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My Husband Doesn't Understand....

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CandyBunny

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I love him to pieces. But he's the tough love, "grow some balls and stop being a pansy" type of guy. It's not like he's going to tell a boy to stop crying or anything, but he'd be like, "this situation isn't that bad, here's why... if this happens, here's what you should do. Ok? Stop freaking out."

Today, an event happened that triggered my PTSD (un-diagnosed)... at first I avoided the angry neighbor trying to break my door to get at me (exaggerating here), then I told myself to grow a spine and take it head on. Once he saw me, he was all nice and polite, but you could see it in his eyes, he was trying SO hard not to blow up on me and being pissed at me... SO SO HARD NOT TO.

After the whole ordeal, where we compromised.... I went back inside the apartment and I cried for hours, I was too terrified to eat anything, I was shaking badly, I even kept a weapon close by in-cade he'd come back. I picked up my husband from work, told him what happened, and then to further prove that I was innocent, I told my husband to check on what the neighbor accused me of. He refused, I told husband that it'd take 10 seconds and to please alleviate my concerns that he might be right. He still refused, and then he got ANGRY AT ME, for not "dropping the subject" and for complaining about it. He got angry at me because he didn't understand why it was a big deal and that I was being a crybaby.

It wasn't the annoyed anger I am used to though, it was the really pissed off "I'm gonna punch you if you don't shut up" anger (for what it's worth, my husband never hits me... but that rage on his face says it all). THAT made me lose it. I started crying, shaking, panic attacks, etc. He half-assed hugged me to cheer me up, and I kept closing my eyes wishing I never met my husband, wishing I was dead.

When he left the living room to cool off, I was hit with a sense of dread. That there was no way I'd be able to move on from this, that there's no future for us, that he'd leave me, that I won't be able to escape the pain.... I was overcome with so much despair that I spent the last 3 hours eyeing the big giant pair of scissors and talking myself into and out of committing suicide....

That's when I stumbled on this site and I signed up.
Posting all of this out in the open made me feel better.
It's a distraction and I need a distraction. Knowing myself, I'd probably go to sleep and wake up in the morning as if nothing happened.

I'm an expert at pushing traumatic experiences and emotions down and forgetting it ever happened, or rather... pretending it never existed. It's my way of coping.... I guess.

I just wish my husband understood.... ... that you CANNOT criticize me or be angry with me and expect me to take it like a normal person.....
 
I just wish my husband understood.... ... that you CANNOT criticize me or be angry with me and expect me to take it like a normal person.....

Welcome to the forums @CandyBunny.

While normal people all have a wide variety of how they deal with criticism or anger (water off a ducks back to complete meltdown and everything in between)... One of the nice things about PTSD (Ha. Don't hear that often ;) ) is that we can learn to control how we act and react. Time & hard work, of course, but very different from -say, certain forms of autism- where triggers can never be blunted, or irrational thinking changed. Or disorders where medication is always needed, because an imbalance means that no amount of hard work can change brain chemistry.

In fact, one could argue that's the whole name of the game; changing how we react to the world around us.
 
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When I first moved in with my partner, I quickly learned some very valuable things about him....and very simple...once I took the time to step back and look at his behaviour on reacting to my behaviour.
Early on I had similar experiences where my emotions spiralled out of control. By the time he got home from work I was in floods of tears, hyper, wanting, needing him to listen ....I went on and on until he reacted in the very same way as your husband did.

All my poor man wanted was to come home chill out in his usual way, rest his body and mind.. have space to scratch his ass, fart..all the things men do and then we would have our interaction.....he only needs 20 mins or so to himself to unwind....but no, I couldn't give him that, and so he reacted the way your partner did, and I reacted the way you did.

So, I practiced stopping myself from spiralling in my thinking, grounding etc...took the time to speak when he is able to focus and listen to what I'm saying without overloading him....or at least when he appears to be listening ha.

These things do take time to learn but can be done. To be honest I find my partners logical way of looking at things very helpful...and have taken a lot on board...."this situation isn't that bad, here's why" actually helps me.....when he's seeing a situation from a logical sense and I'm seeing it from my emotional sense....see his explanations as being helpful rather than seeing it as him disregarding what I'm feeling....change how you view it.
 
I love him to pieces. But he's the tough love, "grow some balls and stop being a pansy" type of guy. It's not like he's going to tell a boy to stop crying or anything, but he'd be like, "this situation isn't that bad, here's why... if this happens, here's what you should do. Ok? Stop freaking out."

Hi, Candy Bunny.
In that scenario, you still can explain why that situation's bad in ways he's not perceiving, though; ask if he has support with that new found knowledge. It seems he's rather helpful, and certainly caring, in that he wants to understand and wants to help you feel better, realistically. You can use this with changing how you communicate (or: sharing more how things are from your perspective), build up on it. Doesn't ring as uncaring dude, sounds a fella really trying to have your back.

