Do People Fake PTSD?

[Denna]

The first 15 years of my life were terrible enough so that I have not even been with myself or living my own life for the next 14... how can anyone fake it?

You could not make this stuff up surely. Having to wade through family and psychiatrists, trying so hard to get them to realise I'm not crazy, knowing all the time that the actual me is shut down and needs refiring up. Surely a psycologist would uncover a faker pretty quick.

 

[AdamAnt]

I think the problem is a system that doesn't use the correct criteria to diagnose PTSD. The existing criteria being that the diagnosing psychologist need not have an actual brain, a piece of paper with a gold stamp will work quite well in it's stead. Just my humble opine!

 

[bluecat]

Hmm, I found out yesterday that apparently I am a faker. I did the "do you have PTSD" quiz on this site and my result was that I don't have PTSD, but ASD. Acute for the last 10 years, lol.

I know I got the result I got, because I denied having problems coping with my job and family. The thing is, my family lives on a different continent, so yeah, I have no problem coping with them. I have no boyfriend, so no problem there either. And as far as my job goes, well, work is my coping mechanism. Thats how and where I numb myself now, thats how I numbed myself as a kid. Sometimes I lose it at work, but then I hide in the bathroom - so far still coping. Plus, I have a very hard time asking for any help or break, its part of my problem, something I am trying to unlearn.

The point is, diagnosing a psychiatric illness is not as simple as asking 20 questions. People are complex and they give the answers they give for their own reasons. Plus, it must be hard for the patient talking to a person who is not someone they trust, especially with PTSD. I couldn't imagine opening up to a psychiatrist who is not invested in treating me, but instead is just evaluating me.

I don't really know where I am going with this. I am just so tired. I guess just saying that its easy to say someone is faking, without knowing the person. It sucks when fakers take away from the benefits that are meant for the people who are suffering, but I don't know if they should be so much of a focus. We live in a society that is based on trust. If someone wants to leach off of the system, they will find a way. But I think the majority of people are honest. Maybe I am in denial, but I really think that.

 

[Iam]

Good points Bluecat. According to the quiz here I don't have PTSD either. Anthony told me not to put any stock in the quiz but that if I had a pyschologist, pyshchiatrist and my current therapist all saying I had PTSD that it was pretty obvious I did. Although he did also point out that I was also obviously in denial about it LOL!

I think we can deny our issues and give inaccurate answers simply because we don't see our issues. And then there is also, IDK, phases for lack of a better word. There are times when I am very symptomatic and times when my symptoms are so under control that there is no way I would test positive for PTSD. I mean for instance when I am stressed my startle response is thru the roof. It was awful all last year and half of this year. At the moment....my startle response is almost non existant it might be a little more sensitive than the average "normal" person's. So if I were to answer based on that symptom right now...or by the dr observing me...the answer would be "no" to hyperactive startle response.

It's just not that easy.....but I guess some people do fake it to get the diagnosis. All I can say to that.....they definitely have some sort of mental problem if that want this diagnosis, even if it is just to try and get disability. I would much rather be healthy mentally and able to work. Not to mention respond in a healthy way to every day situations.

 

[Jimmy]

Lets look at this whole subject with a different aspect.
Anyone with a mental illness would gladly trade it in to be totally healthy again. Whether having PTSD, Combat PTSD, bipolar, ASD, or whatever, and would love to be faking it so they could return to a normal lifestyle.

I believe the whole world is just waking up to how many people suffer from mental illnesses. It used to be swept under the carpet and not talked about, but with the ever increasing violence and destruction in the world, people are just becoming aware that there is a real problem.
This is especially prevalent with the armed forces. I personally know a guy who 15 years ago faked Combat PTSD to get discharged and is now living a normal life.
Back then there were limited cases; however, within the Australian Defence Force, the amount of soldiers deploying to war zones has increased one hundred fold over the last 10 years. Therefor, the amount of personnel returning with psychological problems has naturally increased.

Our VA here are inundated with claims and are making it harder and harder for people to be diagnosed. It's sad I know, but they were simply not prepared.

Forgive me if offend anyone, but I also know of numerous women who claimed they had been raped and just did not tell anyone. They even convinced psychologists and doctors; however, later on it came out that they were just seeking attention and wanted to hurt someone. So, if a person can fake that, I believe they can fake PTSD.

This is just my opinion.

I think I mentioned it in a previous post to this thread, that I pretend or fake having PTSD sometimes to try and make my life easier. Especially when in a confrontation.

Hope my gramma and all is ok.

Jimmy

 

[emmat]

Forgive me if offend anyone, but I also know of numerous women who claimed they had been raped and just did not tell anyone. They even convinced psychologists and doctors; however, later on it came out that they were just seeking attention and wanted to hurt someone. So, if a person can fake that, I believe they can fake PTSD.

