Damn These Dreams

[Bill Simmons]

I took meds 21/2 hours ago. normal knocks me out for four hours at least. woke yp having a dream I was lost in and airplane. HTF can you get lost in an airplane. I hate this shit.
I am setting here bout to fall out of the chair but I can not go back to sleep.

I want to go down stairs to smoke a cigg. but do not want to wake my wife. I need my own house.
It getting dark in the dream and got to fly IFR...need to file a flight plan...no Jepps...no charts...

This is just a dream. I am a good pilot...why would I dream this shit??

I hate f*cking PTSD, I hate it the most when it wakes me up in the middle of the night.

 

[Bill Simmons]

Wife woke up in pain, got to snap out of it.Got to give her the pain meds, Damn I feel like the weight of the world is bearing down on me. Need to try to go back to sleep. Got to be strong and fight. I need this war to be over. I need a break. been up for days dealing with all this. Hoping for a better tomorrow.

 

[rossjall]

Bill: Brother, I could have written that. It mirrors what I've been through the past several days. Most of my dreams contain a fight of some sort............so really weird locations.............and some really familiar ones (Nam).

 

[armyvetwolf]

I can totally relate to the nightmares...lots of times i am in struggle, fight or battle of some sort...sometimes involving friends other times my kids and family...army related...shooting, blowing things up, death and destruction...lot of times its alcohol induced, but most times its brought on by my PTSD I believe...

 

[Jimmy1]

Once your in therapy and if you are taking the right medications, your nightmares should diminish over time. I occasionally have a nightmare that will wake me up and that is usually because I have been going through a stressful time.
Alcohol is no way to deal with PTSD at all, especially if you are taking medications.

 

[Squirt]

Alcohol is no way to deal with PTSD at all, especially if you are taking medications.

couldn't agree more jimmy

 

[armyvetwolf]

First of all i am not taking any meds, I stopped yrs ago due to too many and i have kids to raise, second i rarely drink anymore, ever since i left the army...i see the nightmares as a form of dealing with my PTSD though unpleasant.

 

[Squirt]

Oh please dont think anyone was having a dig at you, its just a general bit of advice that gets repeated on here a lot. No one here is going to judge.

 

[armyvetwolf]

I just don't want people thinking i was drunk when i had these dreams, when i say alcohol induced, it can be after one beer! Think PTSD is the main thing causing these dreams, yes meds can too. But i haven't been on meds in years and do not feel I need to be. I have had therapy and have seen a doc. But since my last move, i do not have anyone to talk to here. I am not upset, just trying to set the record straight.

 

[Jimmy1]

I can totally relate to the nightmares...lots of times i am in struggle, fight or battle of some sort...sometimes involving friends other times my kids and family...army related...shooting, blowing things up, death and destruction...lot of times its alcohol induced, but most times its brought on by my PTSD I believe...

One beer won't cause nightmares, and PTSD doesn't cause nightmares. Have a read of these articles.
I think you may need to learn a bit more about it, like we all have.

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Whatever traumas you faced are your own personal ones to deal with. PTSD itself is just an umbrella term encompassing a whole gamut of symptoms. Hypervigilence, flashbacks, anger outbursts, substance abuse etc, etc
A nightmare is just a symptom, not a cause. But once you actually deal with your traumas, the nightmares diminish.
Of course they can come back, but usually after something like a news report on television or something else has triggered it. During therapy they should have taught you about triggers and how to avoid them or rid them from your life. Some triggers you might not be able to remove, like uniforms for some people.
Nobody on here is judgemental, but if you make a statement, make sure you make it a clear statement and then be prepared to have people comment. Loneliness is one symptom that all of us have dealt with because PTSD is a very lonely disorder. But this forum is one big family and you are welcome here. Just understand that it may take a little while for people to trust you, it happens to everyone. If you have questions, just ask, or even PM if you want.

Cheers and welcome again.

Jimmy

 

[armyvetwolf]

Thanks Jimmy, i will clarify alcohol induced. I rarely drink and when i do it's either a beer or a nightcap, such as a mixed drink to calm my nerves from a long day. There maybe some day during the week where I might have a few beers or a few mixed drinks because I had a really bad day. But in no way am I an alcoholic. Hell, a bad burrito can give me nightmares...LOL. I will give you an example of one of my nightmares. One night i had a dream i was back in Iraq. I was on the FOB and suddenly we were ambushed. I picked up my M4 and blasted as many insurgents as I could. When everything seemed calm, i had lost one of my boots in the process...but then some insurgents came back and chaos ensued...i got up to shoot one and ended up killing a fellow soldier in friendly fire...i woke up feeling horrible the rest of the day. That is just one of many i have had over the past 4 years. I find it helps to write down my dreams in a dream journal. I do know most of my triggers and try to avoid them, but the one i can't avoid is on the road. That I am still working on.

 

[Jimmy1]

Some you can't. I live below a flight path and have superhornets, c17's, c130's, blackhawks, you name it flying over all the time. It will only be for another few years till our boys leave home, then we are moving to isolation.

What do you mean by the one you can't avoid is on the road????