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PTSD

karlvv30 said:
I've never seen anyone explain it so easily. Thank you.
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I had a lot childhood trauma. Dad was an alcoholic, mom was paranoid-schizophrenic. They weren't bad people; it was just very difficult. I didn't learn the best coping skills. My family role models came from old TV reruns and friend's parents. I also started dating my wife when I was 17 and she was 15. She saw and experienced what I grew up with. She's been a Godsend since 1976.

I worked very hard to get better. I was doing well until I experienced something halfway through my military career. It pretty much destroyed what I'd rebuilt. I eventually got my "mojo" back until I retired and had to transition to the civilian sector. I worked with fighter aircraft and fighter pilots. My job was intense; very high A. I didn't engage the enemy. But I did fight daily peacetime and wartime battles regarding flying and maintenance schedules, limited resources, logistic pipelines, unrealistic expectations, personnel issues. Managed up to 26 airframes and led up to 230 men and women.

I never had time to look inward while I was in the service; the pace was too fast. That changed when I retired. I couldn't adapt to the slower pace. I made coworkers uncomfortable, uneasy with my intensity. I also had way to much time to think. Over-thinking, second guessing pretty much ruined me. Didn't have time for that in the service.

In any case. Talk to the VA to see if a service animal would help with your symptoms. There's any number of reasons for the way you feel. You're not alone.
 
above_all said:
I had a lot childhood trauma. Dad was an alcoholic, mom was paranoid-schizophrenic. They weren't bad people; it was just very difficult. I didn't learn the best coping skills. My family role models came from old TV reruns and friend's parents. I also started dating my wife when I was 17 and she was 15. She saw and experienced what I grew up with. She's been a Godsend since 1976.

I worked very hard to get better. I was doing well until I experienced something halfway through my military career. It pretty much destroyed what I'd rebuilt. I eventually got my "mojo" back until I retired and had to transition to the civilian sector. I worked with fighter aircraft and fighter pilots. My job was intense; very high A. I didn't engage the enemy. But I did fight daily peacetime and wartime battles regarding flying and maintenance schedules, limited resources, logistic pipelines, unrealistic expectations, personnel issues. Managed up to 26 airframes and led up to 230 men and women.

I never had time to look inward while I was in the service; the pace was to fast. That changed when I retired. I couldn't adapt to the slower pace. I made coworkers uncomfortable, uneasy with my intensity. I also had way to much time to think. Over-thinking, second guessing pretty much ruined me. Didn't have time for that in the service.

In any case. Talk to the VA to see if a service animal would help with your symptoms. There's any number of reasons for the way you feel. You're not alone.
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I know. Getting my mind to slow down is the hardest part. I've started losing words and that's tough. I was always the smartest guy in the room and now I can't remember basic **** when it hits.
 
I zone out really bad, and then get super acute anxiety over the dumbest ****. Like crippling anxiety over dumbass work stuff that after reflecting on it, isnt actually important. I have a thread on here about work stress because of it. The zoning out and not paying attention isnt fun either, especially when people are talking to you.

I think I am on this forum a lot as a coping mechanism.
 
keith089 said:
VA give me enough medicine to know out a small elephant. I will still be awake for hours and wake up in a sweat ball
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I used to take methadone for a severe back injury had in the service. Didn't abuse it. Used it enough to lower pain thresholds to allow me to work out and crank up my serotonin levels. Then the opiod crisis hit. Then the VA went to non-pharmacutical pain management. TENS units, stretching, meditation. Didn't work for me. My weight exploded when it become to painful to work out. Didn't help that one of my negative coping mechanisms is food.

Sleep. The VA used to provide a limited supply of ambien. I could count on at least three good nights of sleep a week. Then they said it could be habit forming and lead to accidents while sleepwalking. Especially as I get older; they don't want to be responsible for me breaking a hip. Never had an episode of sleepwalking. So what do they recommend? Video conference with a sleep psychologist; eight sessions. I dial in to the first session and nobody from the VA signs in. I send a secure message with screenshots showing I was logged in. They apologize and say their psychologist was out sick and they failed to let all the patients know. Ask me to reschedule and I tell them to pound sand (nicely of course).

The Atlanta VAMC tries, but it's broken in many areas.
 
The VA has been excellent until the past 3 months. I have been trying to set up a meeting with a counselor, but no luck. Its all or nothing. Either go see a psychiatrist and get put on meds or do nothing. I do not or have I ever been on medicine. The local psychologists arent very good for dealing with the anxiety I get. They deal with college kids mostly, so I come in and my issues dont really make sense to them.
 
300_whisper said:
The VA has been excellent until the past 3 months. I have been trying to set up a meeting with a counselor, but no luck. Its all or nothing. Either go see a psychiatrist and get put on meds or do nothing. I do not or have I ever been on medicine. The local psychologists arent very good for dealing with the anxiety I get. They deal with college kids mostly, so I come in and my issues dont really make sense to them.
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My greatest success was with a Dr Ryan Beck when he was at the Rome Clinic. I went there while my daughter went to Shorter (athletic and academic scholarship). Saw him for five years before he moved to lead the Trauma Recovery Program. Amazing psychologist. I think he's at the Trinka-Davis clinic in Carrollton. I also have a great prescribing MH MD.

I'm 64. There's a doctor Beck type professional out there you can connect with, somewhere. You just have to keep trying until you find him or her.
 
above_all said:
I used to take methadone for a severe back injury had in the service. Didn't abuse it. Used it enough to lower pain thresholds to allow me to work out and crank up my serotonin levels. Then the opiod crisis hit. Then the VA went to non-pharmacutical pain management. TENS units, stretching, meditation. Didn't work for me. My weight exploded when it become to painful to work out. Didn't help that one of my negative coping mechanisms is food.

Sleep. The VA used to provide a limited supply of ambien. I could count on at least three good nights of sleep a week. Then they said it could be habit forming and lead to accidents while sleepwalking. Especially as I get older; they don't want to be responsible for me breaking a hip. Never had an episode of sleepwalking. So what do they recommend? Video conference with a sleep psychologist; eight sessions. I dial in to the first session and nobody from the VA signs in. I send a secure message with screenshots showing I was logged in. They apologize and say their psychologist was out sick and they failed to let all the patients know. Ask me to reschedule and I tell them to pound sand (nicely of course).

The Atlanta VAMC tries, but it's broken in many areas.
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I’m talking for PTSD and sleep

I take nerve block shots, too 5 surgeries and 18 years for them to try it.
 
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