That is very, very offensive, I have spoken to many women on this forum who were raped then accused by friends, family, police of lying because there is a vile perception that women just like lying about rape. The stats show that there false allegations for rape are the same as false allegations for other crimes, it's just disproportionately picked on by the media.

If you have to type 'sorry if I offend anyone' you know what you are saying will probably cause offence - don't do it. You have offended me, and every other person that has been raped then had to listen to some one trot out the lines 'Are you sure it was rape?' or 'Are you just saying this to get back at him?'.

The pressure put on people to drop rape charges is massive which allows rapists to walk free, and this kind of talk is part of the problem. Of course people who rape say 'She's lying! She's made it up because she's manipulative!' it doesn't make it any more true than the murderer that claims 'I didn't do it, it was suicide.'

In 2007 a government report in England says "Estimates from research suggest that between 75 and 95 per cent of rape crimes are never reported to the police." In the USA they believe only 16% of rapes and sexual assaults are reported, even though 1 in 6 women will suffer at least on incidence of it. Given how massively under reported and who prevalent the crime is, by constantly harping on the 'This one woman admitted to lying one time' just makes it harder for all the thousands of victims to tell anyone and get the support they badly require.

Sorry to be harsh, but I am so sick of this crap. It's made my recovery harder and it's made the recovery harder of every other person I know who has been raped or sexually assulted and that is something people don't deserve. No one treats the victims of other crimes this way. It's only rape that gets singled out everytime people want to talk about 'lying' and it is massivley damaging.

 

[Jimmy]

Its not that I thought it would probably cause, I just know that you can't please everyone. Besides, if people take offence, don't read it. Its an open forum.

What I was saying was the truth. It happened to my brother, by his step daughter. It went all the way to court, including them arresting him at my house in Queensland.
Then during the court case, she broke down, said 'Sorry Dad', and then stated that they were after money.

So, don't go quoting statistics to me. I was just stating that if a 17 year old girl can concoct a story and fool doctors, psych's, and police, then someone could fake PTSD.
That is what this 'Thread' is about. I am not insensitive to the people on this site. I was raped myself when I was young. So shove it.

 

[Deleted member 5760]

I'm not gonna weigh too heavily into this -- just a small point I wanted to add. A court environment can be extremely intimidating. It is often the case with rape/sexual assault that there is no physical evidence or no report filed, which certainly does not make reaching a decision any easier. But I suppose what my point is - I think you would be hard pressed to find someone who is not intimidated or just plain scared when having to appear in court. It is a high authority. This can actually make finding the truth harder.

Just a little 'everyday' example of how authority can be intimidating -

How many people have been driving along doing absolutely nothing wrong, seen a police car or speed camera unit and (without even thinking) slowed down even though they were not actually above the speed limit at the time? Out of an instant reaction to the appearance of authority.

 

[Jimmy]

I can understand that, but it was not the case. The ex-wife admitted it later too and was charged with making false accusations along with the daughter. It ruined my brother's life, his business and put him into depression for a lot of years.

So thanks for the input superjen, I know court is intimidating even without it being in session, and I used to run military courts, but I still stand by my post. It was just an example and a true one.

Jimmy

 

[Deleted member 5760]

No problem Jimmy. I'm incredibly sorry that happened to your brother, and I wasn't intending to point out your particular case or say whether or not it was true. It was more a point 'in general'. Just sharing my thoughts.

-Jen

 

[emmat]

You didn't need to cite a 'rape case' as an example of lying in a forum with lots of rape victims. You could have gone around it. You chose to say it and risk offending people, I'm telling you it offened me.

If you want to dismiss that and get all defensive instead of looking at what you wrote, seeing how it could be offensive to victims and apologising and learning from it then that's your choice.

I'm not calling you a liar, I am calling you out on an inappropriate and insensitive example given the forum you posted on.

 

[Nicolette]

If you have to type 'sorry if I offend anyone' you know what you are saying will probably cause offence - don't do it.

Emmat you have missed the point that Jimmy was using an example to support his discussion.......not making accusations and that is why he clearly pointed out that he had not intention of offending anyone. While I feel for you and appreciate your plight and that of women who have been raped (me included) I think you have taken what was written out of context. It was clearly an example and you have taken it on a totally different tangent defending something which did not need to be defend IMHO.

You are also making assumptions based on your experience by saying" it makes recovery harder" as I had no problem with what was written and I have been in a situation where a man's abuse was dismissed. It is also a bit dramatic to state "it is only rape that gets singled out everytime people want to talk about 'lying'" as that is not the case. Every time is not accurate.