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Undiagnosed Ptsd Or Just Temporary Burn-out?

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AliceOz

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My (new) therapist speculates I have PTSD. I'm shocked. But I'm open to the possibility that is may be true, even though I'm having a hard time seeing it that way.

I was verbally abused at home as a child, and as a result left home in my early teens. I entered therapy immediately, and continued for many years, on and off as I felt needed. I have no doubt I experienced depression and anxiety during my adolescence while surviving on my own, but came out on top against all odds.

Flash forward over 20 years. I have a very healthy lifestyle combining exercise, good diet, daily meditation and reflection, hobbies, a loving long-term marriage, friendships, extended family circles, successful finance and career, living a comfortable modern life near the beach - I have thoroughly enjoyed my adult life and still do, traveling around the world, learning, growing... all that has lead me to wonderful experiences and connections I'm most grateful for. Hence, the surprise at being told I possibly have PTSD.

So here's what happened - I recently burnt out from a long-term job that I once thrived on. I figured the symptoms of burnt out were just that - from overwork. So I'm taking ample time off to reconsider another career choice, or go back to something more manageable. Initially, I fell physically sick immediately once I left (minor illness), and experienced some intense emotional flat-lining for a couple of weeks (the feeling that if I died that would be just fine because I had no energy or desire left - though I wasn't suicidal by any means). It was a horrible feeling to be that depressed, but I also figured it would pass. And it did. As I felt better I moved through deep bouts of sadness... on and off… seemingly out of nowhere... or sensitivity to things that normally wouldn't bother me... or sudden anxiety even when I was just having some fun playing sports or hanging out with friends… some of it was quite frightening and with depth I hadn't felt since I was a teenager… but I didn't panic and instead just went to find a therapist. The therapist suggested it might be PTSD.

Given that I take enormous time for self-care and stillness, while burn-out symptoms include adrenal fatigue as well as depression/anxiety… I don't see it what I have going on as PTSD… but am I wrong? Did the burn-out trigger it? If it's PTSD, in what way? I asked my therapist and they stated that it sounds like my childhood rearing it's head at this time...

I'm feeling better each day, and the symptoms have greatly subsided… they were extreme and intense, but not long lasting... a few hours at a time at most… and I'm already feeling like my normal self again… I'm cautious, but so far, so good. I'm still going to therapy because it helps to have someone listen as I contemplate a career change, and I want to make sure my mental health is on track then given my strong reactions...

Feedback from more experienced folks?
 
I suggest you get a second opinion. From what you say, you don't fit the diagnostic criteria for PTSD. That doesn't mean you're not having an acute stress reaction. That can be disabling in and of itself. See if you can find a trauma expert.
 
Hi, and welcome to the forum. :)

I don't see PTSD in what you describe. Are you familiar with the PTSD criteria? While you can't self diagnose, (and I'm not suggesting you do), I think it would be a good idea to read over the criteria and see if it seems to fit. If you think that it's not right, then chances are it's not PTSD. Some therapists jump to PTSD too quickly when the truth is that PTSD is just one of many consequences/diagnosis' that are a result of trauma.
 
I agree, a second opinion on that diagnosis seems warranted. Unless you are one of those that can maintain hiding your symptoms very well... but you don't sound like you have PTSD.. or don't meet the criteria... I really hope you don't have it... your life sounds very healthy and well rounded... so let us know what you find out. And you are right to question it.... thanks for sharing.
 
I agree with @KwanYingirl, (and everyone else who posted since I started writing this!) unless there is more to both your symptoms and your childhood trauma that you haven't mentioned. Now, that doesn't mean that this statement isn't true:

it sounds like my childhood rearing it's head at this time...

That can happen without your having to have PTSD. I wonder if this therapist isn't using the term somewhat glibly, when there is in fact a very technical definition (which you can find by looking up the DSMV definition). In PTSD there are changes to the functioning of various parts of the brain, which explains the variety of symptoms we experience. Hence the technical definition.

There are loads of other trauma-related conditions besides PTSD. From your post, I wonder if what you have might instead be developmental trauma, a condition with some symptoms in common with PTSD and some different ones. This happens when there is ongoing trauma or neglect during childhood that gets in the way of certain developmental tasks. The adult who results from this environment will experience problems in certain areas and overcompensate in others. Developmental trauma is extremely common but has yet to be recognized by the DSM.

If you want to look into this possibility in more detail, my favourite book on the subject - and how to treat it - is Healing Developmental Trauma by Laurence Heller. He also has an extensive interview you can watch on YouTube.

Certainly you deserve help with the symptoms you are experiencing, and it will be easier if you are treating the right condition. It sounds as if you have some really good self-care habits already in place, which will help you in your recovery regardless. All the best in your healing journey!
 
'Burnout' is one of the common terms for PTSD symptoms making it impossible to continue working in certain fields. Particularly adrenaline fueled lines of work. Military. EMS. NGOs. Sports. Etc. So that makes me curious. On a couple fronts. Because PTSD isn't static. If you've got exceptional stress management tools? Know yourself very well? It's possible to be virtually symptom free. I set my own life up -entirely on accident- to do just that for roughly a decade. With layers and layers of safety nets so that if I started to slip at all? One of my systems caught me and bounced me back up. A whole hell of a lot of people do this. And it's one of the reasons why delayed onset is so prevalent. It's not until someone loses a coping mechanism that their balance depends on, or experiences new trauma, that the rug gets yanked out from under their feet and they start getting symptomatic.

