismissed PTSD up until shortly after a notable General from the forces attempted suicide in the Rideau Canal, then the government got quite focused on PTSD, and so did all the other government agencies around the country.

[Drewski Canuck]

Dick 284,

Actually, a local Psychologist worked with Canada's DND as well as the US Army Medical Corps treating Veterans who returned from Korea in the late 1950's, and developed the Treatment Protocols for the Veterans.

This man is Dr. Uwe Neumann. He was a Crown Witness on a Trial I ran in the early 2000's. Crown Production from the Child Welfare Permanent Guardianship of the 3 older children was 6,000 pages, and there were repeated disclosure of Foster Home Sexual Abuse. DCW did nothing for treatment, and Dr. Neumann's cross examination identified his expertise on PTSD, and that there should have been treatment.

Crown returned all the kids and treatment was commenced.

After the First World War, the returning Veterans were labelled as suffering from "Soldier's Heart". Same thing, different label.

it's been around a very long time. Hard to return to normal when you have people trying to kill you, killing your friends, and you have to kill them.

Only difference now is Society is more sensitive to psychological trauma from whatever cause.

Drewski

[Ballertrawler II]

This is a very serious topic. What we now now as PTSD in many wars and situations was called many different things from "shell shock" the "thousand yard stare", battle fatigue etc.

As our society and environment is changing to a less traumatic world. Back when everyone lived on a farm or land you got used to some gory sights that made an impact but these were part of ordinary daily living... butchering, decapitating chickens, etc. but it seems that when we have a situation where we are present when someone is severely injured or killed it takes a huge toll because we have a strong adrenaline response.

After world war 1 and world war 2 the legions were developed for veterans to come together and enjoy activities in a room with people with common experiences. Did it work? i don't know I knew a lot of war veterans that used alcohol to excess.

After the world wars many of the male population had served so there were a great many people who understood the experiences.

Now we have relatively few veterans in comparison to the years just after WW2, and the thankfulness expressed by so many people has dwindled a lot and the opposition found after the Vietnam war imagine coming back from a traumatic experience and be called "baby killer"

We have many people who just in their job of helping people, providing safety and security see some horrors that are unforgettable and affect them mentally. One of the best things we can do for these folks, by just telling them a heartfelt Thank You for you service.

It is a small gesture but we have so many many people who deal with this through suicide and you never know who is going through it. But if you can reach out with a kind gesture it definitely does not hurt.

[Bigwoodsman]

Originally Posted by tirebob

Yep I am the same way. Should probably have had help with some stuff but somehow learned to manage on my own. Still wake up in the middle of the night hollering sometimes to find my wife rubbing my shoulder or back to try and help it calm before the moment happens but once it is done I am right back to sleep.

Certainly affects people different and can come on without notice.

I can relate to this. Happens more often than I like.

BW

[Grizzly Adams1]

Originally Posted by PaintearthCounty

My dad went through 6 years of the Second World War . from when he was 19 to 25 , he had experienced too much terror and horror , see people suffering and die horrible deaths and not knowing if he would survive that day , he was always struggling with PTSD

I often wonder if that's a basic personality issue, my parents both went through that and never seemed to phase them visibly , but I've met people totally devastated and reliving the experience constantly.

[W921]

Originally Posted by Grizzly Adams1

I often wonder if that's a basic personality issue, my parents both went through that and never seemed to phase them visibly , but I've met people totally devastated and reliving the experience constantly.

People especially years ago didn't talk about it. But they had it. Talk to a nurse that looks after basically people waiting to die in auxiliary type hospitals. Even when our minds go and we can't remember two minutes ago we can remember every hurt,every bad thought from 60 years ago. We don't really get away with anything. We can suppress ,justify memories but its still all there and we don't forget.

[CDN offroader]

Originally Posted by Grizzly Adams1

I often wonder if that's a basic personality issue, my parents both went through that and never seemed to phase them visibly , but I've met people totally devastated and reliving the experience constantly.

There's so many variables that it would be difficult to say why specifically. LCol Dave Grossmans book, "On Combat" does a pretty good job breaking down the various reasons it affects people so differently.

Individual upbringing, spiritual beliefs, unit/team cohesion, actual experience of the traumatic event, family/friend/professional support available, etc, etc.

[A207X2]

Originally Posted by Battle Rat

I'm triggered everytime a siren comes on the TV.

Helicopter sounds do it for me.