Va Therapist

[oldschool1]

I had a session today that set me back...the therapist spent half the hour giving me a pep talk about how I needed to find ways to get better social skills..WTF ,I don't want to be social ....the second half of the hour was spent telling stories about the veterans that he has been able to help have normal, possibly even happy lives after their traumas [ none of the three stories were about combat induce ptsd]...[now the anger part] the therapist was not a combat vet, in fact he was not even a vet...I believe combat has layers and layers of trauma that only those of us that have experienced it are able to understand ..if I am going to be treated for ptst I wish the VA would hire psychologists with more training in combat induced ptsd, I really don't know what I am trying to say but I know it pisses me off that I am being compared to some one that was a bomb loader and has ptsd from all the dreams that he has had....ANGER

 

[FieldArtilleryGuy]

I agree, my therapist is not a vet either, but she has studied "combat PTSD" and she is the first to say that it's not normal PTSD. I don't know about layers, but I do know that we aren't like other people. Good luck I hope you find a better therapist.

 

[CyclePath]

I readily and freely admit my total lack of anything even remotely related to credentials as a therapist. That's why I see one. I'm starting to like mine, she isn't even a veteran, but I know she spends all day talking to idiots just like me. Not sure what to tell you other than hang in there and good luck finding someone that you click with.

 

[oldschool1]

that is great that it may be working for you...I know that they are trying , and I am not. I had no idea that someone could talk for a full hour and not really say anything of value to my situation. Sometime I think that the beast has eaten my mind and I am just one angry old man..stay the course and do not listen to my pissing about what may very well work for you...hopefully she is easy on the eyes, my last female therapist scared the hell out of me and possibly burned my eyes...like I said don' listen to me...hang in there

 

[Grizzly]

It may take you a few different therapists before you find one who truly helps.

Yes. I do think there are several layers to combat and its induced trauma. Maybe they aren't actually traumas, but some things have ways of impressing into our minds enough to become bad (or good) habits.

Take hyper vigilance. You don't need to have PTS to be overly hyper vigilant. Show me a veteran who isn't! (Unless they were in the AF band!). But we were trained either by military training or even just warrior instinct to have a very high situational awareness. At all times! That's just a layer.

Our trauma is much more complex than that of a rape victim or violent crime victim. Even in a way it's less severe as we have had some form of training to deal with potential life threatening events.

This is like an onion with many layers. We need to address each one, as each layer is a likely a separate trauma or near trauma / fearful event.

Keep going to therapy. Don't be afraid to explore more options of treatment. There isn't a cure to this shit, only treat and learn to manage the symptoms.

 

[oldschool1]

thank you all for the comments on my nonsense...the very best part of this site is that so far no one gets pissy..it feel cathartic to write what I am feeling and know that most that read it will have some understanding of what I am thinking ...THANKS

 

[vikingr24]

Grizz is right even though I think he meant to say Navy band. (Hehe)

Studies have shown that the overall trauma of a rape victim, in terms of its effect on the vixitm, is generally hgiher than a combat PTSD sufferer. And Grizz brings up a good point: our training makes the difference. I would add too that even though you may have had combat experience, you may have not been injured, as a rape victim always is. And rape is a very personal injury. I am sure there are degrees of that injury. I wish we could really quantify things better other than just surveys and questionnaires. Me, I just wish I did not have it.

Finding a good therapist is a personal thing. A therapist does not necessarily have to be a combat vet. I can think of situations where it might be a detriment actually. The main thing is you want a therapist you are comfortable talking with and gives you decent feedback regarding your condition. Pro's and cons. Positive and negative. Do you feel better after leaving?

IF it is something you don't like, find another one. It's a merry go round. But you have to go to one. I just found out every time I stayed away something comes up that brings me back. But better than morphine or benzos (or alcohol) right now.

 

[oldschool1]

this is where it gets tricky...I have compassion and sympathy for rape victims, crime victims, abuse victims and other forms of ptsd stresses ., but i can only emotionally feel my stresses and they come from my time in direct combat...the noise the smells the fear the guilt the nightmares and on and on ....since the va gave me the diagnoses of "combat induced PTSD" then I would expect them to employ therapists that have more that a cursory understanding of how direct combat stressors are different from other forms of PTSD, not worse not better just its own ...the chances of me being wrong on this are pretty high because i am wrong on most other issues, so I will drop this one....

 

[Grizzly]

this is where it gets tricky...I have compassion and sympathy for rape victims, crime victims, abuse victims and other forms of ptsd stresses ., but i can only emotionally feel my stresses and they come from my time in direct combat...the noise the smells the fear the guilt the nightmares and on and on ....since the va gave me the diagnoses of "combat induced PTSD" then I would expect them to employ therapists that have more that a cursory understanding of how direct combat stressors are different from other forms of PTSD, not worse not better just its own ...the chances of me being wrong on this are pretty high because i am wrong on most other issues, so I will drop this one....

It's good to talk it through. Don't worry about the right or the wrong. The thing about the VA is that they wash out a lot of therapists and social workers. So to find those who have combat experience and decided to take on the therapy / social worker role is going to be difficult in not next to impossible.

The other thing to consider. There is no hard treatment for PTSD. It's different for everyone and CBT may work for you while EMDR may be the worst thing you've ever done. For me, I functioned the best with CBT. And it's helped with other parts of my life. But...it has far from cured it. But I can rationalize my thoughts and at times make a panic attack a little less severe or intense.

Combat stressors are much more different. Using part of that onion peel analogy, it's just a layer. That is part that you need to begin focusing on. Also part of that combat stressor is simply "combat stress". The PTSD part, is not only a behavior issue, but an actual physical change in the brain, specifically the amygdala, hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.

There is a lot more too this all and more people smarter than me on this here that could or already have shed light on the subject.

The most important thing again is to get the treatment. You may have to switch therapists a few times to find one that fits. For what it's worth, for the first 6 months I hated my therapist. I hated going every week. I hated everything about her. And she wasn't a veteran.

 

[JarHed]

I wish I had some real answers to give you....but I don't. I've been down many of the same roads as everyone else here. I do know this, it's not easy and it's never going to be. You may not believe it but you're moving in the right direction. You've chosen to do something about your life. That's the starting point.

I agree the VA should do a lot more about things, but they're pretty screwed up and have always been. You have to be a good consumer of your own healthcare. I do know that a good therapist will listen more than talk. I had a good one; she listened to me talk about what was going on. Then she'd talk about what I said and then she'd give me 'homework', things to do to help my situation. You may have to get a number of doc's before you find one like that but it will be worth the trouble.

We understand what you're problems are because we're vets with the same. Doctor's don't have to be vets or have had those experiences to treat us. They do need the experience of having worked with combat vets to help us though.

I sometimes think of the movie 'Shawshank Redemption' where the one inmate crawls through a 1/4 mile of shit to get to his freedom. That would be easier than what we have to do to find a better way to live. Best of luck and stay the course.

Jar

 

[Raven]

If this is a therapist you have been seeing and you normally like, then understand that nobody can bring their A-game 100% of the time.

If this was a session with a new therapist, then understand that you are not going to click with every therapist and they all have different approaches.

 

[Richard Davis]

hello all I just found this website. I used to work for the VA as a chaplain until my own war time experiences got the best of me. I was medically retired due to my ptsd. I have some nightmare stories and some good ones as well. hang in there. you will get some good therapist and some bad ones. some that click with you and some that don't. not all are created equal.