Today, an event happened that triggered my PTSD (un-diagnosed)... at first I avoided the angry neighbor trying to break my door to get at me (exaggerating here), then I told myself to grow a spine and take it head on. Once he saw me, he was all nice and polite, but you could see it in his eyes, he was trying SO hard not to blow up on me and being pissed at me... SO SO HARD NOT TO.
Can you work on distress tolerance? As you said, 'exaggerating here'. You're already seeing there's possible different interpretations for what's going on around you than what very survivalist mode perception offers. Kudos on that, therapy might help with that process.

When he left the living room to cool off, I was hit with a sense of dread. That there was no way I'd be able to move on from this, that there's no future for us, that he'd leave me, that I won't be able to escape the pain.... I was overcome with so much despair that I spent the last 3 hours eyeing the big giant pair of scissors and talking myself into and out of committing suicide....

I'm glad you're hanging in there and talked yourself off dying. The thing is, you can make that future, and most pain tends to be modifiable in at least some ways, you wouldn't get to know how it is to get better and better together if you went out.

That's when I stumbled on this site and I signed up.
Nice to meet you, and glad posting is already giving you something.

I just wish my husband understood.... ... that you CANNOT criticize me or be angry with me and expect me to take it like a normal person.....
People have, and express, their emotions differently. It doesn't mean you are or will be in trouble for it. It doesn't mean you're in danger necessarily, it doesn't mean they have an issue with you even, just that there's AN issue they're trying hard to work through, and you are compatible in how you deal with it together, or you are not, but that has very little to do with your worth or safety, if the person in question isn't abusive (and it seemed from your description he's not / has a grasp on his own emotions and rather firm.).
 
Hi Candy Bunny,
I must say that I just read your post and it really touched my heart. I will add you to my prayer list.
I am currently in college and your post oddly enough just happens to fall into one of the primary categories of my my research project for my psychology degree and while I had no intentions of that...you are an inspiration. I don't know what it is like to have PTSD myself but I have friends and family who do, that is why I chose this to study, for my project because I so desperately wanted to know more. It's hard sometimes for people to understand what they can't see. However I wanted to let you know that I have stumbled on a book that you might find helpful, it's called: "The Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Relationship: How to Support your Partner and keep your relationship healthy, By Diane England PhD.

Maybe you can located this at a library or bookstore and give it to your husband to read? My sister did and it totally changed their marriage. I wish you well.
 
I guess there's a couple of things to think about here. The first is, and I highly recommend it, seeking some help for yourself such as therapy. It sounds silly, but I find that talking to a therapist can help to relieve some of the burden on your relationship - it did for me, because I didn't need my hubby to be a therapist as much, just a husband.
The second is, maybe if your partner is amiable, to seek some education and support for him on what PTSD is about - deeper understanding may lead to more compassion towards your reactions.
The third is, that when your partner offers 'solutions' to your 'problems', that he might not be trying to be horrible. Men are programmed to want to protect us and 'fix' things. This can sometimes translate to offering solutions, even when there really isn't one. Some men feel terrible and kind of lost when they think about the idea of not being able to offer an answer to what's bothering us.

Good luck!
 
Sorry to hear about your struggles!

I think it is important to get your condition diagnosed and maybe just maybe you can get some much needed support. The first thing is to admit to ourselves Yes I have a problem...the next is to reach out and ask for help (this one can be quite difficult for people suffering from PTSD). Many tend to suffer in silence and think they are going "crazy". Some people love group sessions where they sit and talk to others about their issues...I hate them! My brain can't cope with being bombarded with peoples' often graphic issues and I end up with a massive panic attack. But please consider getting the correct diagnosis and THEN you can start you way to recovery...cheers :-)
 
You're story touched my heart as well. Therapy and education are key. You can learn to control, manage and better understand your feelings through treatment and start on the road to recovery. It is also vital that your husband become educated as well and be completely on board with supporting you through this difficult journey. It is just as important that he have an understanding of what your going through as you do. His coldness, anger, or "tough love" is purely a lack of understanding, couple with fear, confusion and possibly anger. Men just tend to express themselves in different ways. Sit down with your husband and explain to him what your feeling so you can start taking the initial steps towards getting your life back. You cannot do this alone..and you don't have to.
 
hi don't feel bad I'm a man going thru ptsd,agoraphobia,and paranoia my wife is the only one that works and i could see it on her face that she feels taken advantage of some times but i have a complex diagnosis and i took her to the therapist with me so that she has a better understanding and its like she feels its something you can get over quickly its compounded years of watching my mom being abused by my dad physically and mentally i lost 2 of my closest friends to gun violence and lost my mom from breast cancer all this happen with in 6 years and I know eventually my wife will leave. i use to walk around with an 8" knife all the time can't tell you how many times i came close to using it because the ptsd would make feel like someone is out to kill me so i rather stay home out of harms way i don't want to end up in prison or dead so i just stay home to minimize the damage but she doesn't see that she just sees that I'm home.
 
I'm nervous as heck, but I have decided on free therapy soon.
I just want an official diagnosis and opinion though, I'm not going for the medication (hate taking meds).
 
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