So there are some red flags for me in what you're saying that make me go Huh.

Which means I wouldn't rule PTSD out, out of hand. I hope it's not, for your sake. But if it is, it sounds like you've already got a strong foundation in management tools.

Some reading for you:

https://www.myptsd.com/threads/the-ptsd-cup-explanation.83659/

https://www.myptsd.com/threads/ptsd-basics.87467/
 
Thanks everyone for the feedback! I deeply appreciate everyone's opinions and for responding so quickly and supportively. I guess in the end, the PTSD label doesn't always matter so much, as recognizing how to best manage the symptoms I have (or at this point - had) been experiencing.

I took some PTSD tests on-line and failed them all 100%. The questions seemed to be geared to describing more extreme symptoms.

My work has (only very occasionally) involved coaching people with PTSD on a short-term basis. Based on my experience with them as well, I was skeptical of my therapist's speculations about me. However, sometimes we can't see ourselves accurately and since I was already burning out from overwork, I figured I didn't have clarity and that maybe I had PTSD as suggested and didn't know it.

@KwanYingirl (I like the calming name) - I talked with a peer friend/colleague who knows me well, and she didn't think I had PTSD at all. She treats people with anxiety/depression/PTSD professionally.

@sun seeker - the friend/colleague and I discussed how we all have trauma growing up (even if it's in very minor degrees) and that if anything, as you mentioned, my experience may be more in line with developmental trauma. Thanks for the book recommendation and YouTube - I will definitely check it out!

@EveHarrington - I am somewhat familiar with PTSD criteria, which is why I thought the therapist was jumping to conclusions. But since symptoms run a spectrum, and my particular symptoms were unusual for me personally, I'm receptive to whatever a professional and others have to offer ---

@ladee - I'm opened-minded to questioning myself. I certainly have developed strong skills to survive when life was horribly difficult and "grew up fast" because of childhood trauma/teen survival… and that bled into adulthood on some level… but I'm not in any kind of survival mode now and haven't been for a longggggg time… thanks for affirming that my life is healthy :)

@FridayJones - well, "burnout" is common in my field. I used to work in emergency response over a decade ago. I then moved to general coaching. You wrote "If you've got exceptional stress management tools? Know yourself very well? It's possible to be virtually symptom free…" That's certainly a possibility. It may be that my threshold is sensitive to certain triggers, and not others, but I haven't felt that way because I have a healthy lifestyle that keeps me symptom-free indeed. I don't think I want to test that out by dropping any of my positive habits. My therapist said that I dealt with my recent reactions extremely well. I mean, some people would have suppressed the tears or coped with intoxicants or thrown themselves off a bridge or beat themselves up for feeling bad or whatever. I called a therapist, talked to my spouse, family and friends, kept going to the gym and making time for quiet, gave myself permission to feel the pain and still went to relax by the beach and play, have fun etc. Who knows, maybe its high-functioning symptom-free after all... I'm going to reflect on that some more. Thanks for the insight.

Well, whatever the case, I'm feeling more and more stable each day, and for the last week, good overall. Hopefully things won't take another dive anytime soon. I did challenge my therapist about the suggested PTSD diagnosis, saying that it didn't feel quite right. They said they'd probably then suggest that I had an adjustment disorder instead...

"Adjustment disorder is a group of symptoms, such as stress, feeling sad or hopeless, and physical symptoms that can occur after you go through a stressful life event. The symptoms occur because you are having a hard time coping. Your reaction is stronger than expected for the type of event that occurred." - Medline. Adjustment disorder is also known as situational depression. I seem to be coming out of whatever it was that got triggered for me though. If it is as yet some latent PTSD or part of developmental trauma, combined with a situation that triggered it all, at least I've got the daily skills where the symptoms aren't prevalent if not altogether seemingly non-existent. We'll see how the next few weeks continue to go.

Thanks again for the warm welcomes from everyone and all the input. If anyone has similar experiences or suggestions, I'm all ears.
 
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Welcome to the forums :hug: I hope this place helps you. It's very useful because of the bulk amount of people who feel similar and understand. There is a lot of advice and support to be found here :) I hope that this amazing community helps you as much as it helped me, reading all the similar stories, and learning a lot along the way. Hugs if you accept :hug:
 
So it's been about a month since my last post. Here is an update on my symptoms...

For the most part, I feel more "normal" again. About once a week, I feel some anxiety or sadness for a short period, in decreased severity.

Last week, I got heavily triggered by an issue regarding money. My reaction was over the top. I was terrified. Even though I knew realistically that the issues was resolvable, emotionally, something deep got pushed. Only after I contacted my accountant and got the reassurance that it was okay, the anxiety disappeared. Some worry was normal, but the degree of the terror was not.

It seems that some wound of sorts is still raw, and when touched, it's reacts in extremes. I spoke with my therapist and she's still is wondering about it being PTSD, though she said that my symptoms would be a highly unusual and uncommon display. She said that I deal with it very well (healthy lifestyle and coping skills) and she doesn't have any other suggestions other then just to keep doing what I'm already doing. I understand. Some things just must be passed through, we can't just instantly get rid of pain. It scares me to think I can slip again, but I can only continue to treat myself with love and nurturing and hope.

I am returning to work next week, part-time... I will see how it goes. Originally, I left because of burn-out. I was hoping to find a better job. So far, haven't. So I will go back and try again. If I get depressed again, I will leave and take something temporary and easy as a place holder until I figure a new career.

Thanks again for everyone's listening and support.
 
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