Don't Worry So Much / Stop Stressing / Get Over It

[Blue Survivor]

So I was scrolling through my facebook newsfeed and came across this description of PTSD. It is perfect for those who don't understand what PTSD is or how it affects us.

"My vision has been tarnished by an illness that causes my brain to malfunction. My eyes work perfectly, but what I see if completely different to you. Because unlike you, there are certain chemicals acting in my brain to make it interpret the world as a darker place. Just keep this in mind. Because when you tell me thinks like "don't worry," "cheer up" and "stop stressing so much" all you do is make me feel worse about not having the biochemistry to be able to do so."

 

[Fadeaway]

That is perfect for depression and other mental disorders and it works well for PTSD too. However, I would change it slightly to "wiring in the brain" to fit PTSD better. Please correct me if I am wrong but I was under the impression brain chemistry wasn't involved in the PTSD aspect that it was a structural/rewiring issue hence the reason there isn't a drug specifically for PTSD like there is depression and anxiety.

Sorry for the negative spin on it, because it is absolutely correct in the fact that our brain does make us see things different and people telling us those things really does just make things worse.

 

[lostforgottensoul]

"wiring in the brain"

Trauma reduces the activity in the hippocampus, which is responsible for memory functions and helps distinguish between past and present memories. Changes in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that is responsible for regulating emotional responses which is triggered by the amygdala and the amygdala has increased activity which helps process emotions and is connected to the fear response. Its hyperactive which causes increased response to stimuli.

This is more circuitry then chemicals. The regions of the brain work more or less then they should.

 

[Deleted member 34328]

Hummm. I've always described myself as a broken person whose brain is wired wrong. I don't think I'd ever heard the words "wired" before in relation to anything other than when I'm describing myself. I find it interesting that this is a more common feeling or description that people use.

I also try to help others understand that I see things through coloured lenses. I sense things and read between the lines because I'm seeing things or hearing things differently...more intuitive than I was before PTSD. I don't know if that makes sense or not.

 

[sun seeker]

This is more circuitry then chemicals. The regions of the brain work more or less then they should.

So I still don't get why my psychiatrist is so gung ho to treat my PTSD with antidepressants. :confused:

 

[Deleted member 34328]

My therapist encouraged me to start on an anti-depressant more as a mood stabilizer and a safer platform to be on. I was having suicidal ideations and needed more help than what I could find on my own. I'm taking an SSRI and while I understood the explanations at the time I started the meds, I don't remember all the details. I am doing much better on the meds than off. Doesn't take away the anxiety - which forces me to keep up with my anxiety tools, but it certainly did have the mood lift that depression keeps you in.

Meds aren't going to treat PTSD, they help secure you from falling further down in depression. It will help you to be able to focus better, sleep better, more energy. Than beginning the healing of your traumas becomes a little more doable. Does that make sense?

 

[lostforgottensoul]

treat my PTSD with antidepressants. :confused:

Depression. Likely.

Anti-depressents dont work for me. Ive been on like 10 so i dont know. Seriquel XR is wirking for me. Tuning down the hightened intense emotions. Thats more BPD then PTSD really. Though their symptoms cross.

I take Xanax, only other medication i take for mental reasons though less of it, for my anxiety.

I dont know, my PDoc sent me in the anti-depressent merry go round and if i wasnt so active in "this shit is useless" then id likelt still be wasting my time and money on them.

Not all depression is a chemical "imbalance" either. Mine isnt. Ive learned that. Wish the damn Drs would!

 

[Fadeaway]

I was diagnosed with "situational depression" meaning, depression that was the result of my circumstances and not a chemical imbalance.

 

[shimmerz]

diagnosed with "situational depression" meaning, depression that was the result of my circumstances and not a chemical imbalance.

Wow! Really? They actually figured out that reality can cause depression? Well, slap my bum and call me Fanny! I thought that this obvious reason for depression wasn't going to be acknowledged until the 22nd century!

 

[BlueOrange]

The 2nd edition of the MHFA manual said "Depression is a chemical imbalance." In the 3rd edition, they took that out. The view is changing.

 

[joeylittle]

In my life, there's a difference between biological and situational depression. One, I can do a lot to manage on my own. The other, I can't handle without medication, at this point.

They feel different.

I think 'chemical imbalance' is tied to some junk science; however, I believe there is a kind of depression that is rooted in some sort of misfire/deficiency/weakening/dysfunction, on the neurological level.

There's some science to back that hypothesis; it just falters when it tries to get more specific about the cause or the 'why'.

 

[Gs172003]

So I was scrolling through my facebook newsfeed and came across this description of PTSD. It is p...

Or per my sister that claims she understands PTSD... "You're letting your past destroy your future"

Yeah. Ok