Knowing how to support a loved one with PTSD and generally understanding what the meaning of PTSD is with all the stigmas and misinformation around it can be confusing. I want to help clear the air with the most authentic information I can give you from my personal experience as a person with PTSD. 
Day to day life for people with PTSD is extremely tough especially when most people don’t understand the daily struggles people with PTSD face.
PTSD stands for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and is a mental disorder that can occur in people after being in or witnessing a terrifying event. PTSD can also occur due to second-hand trauma, such as hearing disastrous details of the trauma a loved one went through.
People with PTSD have intense uncontrollable thoughts and emotions related to the traumatic event long after it occurred. They may have nightmares, relive the event through flashbacks, certain sounds smells and people may trigger an emotional reaction and they may feel detached from reality.
PTSD affects about 1 in 11 people and can form due to many and any traumatic event such as sexual assault, violence, natural disasters, car crash, severe illness, and more.
This post is all about things people with ptsd want you to know.
Things People With PTSD Want You To Know
1. PTSD Does Not Only Affect Military Veterans-
There is a commonly believed stigma that PTSD is a disorder that only affects military veterans due to war, which is extremely far from the truth.
People refer to PTSD as “shell shock” and hear or learn about stories of veterans dealing with PTSD due to war. While at times this is truly the case it also leads to the widely spread misconception that this is the only and most common PTSD cause.
Don’t forget that anyone can develop PTSD for numerous reasons, there is no one “valid” reason that PTSD develops.
So next time you come across someone who struggles with PTSD don’t be quick to assume they have a military background.
2. It Is Not All In Our Heads-
PTSD is just as much in our bodies and our souls as it is in our heads. You can literally physically feel certain memories and flashbacks in your body.
When having a flashback or memory as a person with PTSD you can feel as though you are experiencing the traumatic event in this very moment.
People with PTSD may feel certain pains or movements they went through during the traumatic event. On top of that the stress, their body is undergoing in those moments can be so intense that it affects your heartbeat, breathing and may cause dizziness, headaches, and other physical reactions.
3. Don’t Try To Cure Us-
I imagine seeing a loved one struggle while experiencing PTSD can be very tough. Although all you might want to do at times is help find solutions and “cure” them you have to remember this isn’t about you.
Believe me, we wish someone could come and simply take away our pain but that is just not the way it works. While PTSD can be managed and recovery is possible there is no specific way to “make it go away forever”.
Sometimes all you can do for someone that is struggling is hold their hand and sit with them through the pain. Don’t try to rush recovery on to them, trauma and healing are complicated and different people go through it at a different pace.
{Related Post-bewellbyelle.com/childhood-sexual-abuse/]
4. Don’t Judge Our Fears-
Often people with PTSD struggle with fears that go against logic. Different things may trigger trauma responses for no “good reason” try to understand the person instead of going against them.
Telling a person with PTSD to “just calm down” or that they have “no good reason” to be stressed won’t do them any good.
Many times people with PTSD won’t be able to explain why a certain thing triggers them, don’t try to look for a correct answer. Instead try to just understand that for them the fear is 100% real, reassure them, let them know you are here to listen.
5. Symptoms May Develop Long After The Event-
In some cases, PTSD symptoms only develop long after the traumatic event took place.
Trauma can be hard to process and sometimes we repress traumatic memories to the point we don’t even remember they took place until years later.
Certain emotional or non-emotional triggers or situations can make the trauma resurface.
In addition, large amounts of stress or additional trauma can lead to the development of PTSD. Sometimes while right after the event takes place we may still feel fine, certain things may lessen our emotional capacity and bring us to a breaking point.
6. We Can’t Just Let Go-
We wish “letting go” was an option. PTSD comes with uncontrollable thoughts and emotions surrounding the event.
All we want is to stop living the pain for a single moment but our brain quite literally won’t let us. Even in those moments when we are able to be truly present many times something completely random will trigger us and bring us back to a negative state.
Telling people with PTSD to “let go” or “put the past behind them” is as effective as telling someone to “just breath” while having an asthma attack.
7. We Don’t Easily Trust People-
Undergoing trauma and living with PTSD can make the world feel like a dangerous place and people may make you feel very unsafe.
This is especially true when going through trauma inflicted on someone by a different person. You may feel as though even the people who love you most don’t have your best foot in hand.
You are always looking behind your back to try and protect yourself to prevent the pain of getting hurt again. Some also expect the worst from everyone in order to spare pain because of the fragile state you are in.
People with PTSD usually need more reassurance than others, when supporting someone you love who is struggling, reminding them that you are here and that they’re safe with you can be extremely helpful.
[…] { Related Post – bewellbyelle.com/people-with-ptsd/} […]