i am pretty sure that i have PTSD, but i dont know if i should seek a diagnosis. i dont know if its likely that i will be discriminated against if its documented. does anyone know/ have experience here?
thanks. i am generally ok, the MJ stops the nightmares and helps me be distracted by everyday life, i definitely dont need drugs thrown at me. i guess i will just leave it be
Didn't say there was... But real help of this sort is very hard to come by. You are using one of the best medcines available already...
yes. i wouldnt have asked if i hadnt. its the prerequisite for PTSD after all, if i hadnt i would just think that i had panic and anxiety attacks, horrible nightmares, and an unexplained terror of police officers.
A diagnoses will help if it prevents you from having a job for instance and you have to apply for disability or something, otherwise it will just give you access to conventional treatment and mental health professionals who want you to take their drugs and quit smoking cannabis even if it helps. Sometimes therapy isn't all bad but you don't need a diagnoses for that, I never find it too useful though....just don't try to deny it's there or bottle it up as that can make it worse at least in my experience. Marijuana can be very helpful for PTSD in my opinion and experience.
as far as being discriminated against, i wonder about this myself- i can't give you a definitive answer, but i know as far as employers, etc they do NOT have access to this information. as far as future doctors, that i do not know don't worry about getting meds thrown at you- whether or not you see a psychiatrist is up to you. if you don't want medication, you don't have to take it. simple as that. unless you're court ordered or something, but that really takes a lot and wouldn't happen unless some serious business went down you get the help you ask for, really. what might be a good idea is seeking a therapist who specializes in trauma treatment- they might be able to shed some light on your situation. bear in mind that there are different therapists who specialize in different conditions please don't get scared off by replies who say it's all just folks throwing drugs at you, they may have had bad experiences or more likely, no experience at all... sure, it can happen, but if you look around you'll find many great professionals who are happy to work with you, who don't judge smoking marijuana, who accept not taking medication... just find someone who is the right fit for you, and who listens whatever you decide, best wishes!
Don't diagnose yourself. Go see a doctor/counselor and let them do the work. Unless you are a threat to self or others, they can't force you to take any drugs. I have PTSD. It's fucking horrible.
i basically hid for 3 years, didnt really have contact with the outside world, except online. i didnt even realize what happened. i thought oh, panic attack, i shouldnt get worked up over the internet... but then i had an extreme reaction to a police officer, full blown meltdown, violent shaking, and crushing devastation. this has happened on 3 occasions when around police officers, not doing anything wrong, mind you. i dont believe i am a threat to self or others, i have an acceptance of the trauma, so its frustrating to have such an irrational reaction, and to know that its irrational. thanks for being here
There are good therapists out there, I am just really frustrated with not being able to find any that really understand much about PTSD other than that I have all the symptoms of it, but should somehow just push through it which I am unable to do. Even the current one doesn't seem to get it at all. I certainly don't want to scare anyone away from getting help, its just important to realize the mental health system is kinda flawed and its important to be aware that you can't just blindly trust the 'professionals.' I realize what I posted might have come off as painting getting help in general as negative.
you do bring up a really good point, the system can be pretty flawed... i've seen therapists who flat out sucked, some who were ok but not good enough, and also plenty of psych doctor's who handed out drugs like they were going out of style. my current therapist, though, has renewed my hope, and so has my current psychiatrist who spends a lot of time with me, listens, and works with me instead of dismissing me so i think there's a middle ground... definitely don't blindly trust professionals, but the help is there if you look in the right places
i found my infant son when he died of SIDS. the officers didnt let me grieve, and they dragged me out of the hospital room to be harshly questioned. they treated me like a criminal, and i wasnt even allowed to cry with my husband. i realize its unnecessary to be terrified by police officers, i will likely never meet the involved officers again, but here i am. certain ' jokes' trigger me, and there are times on facebook that i freak out ('remember the babies that have died' sorts of posts. its horrible to remind people of their pain, and people just dont think) i think the most frustrating part is that its uncontrollable. its not logical. my brain is broken there. im not even (usually) depressed about what happened, its sad, but i cant change it, so i accept it. i get more depressed over not having more kids yet, though it is in the plan. if it was a reasonable fear, it would be understandable. i will talk to our family doc, he doesnt seem to be one who would throw chemicals at me. he has also written mmj recommendations for patients of his that i know. he wont write the prescription, but thats just a matter of liability, there are other docs that focus on that.
ptsd dont exist after 10 years. this is the impression i get from doctors i talk to about my shit.. of course there is this. when you smash a sheriffs teeth out. the chances they could give a fuck less about you.
idk i have family member that were in vietnam and they still have issues, especially with things like loud bangs and helicopters flying over.
sorry that this happened. a therapist might be able to help writing or speaking to the officers who questioned you might help. a therapist might be able to guide you with that police officers often resort to harsh interrogation techniques too easily. also, they probably should have waited for a thorough medical report. if they waited for a full report and the circumstances of your son's death remained mysterious, it would be understandable that they would question you. however, as soon as they realized that they got it wrong, they should have apologized to you. just writing out what happened and how it made you feel could help hope things can get better soon!
PTSD can exist for any amount of time after an incident/experience... the DSM criteria only says it has to last more than one month and cause significant distress or impairment in functioning Mother's Love, what it really comes down to is how badly this is interfering with your life. what really makes it PTSD or not is the "disorder" part of it. either way, though, even if you don't actually have full blown PTSD, if you want to try to take more control of your automatic responses to jokes/officers and reminders of what happened, you are totally free to seek help from a therapist, and also use other means like meditation and mindfulness exercises, or a combination of those things. you don't need to be diagnosed with anything to ask for someone to work through some things with
