I'm not sure if this is the right forum - I guess I'm just trying to figure out what's within the bounds of normal. Someone recently suggested I might have PTSD and my therapist thinks, maybe, so I'm trying to figure out what that really means. I don't get angry, or irritated, I don't drink or use drugs - I don't even smoke cigarettes anymore, not for 10 years. The 'me' everyone sees is normalish. All of my fear is inside. Even if I talk about it. I can say, "I'm terrified!" But I say it like a normal person would say it, and it doesn't really describe what's going on in my head. It's like I'm the narrator in a book or a movie - not really able to accurately describe what's going on.
The girl in a horror movie, screaming mindlessly and running from the guy with the axe - If you stopped her to ask her how she felt, she'd just scream, push you away, keep screaming, and run. That's what's going on in my head. But instead of screaming, I just say, "Oh, yes, I'm terrified." So my question is, I guess - can it really be PTSD if I'm fine on the outside? If I'm *able* to function, generally-speaking?
The girl in a horror movie, screaming mindlessly and running from the guy with the axe - If you stopped her to ask her how she felt, she'd just scream, push you away, keep screaming, and run. That's what's going on in my head. But instead of screaming, I just say, "Oh, yes, I'm terrified." So my question is, I guess - can it really be PTSD if I'm fine on the outside? If I'm *able* to function, generally-speaking?